The Weekly Kansas chief. [volume] (Troy, Kan.) 1872-1918, 1878-02-14
The Poor Farm.

The Poor Farm.
1t is the universal experience, concerning pub
lie officers, that the more labor and responsible
ty they are charged with, and the less pay they
receive for it, the more thankless is their posi-
ton. There is no end to fault finding. and
growing, and cursing, at the expense of sucb
persons. While they giving their best en-
deavors to subserve the public interest, there is
always a set of men, generally irresponsible and
inscriptions, who Keep mp constant chorus
against the acts Of the officials, charging them
with neglect, extravaganza, and even corruption,
for the sake of keeping themselves in public
view by their clap-trap. and earning cheap
reputation for watehfulness over the public good
And it will invariably be found, that the men
who pay nothing toward bearing the public ex-
pense, are the most exacting in having their in
terests protected, ard howl the loudest about
the exfravagance of officials. Members of a
School Board, who receive nothing for their ser
vices, are subjected to more censure and abuse
than the President of the United States ought to
submit to- Boards of County Commissioners,
who have a load of labor aud responsibility upon
their shoulders, are marks for everybody to curse
at They are cnrsed for everything that goes
wrong, for everything that does not go at all,
and receive no credit for the good they do-that
is, from the large army of cheap shysters and
fault-fnders.
The appointment of Supe rintendent Of the
County Poor farm, last we ek, offered an oppor-
tunity for an able-b bodied howl for that master
of cheap demogoguery, the editor of the Troy
BallefiR. in the last nine months, he has done
more bowling about County expenses aud the
impositions upon the tax payers, than was heard
in ten years previously from the tax payers them
selves. 1t matters not that the Board has been
decreasing the tax, year after year, he keeps up
the howl all the same. 1t is his best-in fact,
his only hold, aud he must work the lead, or
quit And while bowling about the impositions
upon taxpayers, let it be borne in mind that he
does not pay taxes to the amount of an old Bung-
town copper. The Commissioners hired superiu-
tendent of the Poor Farm, and agreed to pay
him about 500 more than somebody else propos-
ed to take it at. If the Bulletin had got the
County printing, the Board might have paid the
Superintendent of the Poor Farm 1000, and it
would have him all right; but as it did not get
the printing, the letting of the Poor Farm was
an imposition upon the Taxpayers.
The facts about the Poor Farm are these: The
Board did not propose to let out the Superinten-
dency to bids, and did not ask for propositions.
They proposed to hire a man, at a salary that
would be satisfactory to both sides, and man
whom they considered suitable for the place, and
not anybody who came along aud agreed to work
the cheapest. One year ago, the Board tried the
experiment of hiring and paying Superintend-
ent of the Farm, and furnishing and stocking
the farm, instead of the old plan of renting the
farm to the person who would agree to pay the
most rent, and board the paupers cheapest.
They appointed Matthias Stockbarger Superin-
tendent, and the February meeting was the
time for making contract for the ensuing year.
Mr.. Stockbarger wanted an increase of salary,
but there was some difference between him and
the Board as to the amount. Others hearing of
il, supposed that the lowest bidder would get it,
and accordingly put in sealed bids. Mr.. Stock
barger was re-appointed at $500 a year, or $50
less than he had asked, which was about 500
more than the lowest bidder. Several persons
who put in bids are personal friends of ours and
of course we should have been pleased to see
either of them successful; but under the circum-
stances, we think the Board did right, and every
farmer, who knows the facts, or who has had an
opportunity to visit the Poor Farm during the
past year, will agree with us.
Five hundred dollars year is certainly little
enough for hard-working farmer to live on,
and attend to a crowd of paupers, of all ages and
conditions. When Mr.. Stockbarger and his wife
went on the farm, both it and the paupers were
in q very bad condition. Everything was to be
done, and all the implements, &c, procured,
for running the farm under the new system. At
the end of the year, it is of the best kept
farms in the County, and the paupers are clean
and tidy. Every pauper who is able to work, is
made to labor on the farm. A crop of wheat
was raised, the past Summer, and in order to
get it cut without expense to the County, Mr..
Stockbarger took his paupers to labor for neigh
boring farmers, in exchange for the use of ma
chino to cut his wheat. There are now $500
bushels of corn in crib on the farm, and 2400
pounds of pork in the cellar and smoke-house.
There will be corn to sell, and the farm will sus-
tain the occupants in everything that can be
raised on farm. Only groceries, clothing, and
doctor bills will have to be paid by the County.
II all the paupers in the County, whose condition
and circumstances would admit of it, were COM
PEELED to live on the farm, instead of Tecei wing
support on the outside, the pauper expenses Of
the County would be greatly lessened.
This is all there is to the Poor Farm buggaboo.
With such Superintendent as is now on it,
who has raised almost enough surplus corn to
pay his salary, the howl about paltry one hun
dred dollars will be music wasted.
LET REPUBLICANS TAKE NouCE.-For some
weeks the Bslletia has been making appeals to
Democrats, in language which cannot be con-
strued into any other meaning than appeals to
them to cease patronizing the Chief. The editors
private appeals, to the same end, are said to be
ahject in the extreme. We have never yet ad-
vised . Republican not TO take the Bsllefin but
We call ths attention of Repnblicansi in Doniphan
County to this favorite game of the Bulletin. 1t
boasts of its many Republican supporters, ap-
peals to Democrats to not pstronize the Chief
and boasts that Doniphsn County is soon going
to be Democratic. Perhaps Republicans will soon
conclude that is time to skinny on their own
side,
DEATH OF THE Pore Pope Plus IX died at
Rome, on Thursday, February 7th, at 4:57 P. NJ,
aged almost s6 years. His name was Giovanni
Maria astai-Ferretti. He was the son of an
italian Count, and was born in sinigaglia, May
18th, l792. He received Priestly orders in 1919 !;