St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1893-01-05

number OF state cOnvicts on the 31st day
| of October, 1882, than on the 3lSt day OF
| October, 1889. This fact indicates the
| prosperous, industrious and law-abiding
| character of our population. and demon-
| strates that the problem Of American
| civilization is here finding its best SOlu-
| ton.
The reformatory at ST Cloud is sue
! icessfully accomplishing the benign pur-
nose for which it was intended, but its
successfulness is likely to be embar
rassed and handicapped by existing re-
cent legislation. Constant employment
| is absolutely necessary for the physical
| and moral well-being and the perma-
| pent reformation of the cOnvlcts. AS
| additional buildings are urgently need
| ed at the institution, it would seem to
| be the part of wisdom. at as early day
as practicable, to make use of the gran
| tie and the labor of the c0nvicts, as far
| as possible, in the construction OF such
! buildings.
b The manufacture of Irvine has been
| successfully established at the state
prison, and meets with much favor
among our agricultural population. This
| enterprise will always to some extent
! afford our farmers protection against
unjust combinations and abnormal
prices on the part of Irvine manufact-
| urers.
| 1t is encouraging to note that, though
| for time insanity seemed to increase
at an undue pace, within the last two
years the increase bias not been as great
as was anticipated, nor out of proper
ton to the increase of our population.
This promising outlook will Obylate the
| necessity for an unusual haste IN con-
| structing additional buildings, and will
| oil m n a
in appropriations for the current eX.
penSes of the hospitals for the insane.
| The soldiers home at MinnehahaFalls
is successfully performing its great
mission of atfording cheerful and
| pleasant rest for the needy and home
| less veterans of our wars. The inStltu.
| ton is monument OF the gratitude and
| patriotism of great people. Subsldl-
| airy and supplemental thereto, and eX-
| listing under the same law, is scheme
| of furnishing assistance at their resi-
| dence to sucn needy veterans as have
| families or homes of their own, and to
| the widows and dependent minor chill
| dren aOd dependent parents OF soldiers.
+ The money from which this relief is
granted is known as the soldiers relief
fund. and is derived from tax OF one
tenth of mill on all the property of
the state. This fund is fast Overgrow-
ing the demands on it. In view of these
facts, it seems 10 me it would be advis-
able to transfer $4,000 OF this fund TO
the so-called soldiers home fund. In
addition to this, the annual tax levy for
the soldiers relief fund should be cut
down from One-tenth OF a mill to one
half of that rate, which | think would
be ample to n.eet all necessary de-
maDdS.
In the field Of education Minnesota
occupies high and advanced grounds at
all points. Our state university has
within the last ten years grown beyond
all precedent i'll quality, scope and num-
berS, and today ranks as, one OF the
leading educational institutions OF our
country. to which we can look with
pride and admiration. In 1882 the total
attendance of students was 253. In 1892
the number had reached 1874. And
during 1893 the number will exceed
LOO. Departments OF law and med
icine have been established and are in
most successful operation. There were
453 law and medical students i'll attend
ance in 1892. and in 1893 the number
will no doubt reach, if not exceed, 600.
Perhaps nothing pertaining to the prog
| ress and growth of the university has
been more marked and original than the
| establishment of school OF practical
| agriculture, giving special instructions
| in all that pertains to the theory and
| practice Of agriculture, i'll all It's
| branches.
Our normal schools are increasing in
usefulness and in attendance, and seem
| to keep on advanced ground in all that
| pertains 10 their special lines OF educa-
| ton. Our high schools have become
excellent feeders for our univerSity,and
have to large extent assumed the
| sphere and absorbed the work Of the
| od-fashioned academies. and thereby
they have brought the advantages of
| higher education close to the doors OF
| the mass or our people.
Our common school systematic price
less jewel of our liberty in quail
| ty and effectiveness year by year.
Through summer training schools, at
the university and at other points in the
state. as we'll as through teachers in
stitutes, the teachers acquire skill and
aptitude for their work which greatly
raises the standard of our common
schools. Liberal appropriations for
these training schools is money
we'll invested, and there can
be no serious objection to set
ting aside portion of the one-mill
school tax for this purpose as recon-
mended by the superintendent OF pub
lie instruction. The contract for the
supply of text books for our common
schools, which has been in existence
for fifteen years, expired last August.
To secure the highest order of books at
the lowest possible price, with uniform
ity and stability, ought to be the central
idea of any plan that may be devised.
There are sixteen judicial districts in
the state, with t%ellty-nine district
judges, doing the nisi prius, or original
trial work; and in addition to this there
ale number of municipal courts, with
considerable local jurisdiction. | think
it would be the part of wisdom and good
administration to affect judiclous re-
arrangement of our judicial districts, so
as to distribute the work more evenly,
and to leave each judge reasonable
and proper amount Of work to Go.
The dairy industry of the state, espe-
cially i'm view of the fact that it is to
that source we must look for relief
when wheat raising ceases to be prOmis-
| ing, deserves our earnest care and pro-
| lection. The department i'll charge OF
| the state dairy and food commissioner,
as a matter of both law and practice,
seems to have no concern with purely
educational and experimental work. but
is limited, and in its very plan and pur-
| pose limits itself to police supervision
and police protection. The salary roll
is nearly s15.000-a greater sum than
that OF any other of the executive de-
| partmenlS of our state government, eX-
cept the grain inspection department,
which much more than pays Its own
expenses from fees collected. The
present commissioner is in no wise at
fault for the existing order of things
A 5000 salary roll strikes me as ample
for this department. L commend the
subject to your consideration for such
action as you may deem advisable.
At the last election two constitutional
amendments were submitted to the peo-
pie. One of them, that relating to spe-
| clal legislation, was adopted. This will
| necessitate the enactment of general
laws to provide for those cases and sub
iect matters inhibited by the amend
ment. that relating to taxation, was
evidently rejected because it author
| lied. among other things, the substitu
| ton, in the case of railroad companies,
| of a mere license fee in place of tax