Phillipsburg herald. [volume] (Phillipsburg, Kan.) 1882-1905, 1889-03-08

The state over sou on similar ac5ount, and that
ne refuses 70 pay the same. Legal proceedings
the former account, but for some reason not dis
closed 70 tnls committees aiGnouSn dlllgenI he
ceedings were dismissed. This COMMITTEES is con
WINGED that legal steps should be at once lnstI-
ments against these parties Allowing these
matters to remain In this unsettled condition
Tenth-The committee 1nds that in letting the
contracts Tor supplying the penitentiary with
-four beef lumber, and other supplies, the war
den and directors only exercised proper and nee
eSSary precautions. and there Is nothing to sh0F7
Ehat there has been dishonesty, unfairneSs or
faVOritism on the part Of the penitenuaTy officials
IN connection with the same.
EleVenth-The committee Endorses and
cOmmends the action Of the directors
for the care exercised In the purchase Of the
sewer pipe. ana is satisfied that the best inter
eSts OF the state were subSerFed by the use OF the
pipe finally selected.
Tyelfth-Charges of fraud. dishonesty and
Acknowledgement have been made against the
directors of the penitentiary In reference to the
manner in which the appropriation Of 5000 By
the legislature for the purchase Of an electric
light plant was expended. The committee finds
that these charges are Jrnfounded: that the ex-
penditure Of 500 OF this fund for the expenses
incurred by the directors in making such an in
Yestigatfon of electric light systems as would en-
able them to act inJslligently in this matter was
Justhable, and that the cost OF the electric light
plant now IN use at the penttenCiary was several
thousand dollars less than such plants usually
cost 1t is not improper to say in this connection
that an attorney Of the Edison company
means committee during the present session OF
the legislature. that his company had put in the
e5sG'E 6Ss 81 P g the peniEehfy at an &C
Thirteenth-The present method Of disposing
OF the coal output or the peDlJenCary Nine IS It
is believed the facts developed during this inFes-
tlgatton clearly show, is very far from being for
the best interests OF the state. tits shown that
II mas not been the custom 20 give any notice, by
publication or otherwise, when or how the con
LE9St HOuIu po let SQL1 mas 26sn pt&gLl-
calIy prevented AT the last three IeLGLeS on THIS
contract it has been awarded to D n. Barnes
without even giving other parties an opportunity
to OfIer to take It on any terms. And, while the
testimony shows that 1t actually costs cents to
produce bushel OF coal at the LeaVenWorth
mines, operated outside of the penitentiaFy, the
penitentiary coal contract has been let to D. n.
barnes for 8 cents per bushel Of eighty-fiVe
pounds This Is unfair and unjust to the legttt-
mate coal operators Of the state
who are required to produce coal
has been Shown. the penifentiaFy coal IS un
questiOnably the best prepared coal in the state.
The system Of screenage which has been intro
any Of Lna other mines in Kansas and it is a By8-
tenn that would be difficult If not impossible to
Introduce where coal is produced by fairly paid
labor. Previous to the year 1886, the price OBJ
per buSheI While Barnes claimed that he could
not afford to pay more than six cents for this coal
the facts show that he had made extraordinary
put In 1885, when he was under contract to pay
seven cents for lump coal. In accomplishing this
thousand dollars for his half interest In the coal
output for six months, and to DaCify d. j. Keller,
OF O fancied i gri eva I on Account Of
the manner in which he had been treated
mously gave him $3.50 to soothe his wounded feel
1ngS The recital OF the facts in relation to this
coal business Is Che strongest aFgumenE mat
could be urged against the practice OF awarding
contract Of this character to some favored per-
son, to the exclusion OF all others who might, II
compete for the same. It is the deliberate Judg-
ment OF this committee that the coal contract
should be awarded 20 the highest responsible DID
der; that public advertisement for thirty days Of
the letting OF the same should be made in at
least one paper IN the larger cities OF the SLaGe
that, Ia OrleF to prevent dangerous combinations,
the directors should reserve the right to reject
any ana all bids, and other safeguards should pc
adopted to protect the interests of the state,
which ordinary business prudence would readily
suggest No coal should be sold to private Gus
toners, accept to what is described as local Wag-
on trade and this coal should be sold under the
direct and immediate supervision of the warden.
should be sold exclusively for cash. and the price
of coal to this trade should be at least cent per
bushel more than the price to the contractors.
Some better checks should be adopted for
the protection OF the state against possible fraud
in the manner OF Weighing and delivering coal.
The pit cars should be weighed they arrive
loaded with coal at the top of the shaft. and a
careful record kept of the weight. shipping
clerk should be employed to take an account of
the coal actually shipped by rail from the mine,
OF all coal shipped to the state institutions, the
sold to the local wagon trade, tbs grades Of coal
In every instance and a full ana explicit report
thereof should be made to the mine supertnten-
dent and the chief clerk OF the penltenttary. In
a word, everything should be done In the man
might 1aIrIy be considered necessary 70 protect
the interests of the state and to do Justice at the
same LiIn6 70 Otn6F persons engaged IN Inc cQal
business. The state cannot afford to allow the
honest and legitimate industries Of its citizens
to be oppressed and crippled by compelling them
to compete, upon an unfair IoOtlng, with Ine Ia
Dor Of its cOnV1CtS. If there ever was sufficient
excuse for giving contractors eighty-hve pounds
OF coal tOGne pushel, When ghey only alloW eignLy
pounds to their customers, for reasons hereInbs-
fore recited that excuse exists no longer
Fourteenth 1.-The resent method OF supplying
the state institutions with coal is faulty in the
extreme. There are absolutely no checks or
safeguards thrown around it whatever. Coal is
shipped from the penitentiary mine to these in
situations upon orders received from the suDeFtn-
tendents, or other persons who assume to have
authority without any question. These orders
are sent by mall by Telegram d, by telephone YER
bally and probably by other even easier and
be invented, Instances have been brought TO
fine 9ftenfiOn OF the COMMITTEES in which Several
carloads of coal have been shipped according
to this hap-haZard, sHp-shOd method, and after
their arrival at their place of destination have
been allowed TO remain standing upon the side
track subjected to the piracy OF the army OF petty
coal thieves that 1nfeSt our lines OF railroads. IOr
many DAYS at q time On account Of this mex
cusabIe lOOseness in the management OF this
branch OF the business, the increase in the con
sumption OF coal at the state institutions, as
shown by the Warden's report, has been some
thing marvellous, amounting in some Instances;
even more, in one year. For a verihcati0n of this
statement, reference is made to the WardenS
report for the last nscal year. without going
further into Details it may be stated that the ag
gregate increase in the consumption OF coal at
nine SttL6 6Ac1ll14LlS tLlS
diers' Orphans home, which, fortunately, did
not enter upon the consumption of coal until 1888,
the aggregate increase in the consumption OF coal
for the fiscal year ended June 80, 1885. over the
same period OF 1887 was 1857 bushels,
valued at sl1.S .45-an increase Of nearly Sc
Usr cent? There may have been some inn
DrOVementS made during this period in the fuel
consuming departments OF these lnstititution9 20
partially explain this eXtraordlnary increases DuI
We ara Sattshed that if more prudent and careful
management was adopted a great saving IN
money would result TO the SCate, ana the ADVERSE
criticisms and suspicious that such unbus1neSS-
ike methodist naturally engendeE would be pre-
vented. For the reasons referred to, and others
that naturally suggest themselves, the present
methods of supplying the state institutions with
coal should be radically changed. EsTlnlJeS
should be carefully made Of the amount OF coal