Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1890-11-15
EIGHT OF THEM.
Kansas Has Eight Charitable Institutions,
An Under Control Of One Beard, Who
Spend One-Third OF Thar Time
Looking After Them.
Their Report, Here Given in Part, Shows
Something Of Their Methods. and
an Idea OF the Cost to the
State,

TOPEKA, KAN, November THE board o
made their report. 1t contains the following
In supervision of the affairs of these inst
tutions, the board visits each one monthly
audits all accounts, approves the estimates
for supplies for the following month, and al
the same time examines carefully as to the
condition and health of the inmates, guam
tity and quality of their food, and whert
schools are conducted, into the management
thereof. An inventory is made every si1
months of all the property Of the state al
each institution. When it is considered that
there are nearly $500 inhabitants, including
officers and employees, in our eight charitable
institutions, the work of conducting them
| all properly is seen to be no easy task. Fully
| one-third of the time of the members OF the
board have been given to these duties, and
every part of the work has received careful
attention at our hands.
Supplies needed for the several institu-
lions, not of perishable nature, are bought
by the board every six months, after lnvlt-
ing the widest competition by advertising,
the rule of the board being to purchase of
the lowest bidder, giving Kansas men and
products the preference. Until last year
meat and butter consumed by the institutions
were not so bought. Six months prior to the
end of this biennial period the board con-
cluded to buy meat and butter on the same
plan as other staple articles. Some criticism
was made upon this action in localities, but
the result has been saving to the state, on
the meat supply alone of over $500 per
month from the cost when purchased of the
local butchers without general competition.
APPROPRIATIONS RECOMMENDED,
In view of the fact that the per capita cost
of maintaining the inmates of the charitable
institutions has been less during the last two
years than before, it would seem that no
greater appropriations for the future are
needed than were expended each year during
this biennial period; but supplies furnished
the institution will, perhaps, not be so cheap
again for several years. No more Will be
expended than is necessary for the manage
ment of the institutions in an economic way.
After careful consideration of the needs of
the institutions, studying the probabilities of
the future, we make the following recon-
mendations as to the appropriations to be
made for general expenses for the ensuing
biennial term, asking that the same be in
bulk, and not itemized, except IN general
way, because the board, when the approprla-
tons are itemized, cannot divert from one
use TO another, and often find that an estl
mate for one item will, by some unforeseen
circumstance, fall below, while one for an
other will be far in excess of what is needed,
thus reducing the aggregate available appro
priation, as actually occurred in the case of
the Soldiers Orphans home in the last legis-
lative appropriation. We have founded our
recommendations upon a per capita basis,
believing that to be the best one for correct
Judgment.
FOR INSTITUTION FOR DEAF AND DUMB.
For fiscal year ending June 80, 1892:
Number of inmates. ................. 24O
Per capita. .....................S us 90
For maintenance and repairs and pay of
officers and employees. 42,OO0 90
For fiscal year ending June 80, 1885,
Number of inmates ..'............... $50
Per capita. OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES 17i 90
For maintenance and repairs and pay of
officers and employees. ...............4 3, $50 90