The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1892-09-02
FACTS FOR THE PEOPLE.

AccompIishet BY the Latter.
In reviewing She work accomplished
bv the last lie gislature it will be re-
membered that economy and reform in
the administration Of state affairs was
the war cry of the ne>s Messiahs VINO
had come to redeem kansas from tine
thran of republican misrule. IN view
of this cry, in connection with the
further fact that the alliance party had
two-thirds of the members of the lower
| house, the senate committee on ways
and means decided to let the house take
| the initiative in formulating and pre-
senting the necessary appropriation
bills for the support of the state gov
eminent and state institutions.
There are eighteen regular appropri-
alton bills for the maintenance Of the
several departments, classified and pro-
vided for by the joint rules of the legis-
lature, rule 16 requiring that thirteen
I ofthese bills must be introduced in one
or the other of the two houses on or be-
I fore the twentieth day of the session,
and sent to the other house at least ten
DAYS before the close OF the session.
! -
on ways and means of the two houses
may, for the purposes of preparing and
considering appropriation bills, consti-
/ tute Joint committee.
/ After waiting a reasonable time for
Z the house committee to act. and find
+ ing nothing done toward making the
approximations incumbent upon the
+ legislature 70 make, the chairman
I of the senate committee called in
person upon Mr.. Rogers, chairman of
| the house committee, to ascertain the
( condition of the appropriations to be
I made. II was ascertained that no esti-
mates had been made, and no bills pre-
( pared by that committee. Senator Blu
/ chan then suggested to that committee
| that rule Is provided for joint meetings
/ of the two committees, and that it
/ might be advisable for the committees
| to meet in joint session and prepare the
I bills, or at least agree upon general
/ line of policy to be pursued. This was
assented to, and time and place fixed
| for such joint meeting. AT the desig-
/ mated time the two republican members
| of the house committee met the senate
/ committee, but none others on the part
/ of the house appeared, and of course
/ nothing was done The senate COM
mittee then began the exam
/ ination of estimates and the
| preparation of the necessary data to
/ formulate appropriation bills Upon
( the eighteenth day of the session, find
! ing that no bills had been prepared or
/ introduced by the house committee,
/ there being but two days left under the
{ Joint rules in which to introduce these
/ bills, the senate committee introduced
/ the first of these necessary apprOpria-
/ ton bills and followed with the balance
/ within the prescribed time.
! The house committee consisted of fif-
/ teen members. and the senate commit
/ tee of seven members. 1t is matter
, of record that the only one of the ap-
/ preparation bills required by law and
I the Joint rules to be passed that these
fifteen members of the house commit
tee. which Speaker Elder eXtOlled so
! highly as standing between the
/ senate and the state treasury,
prepared and introduced into the
/ house during the entire session was the
4 miscellaneous appropriation bill. This
( bill was introduced March 10, seven
I DAYS after the time allowed by rule,
and was sent 70 the senate the same
! day, seven days behind time This re-
! markable effort contained 81 items.
/ OF this number PA items We're sums ap-
/ propriated as personal perquisites Of
! the members and employees Of this eco
/ nomical house of representatives. Fifty
/ per cent of the aggregate of this per-
, sonal benefit bill was for mileage and
! expenses of members who travelled
/ about the state on railroad passes and
boarded at the several institutions of
J the state while in the vain effort TO
learn something of the methods of con-
( Quoting the affairs of the state. Rooms
/ in the city of Topeka were
rented. and payment therefor pro-
( vided for in this bill, under preteXt
( of being necessary for committee
! rooms, and their apartments were occu-
I pied as sleeping quarters for members
/ and employees Of the house, as well as
numerous other items of questionable
| public necessity.
/ Another of the two appropriation
I bills formulated and introduced by the
house committee was the state printers
( bill. the office of state printer being
held by populist. This bill appropri-
ated for state printing for the fiscal
| years 1892 and 1898 the sum of Sl53, 000.
/ The same bill passed two years before
/ for rapu blican state printer amounted
/ to $40, 400, making the state printing
/ under q populist printer cost So, 500
more than under republican officer.
There was also appropriated to pay
| the expenses of special investigations
| on the part Of the house the further
sum of s42, 22s. 50, to provide for which
this economic body found it necessary
| toreduce the wages of teachers, clerks,
mechanics and employees of the several
institutions of the state to such an eX-
/ tent as to do injustice to faithful pub
I lie servants and to very materially i'm
/ pair the efficiency of the public service.
I Many of the most efficient employees of
the state resigned rather than accept
! the pay allowed.
The eighteen bills containing appro-
priations for the current expenses of
! Une lnsLlJuIlOns,As pdS>Su W IllC SShatc,
amounted to the sum of 1911, 0+3. IS for
! 1892, and $500, i65. 50 for 1898 BY the
time these same bills had gone through
the economizing process of the reform
house they amounted in sum total to
1924. 4s2. 81 for 1892, and S907, 94G. 53 for
! 1898. an increase of s13, 1855 for 1892
and as, 4s4 6S for 1898.
These figures are given from the
records, not to show that the increase
was wrongfully made, but to refute
the claim that the senate was guilty