St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1890-10-02
BIENNIAL REPORTS.
The State Auditor.

| June 80, 1890, while the court ex-
pense orders amounted to $62 ,154.22
for the first, and $50, 71251 for the
| last fiscal year"
In 1880 the law imposed upon this
| office the labor of auditing the ex-
| penses of the courts in the various
counties. 1t was at once apparent
that but a fraction of the revenue
from fines and costs was being paid
into the state treasury The rule was
adopted at that time to require-be-
fore auditing bill of costs in case
in which fine and costs occurred to
the state-that the fine and costs be
in some legal way accounted for.
The recommendation was repeatedly
made from the auditors office, that
a law be passed providing in specific
terms that parties holding fines and
costs, or other funds belonging to
the state, should account for the
same before being paid their bill of
costs or other claims against the
state. Such legislation was deferred
to 1883, when bill substantially
covering the ground of the recon-
mendation, was passed. A COM
parison of the figures for the past 10
years with those of the preceding dec
ade will give some idea of the value
of this rule:
Court Fines and Net
expense costs expense
orders paid in. to State.
'7O'7o I$675, sos. SSI1 "a, 400. 6o4o1 Il 5.1 10
5000 5O4, OF 9.59I379, 1877 Al "a, 552.12
This table shows a net saving to
the state in this branch of the ac-
counting of $500, 633.O6.
There has been of late great inquiry
from both the friends and opponents
of the prohibitory law, for figures
showing the expense of the prosecu-
ton of, and the revenue from that
law. The following table will show
such expense and revenue for the
past five years:
Costs in Fines and Net
liquor costs revenue.
1857 81 57499.os 1855 sa,sss79
1888 25, 324.n 63,5oo.56 3s,176.45
1859 s7aas5d p aa 499 IS
past 10 years is $19,O32.OO. The
average for the two years embraced
in last published report is $50, 572,-
rs.
These figures would be changed
somewhat, though inconsiderably,
by the fact that so far as the terms
of court are heightened by this law,
the various debentureS are increased;
and also by the fact that such fines
and costs accruing from other of
fences, as are payable to the state,
are included in the list of fines and
costs as given. This consideration
cannot be estimated with accuracy,
as the accounts are kept, though the
law is doubtless more than self-Sus-
tanning, even in the years in which
the revenue from it is the lowest
The more liberal legislation, fol-
lowing the passage of the corpora
ton tax law, and the use of the prin-
cipal of the Huntington fund.-" pre-
cipitated a rapid increase in state eX
penses, and the reports will show an
increase of about so per cent in the
last six years. This addition will be
observed in every branch of the ac-
counting. In the matter of court
expenses, it is partially attributed to
the fact that there have been some
very long and expensive terms of
court of late, and a longer average
in many of the counties, but it is
quite largely due to certain changes
in the law No. 129, acts of 1884,
provided for furnishing a trial by
reference at the expense of the state
upon payment of a fee of Sc. Under
this law many causes are tried that
would otherwise be tried by a coun
ty court jury, and it has unquestion-
ably proved economical for the state,
as well as convenient for litigants.
There are other minor changes in
court matters entailing additional
expense and loss of revenue. Since
the change in the law by which the
support of the insane poor was
thrown upon the state, the bills al
lowed to the Vermont asylum for the
insane have more than doubled, the
sum allowed for this year-order
drawn after the close of the fiscal
year.-being $72,697.97, whereas
the last account prior to this change
was $50, 231.95. A comparison of
the accounts will show a constant |
increase in insanity, but it is unques-
tionablv true-as the result has been
in every instance where a town or
county expense has been thrown up
on the state-that the burden itself |
has increased through the change in
the law. When an expense formerly |
borne by towns is visited upon the
state, each town will naturally strive |
to see itself as well served as its |
from the common fund.
The tendency now is to crowd the |
asylum, while, when the towns bore
the expense, every patient that could
be safely kept at home, and at an |
expense less than the charge at the
asylum, was supported outside.
This change precipitated the state OF |
things, out of which grew the de-
mand for a new asylum.
The increase in the general expenses
of the state grows largely out of the
establishment of four new boards |
and commissions, the increase in
salaries, and in the appropriations
to the board of agriculture, fish COM
curato of the cabinet and
state geologist, appropriations to
the colleges, the soldiers home, and
for the Grand Isle county bridges,
and the expense of temperance text
books, state aid in building highways
and bridges, of building the new asy-
lum, of the new school law, etc.
These items are all classes of expense
created or increased by recent legis-
lation. There are several others,
less in amount, that might be referred
to.
State Institutions.
The current report of the officers
of the Vermont asylum for the insane
at Brattleboro covers the SD and