Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1894-11-01
Address by Chairman Thorn.

ing election. Lack Of space only pre-
vents its publication in full in these
columns. After clearly presenting
the disasters following democratic
success in 1892, and urging the ne
cessity Of putting the party out OF
power in the next congress, Mr.. Thorn
takes up state questions, and shows
that Gov. Peck and his associates de-
serve rebuke at the hands OF the peo-
pie they have deceived and attempt
ed to rob. He says:
1.-THE taxpayers Of Wisconsin are
invited TO scrutiniZe the facts as to
the management of state affairs by
the present officers. They came into
power under the promise that they
would reform the management and
reduce the expenses Of the state gov
eminent; they have failed to do this.
Instead OF reducing expenses they
have greatly increasedfhem. A COM
parison Of the figures taken from the
official records show thot the expen
ses for the last three years of demo-
cratic rule, 1923, are largely in ex-
cess of the expenses for the last three
wears Of republican rule, lSSS-9-90.
That the state tax is to be reduced
this year is wholly due to the fact
that there is large amount of mon
ey in the treasury derived from un-
usual sources. 1t Is owing entirely
to this extraordinary income that
the taxes are reduced. The records,
instead Of showing economy or good
business management, show the most
wasteful extravaganza and reckless
methods. Had the present. state off,
GERS been as economical as their re-
publican predecessors, there would
have been no state tax this year, and
there would have been a handsome
sum left in the treasury. Any tax
payer can satisfy himself of the cor
rectness OF this statement by an ex-
animation of the reports of the secre-
tary Of state. Our opponents seek
by the use of irrelevant figures, and
statements Of expenditures over
which the state officers can exercise
no control, to establish the fact of
their economy. They have as yet
presented no comparative statements
containing only such items Of ex-
pense as are under control Of the
state officers. Nor will they do this.
such statements, which are the only
fair ones to make, in all cases show
increased expenses during the past
three years.
The extra money received by the
present administration amounts to
over 100000 in excess Of the amount
reported as on hand. This $3o0,000
represents what has been expended
i'm the last three years in excess OF
what was expended in the previous
/ three years for precisely the same
purposes. There has been collected
from the ex-treasnrers and applied
20 the reduction Of the state tax for
lthis year S327,902.55 The democrats
claim much credit ior this and it
might be accorded them were ii not
for the fact that they have squan-
dered in eXtravagant expenditures
the entire amount, SO that the tax
payers have not had the benefit of a
dollar 81 H IT has been asserted and
proved beyond controversy, that the
present state officers have in no di-
rection shown good business man
agement or practiced economical
methods. On the contrary, the un-
disputed figures Of the public records
show that their administration has
been iaracterized by extravaganza
and waste.
II is with the deepest chagrin that
we discharge the duty of calling the
attention Of HE citizens Of our state
e the attempt to rob the treasury
through the unlawful letting Of the
roster oisWisconsin soldiers. The at-
tempt was one 81 che holdest, as il
was one Of the most stupid, ever made
to defraud the public. A contract
was secretly made by the governor,
under the advice of the attorney
general 70 Let the printing, in deh-
anee of the constitution Of the state,
which declares thatall printing shall
81 let to the lowest bidder, at 4 price
nearly three times IL great Is it
would have cost had it been sent to
the state printer aud been done un-
der his contract Had not the exist
enee Of the contract been ascertain
81 the state would have lost very
large sum. 1t was only after the
threat of legal proceedings that the
governor was frightened into the
canceling the contract. Before its
cancellation the governors private
secretary had sold am interest ia Ii