place where none is published and the county meetings of the town boards of supervisors determine the important actions of the county population. In the South, generally, the county was originally not only the most important, but almost the one subordinate unit of settlement, owing to the paucity of towns due to the plantation system. The county regiment, instead of being made up of town companies, was divided into district bands for convenience of drill and assemblage; the local management was mainly by county instead of town officers; the magistracies were mostly self-perpetuating, in the hands of a few leading families, instead of being elective or even appointive. The very settlements intended for towns often did not grow into such, but spread into disconnected plantations, and became counties; as James City County and Charles City County, Va. In South Carolina there were two systems- the county in the low country, the district in the Piedmont region; after the war the district system was extended over the whole State; in 1868 it was abolished and the whole State divided into counties. But these are purely artificial creations, and not even created with good judgment; they are of immense size, nearly double those in Massachusetts or Connecticut, and treble those in Virginia or Kentucky; Charleston County is larger than Rhode Island. They have_no courts, being grouped into judicial circuits. The real subdivision seems likely to take place within them. In Louisiana the corresponding divisions are called parishes instead of counties. The institution was brought from England by the first settlers: the county there was an old tribal settlement, sometimes a whole kingdom as in Kent, the counties or shires being gradually fused into the kingdom. The shires are therefore not divisions made in the kingdom, but small governments whose coalescence made the state. The name "county" was given them after the Norman Conquest, from their likeness to the counts' governments on the continent. At first here the English organization was copied: there were courts called quarter-sessions, justices of the peace with extensive powers, lieutenants, coroners or "crowners," etc. Virginia had the county in 1634, Maryland in 1638, Massachusetts in 1643. Consult Fiske, 'Civil Government in the United States' (1890); Pollock and Maitland, 'History of English Law' (Boston 1899).

COUNTY ASSESSOR, a public official generally elected by popular vote for terms of two or four years in southern and western States, to value all property liable to taxation. They prepare lists of owners and descriptions with valuations of property, supervising and equalizing such assessments where the original assessment is made by town officers. In Wisconsin and Indiana a county officer is appointed to superintend and instruct the town assessors. In Illinois and Ohio similar duties are performed by one of the other county officers. In Kansas town assessors have been superseded by county assessors who make the original assessment. See TAXATION.

COUNTY BUDGETS. See BUDGETS, AMERICAN; APPROPRIATIONS, AMERICAN SYSTEM

OF.

COUNTY COMMISSIONERS, officials appointed on boards, usually consisting of from

107

three to seven members, to deal with specified matters of administration in each county, of approximately half of the States in the Union. County Courts or board of supervisors perform like duties in other States. The duties of county commissioners, generally, are to control public finances, superintend county roads and other public works, and poor relief. Some county commission boards supervise police, township and other county officers and possess a limited ordinance power. In western and southern States they often license peddlers, saloons and other businesses, and establish county precincts and polling places. Experience indicates that more efficient administration is exercised by small boards of county commissioners compared to large boards of supervisors. The combination of taxing and spending facilities, however, always creates criticsm, and caused Indiana to establish a county council in 1899 to control the boards of county commissioners. See COUNTY COUNCIL.

COUNTY COUNCIL, a body of officials, comprising a specified number elected from each district and by the county, to control revenue and expenditure. The first county councils in the United States were established in Indiana in 1899, each to consist of seven members, four elected by districts and three at large. They are empowered to borrow money and issue bonds, and make appropriations for county expenses, the boards of county commissioners (q.v.) being the executive authority to carry out orders.

County councils in England and Wales date from 1888 when these territorial divisions were, for various purposes, divided into 63 counties with elective administrative bodies known as county councils. The new administrative counties were given the same boundaries to correspond as closely as possible with the 52 historical shires or counties, but seven of the latter, Sussex, Suffolk, Hampshire, Cambridgeshire, Northamptonshire, Lincolnshire, Yorkshire, were subdivided into two or more administrative counties, and London County was created. The population of the different administrative counties vary from London County with 5,000,000 inhabitants to Rutland with less than 25,000. The same administrative type of organization practically governs each. Since their institution considerable improvement has been effected in local government throughout England and Wales. See GREAT BRITAIN-GOVERNMENT; LONDON.

COUNTY DEMOCRACY, New York, founded 1880 and lasting till 1890, represented a "better citizenship" movement started in New York city and county, with the object of reforming Democratic organization and curbing the power of Tammany Hall. In 1881 their delegates defeated the Tammany representatives at the State convention; in 1884 they elected Mayor Grace; in 1886 Tammany united with County Democracy to defeat Henry George and elect Mr. Hewitt mayor, withdrawing its support when he asserted independence of its control. In 1888 Mr. Hewitt was defeated for re-election, and in 1890 County Democracy, uniting with other reform associations, ceased as an independent organization. See NEW YORK CITY.

108

COUNTY GOVERNMENT IN THE UNITED STATES. Local administration in the United States is not regulated by any legislation of the national government, but is determined by each of the 48 States acting independently. Under these conditions there are inevitably countless variations in the organization and powers of the local authorities in the different States; and an account of the system of local administration requires an elaborate study of the constitutions and laws of all the States. At the same time such an examination discloses certain important institutions resembling each other throughout the Union; and other features which are similar in closely related groups of States. These conditions are due to the historical origin of American institutions in those of England, to the constant intercourse between the various States, and to the conscious and unconscious imitation and adaption by each State of the institutions and practices of other States.

Among the districts of local administration in the United States, the most common is the county. Every State is divided into districts called counties, except in the State of Louisiana, where the corresponding district is known as the parish; and with a great deal of variation in the powers and organization of the county authorities, there are yet important features in common which mark county administration as fundamentally similar throughout the United States.

The American county occupies a distinctly different position in the general plan of public administration from the chief local districts in European countries. The name county indicates its historical connection with the county in England, from which the American county has developed. But in its functions and general importance the American county now differs widely from the English county; while it is even less like the provinces, departments, circles or other local districts in the countries of continental Europe.

Historical. To understand the development of the county in the United States, it is necessary to note the system of county administration in England in the 17th century, when the English colonies in America were established. At that time the important county officials in England were the lord lieutenant, the sheriff, the coroner and justices of the peace. All but the coroner were appointed by the Crown; but after the decline of the active control by the Privy Council, the local administration in practice was highly decentralized. The lord lieutenant was head of the militia system. The sheriff was the chief conservator of the peace and executive agent of the judicial courts. But local administration was mainly looked after by the justices of the peace, the justices in each county forming collectively a quarterly court of criminal jurisdiction, which also acted as the fiscal and administrative authority for county affairs.

In the American colonies counties were organized with similar officials, appointed by the colonial governors. But during the colonial period, and especially about the end of the 17th century, important changes were made in some of the colonies. In New York and Pennsylvania locally elected county boards were established, which gradually acquired the fiscal

and administrative powers of the justices of the peace. In Pennsylvania the sheriffs were made locally elective in 1705. Some new county officers and additional county functions also developed; the county treasurer appearing first in Massachusetts; local prosecuting attorneys in Connecticut; and in most of the colonies county recorders were provided to keep public records of documents relating to land titles.

At the same time the importance of the county was affected by the development of town government in New England and to some extent in the middle colonies from New York to Pennsylvania. But in the southern colonies the county was the main unit of local administration.

From the establishment of State governments in 1776 until the middle of the 19th century important changes in county administration, as well as in other features of State and local administration, were gradually introduced, both in the seaboard States and in the new States organized in the interior. The main results of these changes were to establish a radically democratic and decentralized system. The electoral franchise was extended to include all male citizens. County officials were made locally elective; and the number of such officials was largely increased. In most of the States an elective county board took over the administrative functions of the justices of the peace; while the sheriffs, prosecuting attorneys, county treasurers, county clerks, county recorders and the justices of the peace all became elective officials.

Since the Civil War there have been few general and permanent changes in the legal principles of county administration. But with the growth of the United States there have been important developments in the functions of the county and in the methods of administration. The county system has been extended throughout the country; and the increase of population and the general tendency toward the expantion of public activities have added much to the scope of county administration.

General Characteristics.

A county is one of the civil divisions of a State for judicial and political purposes; and at the same time is a district of a quasi-corporate character for purposes of local administration. Generally the State legislature has power to establish counties; and in the North Atlantic group of States this power is not limited. But the constitutions of most of the States now impose various restrictions, as to minimum area and population and requiring the consent of the voters. most of the States the organization of new counties and changes in county boundaries are now seldom made; but in some of the newer States the creation of new counties and readjustment of boundaries are still not infrequent.

In

There are about 3,000 counties in the United States. Most of the larger States have from 60 to 100 counties each. At one extreme Texas has 245 counties; at the other Rhode Island has five and Delaware three.

In area and population the counties show great differences; but for the most part. American counties are much smaller both in area and population than counties in England, departments in France, and provinces in Prussia, Belgium, Italy or Spain. Nearly two-thirds of the counties contain from 300 to 900 square

miles; and the most usual areas are from 400 to 650 square miles. More than half the counties have a population of 10,000 to 30,000; but in the North Atlantic States more than half the counties have over 50,000 population, while in the Southern States and still more in the States west of the arid plains many counties have less than 10,000 population.

Nine-tenths of the counties are mainly rural in character; but most counties contain urban communities, a considerable number have important cities, and the most important counties are those where the largest cities are located, as New York city (which includes five counties), Chicago, Philadelphia, Saint Louis, Boston, Baltimore, San Francisco and Denver. In most of these cases the county administration is partly absorbed in that of the city.

The comparatively small area and population of most counties in the United States necessarily makes them less important for some branches of public administration than the counties, departments and provinces in European countries. On the other hand the highly decentralized methods of administration followed in the States of the American Union adds greatly to the number of officials locally elected by counties. Not only local county authorities, but even the principal local agents of the central government are elected within each county, and are subject to little or no effective supervision by the central government of the States. The national government has no supervision or control whatever over county or other locally elected officials.

Powers and Functions. There are wide variations between the States in the relative importance of the county as an administrative district; and the powers and public functions of counties and county officials are far from uniform in all the States. But it is possible to note certain common factors and to call attention to some of the most important differences.

Very little in the way of legislative power, even in local matters, has been conferred in counties on the United States. They are considered in judicial decisions as primarily agents and instrumentalities of the State to carry out its governmental functions. The county officials thus act almost entirely under the provisions of statutes passed by the State legislatures, which define their duties and enumerate their powers in minute detail. Important questions are, however, often submitted to a popular referendum of the whole body of electors in the county, such as the location of the county seat, loans for public buildings or public works, and the prohibition or licensing of places for the sale of intoxicating liquors, under "local option laws. In 1909 a more general grant of local legislative power was made to the county authorities by the legislature of the State of Michigan. In 1911 California adopted a home rule constitutional amendment authorizing counties to frame and adopt their own charters of local governments.

are

But if the legislative power of the counties is small, its administrative functions numerous; and locally elected county officials are entrusted with the execution of the most important State laws.

In all the States the county is primarily a district for the administration of justice.

109

Courts of general criminal and civil jurisdiction are held at intervals in every county. The judges of these courts are usually elected (or in some States appointed) for a larger district than a single county; but a number of the more populous counties form each a judicial district for such courts; while more frequently county judges with a limited jurisdiction are locally elected. In any case the administrative officers of such courts (clerks, sheriffs and prosecuting attorneys) are, for the most part, elected within each county. In connection with the administration of Justice, courthouses and jails are maintained in each county. The county is also to a slight extent a police district, the sheriff acting as conservator of the peace; but no system of organized and disciplined county police has been developed in any of the States. In nearly every State the county is the district for the public record of land documents, and for the probate of wills, the administration of estates and supervision of orphans.

Except in some of the New England States, counties have to do with the construction and maintenance of the more important roads and bridges, and sometimes have charge of other local public works. But even the construction of main highways has until recently been done for the most part in a primitive way; and in the States where high class roads have been built, the work has generally been done by State authority.

In all the States outside of New England (and in New Hampshire) the county is a district for the administration of poor relief. Public almshouses or poorhouses are maintained; and in the more populous counties there are other charitable institutions. But such specialized institutions as hospitals for the insane, and schools for the deaf and dumb, are for the most part maintained directly by the State governments.

Outside of New England the county is a district for school purposes. In the most important group of States, covering the central region from New York and New Jersey west to Kansas and Nebraska, county school officers supervise the local school officials in the rural districts. In many of the Southern and Western States the county is the main unit for local school administration.

In many States the county is also a district for the administration of health and sanitation laws.

In connection with these functions and also as agents for both State and smaller districts, the county in all but the New England States is a district of considerable importance in finance administration. It levies taxes and expends the proceeds for the different purposes noted above. In most States county officials act also as agents for the collection of State revenues; and frequently also for the collection of revenues of smaller local districts. In the States of the South and the far West, property is assessed for taxation by county officials; and in many other States county officers have some supervision over local assessments.

The numerous list of officials elected in each county makes the county an important election district; and it is also a unit for the canvass of votes for officials elected in larger districts, such as members of Congress and State officers. The position of the county as an election district is

110

indicated by the importance of the county committee in the political party organizations in many of the States.

Measured by the number of functions and by the relative importance of the county in comparison with smaller local districts, the county is of most importance in the Southern States and the Mountain and Pacific Coast States. By these tests the county is relatively of least importance in the New England States, where on one hand the judicial administration is more highly centralized, while on the other hand the towns are local districts of importance.

But if a quantitive standard of the intensity of county administration is applied, the relative positions are somewhat different. Judged by the per capita rate of expenditure, the county is of much the greatest importance in the States from the Rocky Mountains westward. Second rank is taken by the populous Middle Atlantic and North Central States, where indeed the largest aggregate county expenditures are made. By this standard of per capita expenditure the Southern States fall in the third rank. Of the New England States in Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Maine, county finances are of some importance, but in the others they are negligible.

Until recently county finances were comparatively unimportant, but have notably increased since 1900. County taxation hardly doubled in the 30 years from 1870 to 1902, but in the next decade to 1913, had again doubled; and during this period county revenues and expenditures gained at about the same rate as those of the central State governments.

Nearly half of the total county receipts and expenditures are trust and agency funds, mostly taxes collected for the State and for other local authorities. County revenues and expenditures are about the same as those of the State governments; but both State and county finances are on a much smaller scale than those of the National government or cities.

The main source of county revenue is from the general property tax. There are numerous fees, which yield a considerable sum, as do also State subventions for schools and roads; and loans for roads and public buildings are becoming more important.

Next to general expenses, county payments for schools are the most important,-made up largely in the Southern and far Western States; in other States school expenses are mainly borne by other local districts. Next in importance are expenses for highways and for public charities, the latter being the largest item in the Middle Atlantic and some of the North Central States. In the New England States, the expenses of judicial administration are relatively of most importance.

County Organization.- No well-defined principle seems to have been followed in the organization of county administration, except that popular election has been extended to all classes of county officials indiscriminately, There is no authority with important powers of local legislation corresponding to the councils general of France, the county councils of England or the local diets in Prussia. In all but two States (Rhode Island and Georgia) there is a county board which usually levies local taxes and has general supervision over the local administration, though by no means an effective

control over the elective officials. In two-thirds of the States these county boards are composed of three to five members, usually called commissioners and elected at large. In some States, however, the county boards are larger and include from 15 to 50 members elected by the townships and cities. Such boards of supervisors are found in New York, New Jersey, Michigan, Wisconsin and Illinois; and there are somewhat similar bodies in Louisiana under the title of police juries. In some States there are intermediate types. In a few of the Southern States (Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas) the fiscal and administrative business of the county is still performed by the local justices of the peace sitting as a County Court, these justices being now elected in subdivisions of the county. But these larger bodies have, as a rule, but little more legislative power than the small boards of commissioners; and their size make them unwieldy for administrative business. An important exception is found in the recent legislation of Michigan, where the boards of supervisors have been given a broad and general grant of local legislative powers.

In a few States the powers of taxation and appropriations are placed in a body distinct from the county board, as in Indiana, where there has been established (in 1899) in each county a county council of seven members in addition to the board of three county commissioners; while somewhat similar results have been secured in other ways in some of the smaller New England States. In Cook County, Illinois, and some New Jersey counties the president or chairman of the county board has some special powers. In Georgia the ordinary is the chief county officer. But this separation of powers is as yet exceptional.

Besides the county board there are a considerable number of other county officials, most of them chosen by popular election. These elective officers are largely independent within their own sphere; and there is no effective supervision either by the county board or by any one of the officials being clearly recognized as the chief executive officer of the county.

The sheriff is the oldest of the county officers; but he has lost much of the power and dignity of the English sheriff. He still retains some relics of former authority as chief conservator of the peace; but for the most part is now a ministerial officer of the judicial courts, to execute their warrants and decrees. The public prosecutor has now become one of the principal county officials in some of the States; and in counties containing large cities, such as New York, Chicago, Philadelphia and Saint Louis, the importance of this office is more fully realized. In several cases it has been a stepping stone to the governorship of a State. The office of county treasurer is usually one of the most lucrative; and is important as the financial agent not only of county funds, but also as the collector of State revenues and sometimes also the revenues of local districts within the county.

Other elective county officials of less importance are the county clerks, court clerks, recorders of deeds, auditors, assessors, school commissioners, surveyors and coroners. The titles of some of these officials vary in the different States. In the New England States there are comparatively few county officers; and in Rhode

Island there are only two- the sheriff and clerk of court - both of whom are chosen by the general assembly. On the other hand, there are in some States additional elective officials, besides those named above; and in most of the States there are also a number of appointed officials, such as poor commissioners, road superintendents and health officers.

County officers in the United States are usually elected for terms varying from two to six years. In the older States east of the Mississippi River, the terms of different officers often vary and overlap. West of the Mississippi most of the States have a uniform term of two years for county officers, and all terms expire at the same time.

In most counties the subordinate staff is small, and subject to change with the frequent changes of the elective officers. In the more populous counties, the number of deputies, clerks and other employees is larger and of more importance; but in most cases they remain under the patronage and spoils system. The merit system of civil service has been applied to some extent only in a number of the larger New York and New Jersey counties and a few isolated counties in other States.

There is some State administrative supervision over county school officers; and more recently in about half the States over the assessment and collection of State revenues by county officials, and in a number of States over county road officers in the construction of Stateaid roads. But there is no effective State control over sheriffs and prosecuting attorneys; and no general system of State supervision.

There can be no doubt that county government in the United States lacks systematic organization, and that there are too many elective offices. The numerous list of positions and the slight importance of many of them makes impossible any real knowledge or discussion on the part of the voters of the merits and demerits of candidates. Elections, especially in the more populous counties, are usually determined by the success of one party ticket, and the effective choice is thus made in selecting the party candidates. This has tended to strengthen the influence of party machines and bosses; and in many cases county offices have been filled by politicians of the lower types. In rural counties a popular candidate may more often secure his election on personal grounds; and there have been some important cases of successful independent candidates in populous counties. But as a rule, comparatively little public attention is paid to the election of county officials. The short terms promote frequent changes and prevent efficient management in the offices, many of which are purely administrative and with no political functions. At the same time the duties of the county officials are of no little importance; and as their importance is steadily increasing, there is little serious need for decided changes in the organization of the county administration.

During the last few years there has been increased attention to the county government, especially in States containing large cities; and proposals for important changes in organization have been urged, notably in New York, New Jersey, Illinois and California. In the latter State several counties have adopted home rule charters making important changes. Under the

111

Los Angeles County charter, the only elective officers are the supervisors, sheriff, district attorney and justices of the peace. Other county officers are appointed by the supervisors and constables are appointed by the sheriff, all from civil service lists.

To Summarize. The county in the United States has developed from the English county, but the organization of the county administration has been thoroughly decentralized and in fact disorganized by the radical extension of popular elections for all classes of officials. Most of the 3,000 counties are smaller in size and social importance than the principal districts of local administration in European countries; and the field for administrative action is necessarily less important in some respects. But the decentralized system of State administration adds to the number of locally elected and appointed officials in the counties. The administration of justice, roads and bridges and poor relief are the principal branches of county administration; while there is some county supervision of public instruction in most States, and the county is the main local unit for school purposes in some of the Southern and far Western States.

The principal county authority is the locally elected county board, organized in various ways, with administrative and taxing powers, but with little local legislative authority. Among the numerous other elective officials are the sheriff, prosecuting attorney and treasurer; but there is no clearly defined chief executive, and the county administration should be more systematically organized to meet the increasing importance of the functions exercised. There should also be more effective State supervision over the county officials who act primarily as agents for the enforcement of general State laws. Many counties are too small in area; and in the larger States there is need for local districts larger than the county.

Bibliography. Fairlie, John A., Local Government in Counties, Towns and Villages' (Chaps. 4-7); Annals American Academy of Social and Political Science (May 1913); American Political Science Association Proceedings (1911, pp. 61-121, 1913, pp. 281-291); Publications of the Short Ballot Organization; United States Census Reports on Wealth, Debt and Taxation; Gilberton, H. S., The County.' JOHN A. FAIRLIE, Professor of Political Science, University of Illinois.

COUNTY-SEAT, the village, town or city in every county selected as headquarters for the county administration and containing the courthouse, including offices for the prominent officials and the jail. The most prominent building is frequently selected as the county courthouse in scattered farming communities. The legislatures usually select the county-seats and can change them, but west of the Alleghanies, in about half of the States, a local popular vote under constitutional provisions is required for the purpose. As county-seat the location assumes importance, being the principal — although not necessarily the largest community in the county, concentrating there the public business; and in newly settled regions or territories there is frequently great rivalry to secure this selection, while efforts are sometimes made to have a chosen location changed.