People's voice. [volume] (Wellington, Sumner County, Kansas) 1890-1917, 1894-03-09
Topeka Letter.
Topeka, KAN, March 5, '94.

have as one voice sanctioned, and
even urged the passage of a bill re-
tiring Judge Foster Of the L. S. |
supreme bench. on a pension of 50, |
10000 per annum. Upon this subject
the Capital recently said:
"On the 10th Of this month it will
be twenty years since Judge Fosters
appointment as Judge of this federal
district. The house committee has
made a favorable report on the bill
retiring him with an annual pension
of $500 for life and the bill will
doubtless pass and make a prece-
dent
1t seems TO us that this is paternal-
ism of the rankeSt type. Judge Eos
ter nor any other person is entitled
to be taken care Of at the public's ex-
penSe. He has had lucrative Office
for twenty years and if he has failed
to live economically so as to have
sufficient to keep him in his declining
years, We fail to see where congress
has any right to provide for him by a
pension for life. If Judge Foster is
entitled why not those judges who
were not so fortunate as to receive
twenty years lease at the public crib?
Judge Foster was not forced to keep
this position at $500 per year and so
as he never resigned 1t is but natural
to presume that he did not know Of
anything else he could turn himself
to that would make him more Of this
worlds goods. Down with this pa
ternaliStic tendency to maintain exes
Of all descriptions in luxury at the
public expense.
The State Journal Of recent date
gives out this intelligence:
"The amount of $4,000 is said to
have been saved by the Santa Fe tax
department by compromising their
taxes with Kansas counties"
We would like to ask the farmers
and all other Taxpayers Of the state
how much they would have saved by
compromising their taxes with the
county commissioners? 1t may bt
they have never thought Of trying t
compromise their taxes any more
than with the sceptre death" hav
ing grown up under the old adagt
that there were two things, "deatt
and taxes that could not be evaded.
Since our last letter it has become
the painful duty Of Governor Lew
elling to have the affairs of the Adju
tant Generals Office investigated.
Upon the receipt of information
that the affairs pertaining to tn,
office Of General Artz were not il
the shape they should be, the Gov
ernOr at once suspended him and EN-
ployed Expert Accountant Stagg, 4
Republican,, to 60 over the book
and make thorough and cOmprehen
sive report Of the conditions ther
existing.
The report was filed with the GOV
ernOr on the 24th Of February and h
! at once addressed a communicate
. to the accused asking for his explana
tion of certain seeming diScrepancie
t in his accounts, whereupon Mr.. Art
| forwarded a letter to the governo
: which fully explained where certai
}. funds were kept which could not
Y found by the expert accountant
r The reason for this was that NJ
:. Artz had placed the missing funds i
$ a private box and deposited it wit
!, the state treasurer in his own nam,
: when he should have deposited it
g the name of the state. However, tn
T state has suffered no less and the pc,
: pie have gained in the knowledge ths
0 their present governor and Otht
y state officers do not propose to whit
e wash over the shortcomings of an
n official who has done that which
l. wrong or failed to do that which
e should have done.
This investigation is in markt
" contrast to former administration
e which hushed up, and put up in sen
{ instances, to shield guilty Republ
y cans and prevent the odium whiC
Il would attach to their administrator
Il For instance, take the case Of the e1
! beZZlement Of Assistant Superinten
4 ent Of Insurance Billingslea of ov
S6,OOO,OOO in the Insurance depar
i ment in 1891 and '92, which W
L known by Governor Humphrey I
Is nearly eighteen months before it W
= made public; and which would alwa
{ have remained dead secret to I'll
-e day had not the Populists come in
le power.
F" Probably the greatest mistake Ge
q Artz committed, had he intended
ID perpetrate fraud, was to open W
D. set Of books in his Office, as no II
p ord Of its affairs were ever kept und
IL Republican rule. Under former a
ia ministrations this Office seemed to
i