The River Falls times. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1894-1933, 1897-02-16

Madison. Wis. Feb. ECONOMY
will have to become n practice Ill
place OF watchword with the legis-
lature and the administration of
state affairs. If the people OF Wiscon-
sin are 10 be saved the burden of IL
direct state tax unprecedenta in re-
cent years.
INCREASED ALI. ALONG THE LINE.
The rule has been in operation all
along the line and in all the branches
OF the government, and 1t has been u
rule of extraordinary increase i'll
expenditures of public money duringa
period of great business depression
and in the face of decreasing revenues
to the state from the ordinary
sources. 1t would be manifes ly pre-.
post erous for newspaper CORE
spondent to attempt to draw the
line between economy and extrava-
gance in all the complex details Of
the cost of the various state institu-
tions, and it would lie unjust for the
public TO assume that it had been
victimized in all directions. But it
is absurd to face he figures with a
claim that economy has been the
rule in the conduct of public business
in the past two years or to pretend
that another two years with a CORE
spending increase will equip the Re-
publican party to go INTO 4 campaign
for t he discussion Of state issues with
anybody. The records are accessible
to anybody and there are score Or
more OF Democratic editors scattered
about the state who are adopts in
finding out and using them. Some OF
these have boosted that the figures
would keep until the next campaign.
They are to be found in the iennial
report ofthe secretary of state, which
includ,s statement of every collar OF
state money expended, and the pur-
pose for which it is used. A single
copy of this report for one biennial
term, which is all that goes to the
members of the legislature, will reveal
nothing in particular as to whether
government is costing more or less
than it should. COPIES OF THE
REPORT FOR TWO SUCCEEDING
PERIODS WILL TELL ANY
SCHOOLBOY JUST HOW MUCH
MORE STATE EXPENSES ARE
AND JUST WHERE THE IN
CREASE IN COST GOES. IN A
POLITICAL SENSE 1T rs UN-
FORTUN ATE THAT THE COM
PARISON FOR THE LAST TWO
TERMS MAKES TO THE ADVAN-
TAGE OF THE DEMOCRTs; but the
party in power may at least earn the
credit for recognizing and rectIfying
their own errors, something which the
last Democratic administration and
legislature steadfastly refused to do.
IN EVERY DEPARTMENT OF EXPENDI-
TURE.
The secretary of states reports for
the biennial periods ending Sept. 80,
1894, and Sept. 80, 1896, show that
in every branch OF government and
In nearly every department and
office OF each branch there has been
increased cost. The figures and the
titles are both copied from the sum-
married statements of general fund
disbursements in the two reports and
the increase is the difference. in their
It gular order they are given herewith b:
Salaries and expenses for stat
utory pay of elective officers and
their assistants):
For the years 1856. :. 1907, 985. So
For the years 1884,. 355, 998.2 20
Increase .......$11, 987.27
Permanent appropriate ions fixed
salaries for appointive officers and
assistants):
For 1885 .......$ 800, 925 "a
For 1893 4 80, 1879
Increase. ..........$ l2, 738. 10
Legislative expenses:
For 1895 ........... $l6I ,S2S.I4