Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1889-01-24
STATE AFFAIRS.

Institutions of the State and to Exam
Inc the Books and Accounts OF the
Commonwealth.
JEFFERSON CITY, No., Jan. 1.-THE
committee appointed by the Governor to
visit the eleemosynary institutions of the
state presented their report to the AS
sembly To-day. The committee saws re-
garding the management of the institu-
tons they examined:
The present system of placing the manage
ment and control of the several State institu-
lions In the hands of separate ,ard appoint
ed 1or each is wrong. majority OF said board
generally being citizens of the town or county
In "nlch the institution they are to control IL
located, winch majority, without exception we
neileVe, are constituted an executive commit
tee, and On account of their location are called
upon 10 transact the greater part if not
all OF the business of their institu-
tons. thus placing the interests of
the State in the hands OF men who may be
sWayed by local interest or influenced for sell
nsn motives. n aking local and selfish interests
the controlling power in the disbursements OF
large sums of money appropriated by the State
Ior the support and maintenance of these State
charities. The contracts for supplies, and even
large building contracts are awarded without
pupilc competition, without any general adver-
tlsement, simply by soliciting in a pr yate way
bios from few favored parties In one lnsti-
tuition appropriations for additions, repairs,
oeS'' " Soo.Iop. anu over ScuUUO
drawn from the income of the institution, have
been used in contracts for which no bids were
sought by advertisement and no public compe-
tltion was had. and in the same institution the
supplies are purchased in the city in which the
institution is located, without seeking bids and
without competition, by adopting the novel
plan OF purchasing of one merchant for one
week, another the next, and so on in
rotation until the round of local mer.
chants has been made and then beginning
univ Ia
complaint as we'll as preventing competition in
prices. and exclud ng outside parties from any
participation in said contracts or from coming
IN competition with local merchants
That such a system is pernicious and danger.
Gus In the extreme there can be no doubt, al
though the present board may be acting in the
best of faith and obtaining supplies at reason
able prices (which your committee has no rea.
son to doubt. yet the precedent is dangerous
to the interest Of the State, and should be con.
demned as against public policy.
These anu other evils as giaring and danger
Gus in their tendencies can hardly be prevented
while each State institution is managed by a
separate board, a majority residing in the town
where the institution is located, and especially
SO long as these boards required to serve
without any compensation except such as arises
incidentally to their town by reason of the in
stitution being there located
In view of these facts and as the result OF
very careful inquiry at the several State insti-
tutlons, your committee is fully satisfied that
all the State institutions should be placed I'M
der the control and management of one gener-
al board of commissioners, on whom should be
devoved the fiscal and business management
Of all the States interests in these several in
st tutions.
The report says that there exists q necessity
for "a radical change in the management OF the
State University.
The cost of the maintenance of girls at the
Industrial school at Chllicothe is too high, the
committee says, and the burden Of $50 for
each girl per year should not be placed alto
geth"r on the counties who send girls to the
school
The ST. Louis School for the Blind is the only
institution in the State that did not spend the
full amount Of the appropriation made for it.
This school has SO, 4OS in the treasury to it's
credit.
The committee recommends that annex
be erected at Lincoln Institute for school for
the colored deaf and dumb children
mo library fees should be charged at the
State University says the committee. 1.-THE
students should be provided with books free,
that they would keep of the streets while at
school," For the improvement of the Normal
school libraries the committee recommends an
appropriation of $500 for the Warrensburg
school, 1900 for Kirkwood and 81 500 tor Cape
Grardeau.
The committee says the practice OF making
local kindergartens out of the high.grade
show to what extent this is done the committee
gives the following table:
THE UNIvE STTY.
From Boone County .....................1T5
From other counties SUPERINTENDENT 21-595
KIRKSVILLE NORMAL.
From Adair County ......................114
From other counties. .224-33S
wARRENSBURG NORMAL.
From johnson County 303
From other counties. ................. 227-53O
CAPE GIRARDEAU NORMAL.
From Cape Girardeau County,. .113
From other counties 1921
The committee recommends that the agri-
cultural farm be removed from Columbia, be-
cause 'such an institution can not be made
success under the shadow of the University"
There is agricultural college. the commit
tee says. ut has been transferred into an agri-
cultural experimental station, and the COM
mittee hopes that the Legislature will place its
seal of condemnation on the present manage
ment of the agricultural college, so-called."
Mr.. Morton, OF the committee, makes a mi
nority report. recommending the deposition Of
DR.. S. S. Laws, president of the university.
WHAT THE STATES BOOKS SHOWED.
The report of the committee appointed by the
Governor to examine the books and accounts OF
the State officers made report to the Assem-.
bly, to-day. The report is a volum nous docu-
ment 1t is signed by all the members of the
committee, which consisted of Senator Smith
and Representatives Kelly, of Johnson, and
Seay, of Dent. The different departments are
taken up one at a time, and treated as the COM
mittee thought they should be.
On the subject of public printing the commit
tee says that the State printing for the last two
years will cost more than sc. 900. The PRINT
ing contract made with the Jefferson City Trib-
ane will not expire until 1892 1T was made for
Six years.
The committee says the results OF the ONCE
of State Labor Commissioner have not been sat
and in the opinion OF the Labor Com
1t will not pay the State to MAINTAIN
it any longer after the manner that it has here
to fore been maintained. II the office is not
abo lished, the committee recommends that the
commissioner be authorized to employ local
agents TO furnish him with statistics.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics cost the state
SCI 600 last year, and the committee recon-
mends that it be also abolished
The records of the Railroad Commis SiOners,
the committee says were found to have been
kept in a neat and business-like manner, The
work under the railway laws enacted at the
last session of the Assembly, and the commit
tee recommends that in the revision OF the
railway laws the powers of the commission be
extended just little further than the present
laws go in the direction of the arbitration.
The recommendation of the committee that
the office of the State Register of Lands be
abolished something of surprise. The
says the office is valuable only Tor
its records, and recommends that the Leglsla-
ture pass a law abolishing it, which should go
into eff ect in two years.
An English court that recently
had to decide whether wild birds egg
was the property of the man upon
whose land it was laid, after elaborate