The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1897-03-14

OF all their deputies and assistants.
cannot give my consent to this propo-
sltion, as it seems to me that it is I'M
just. and founded upon no equitable
division of the burdens of the two gov
ernments. In nearly every state where
deputies and assistants are required in
the Office of assessor and collector
there are city taxes to be assessed and
collected, and under this provision the
state would be paying half the costs
OF assessing and collecting City taxes,
city school taxes and count.5 school
taxes. I respectfully recommend that
the present law in this behalf be al
lowed to remain.
AGRICULTURAL COLLEGE.
On page 600 I, it is provided that the
Agricultural College shall be allowed to
| include in its course of instructions a
chair of pedagogy. 1t appears to me
that under present financial conditions,
inasmuch as the expense of maintain
ing the school is already very heavy,
and inasmuch as the course already
embraces English language and litera-
ture, mathematics, engineering, agrl-
| cultural chemistry, animal and vege-
| table anatomy and physiology, the We
| terinary art. etymology, geology and
| other natural sciences as may be pre-
scribed, technology, political, rural and
/ EOQS6ilOiQ mn OIL
| philosophy, history, bookkeeping and
| the application of science to practical
agriculture, that until the finances of
the state are in a better condition, the
| college ought to be able to worry along
without pedagogy.
PRISON WARDEN AND GUARDS.
On page 62S, section 90, the salaries
of the warden of the state prison, dep
uty warden and guards are fixed at
stated sums; the law at present pre-
scribes the maximum and allows sal
aries to be increased in individual
cases by the approval OF the governor
beyond the limit named. The worst
phase of this fixation of salaries is that
the board in control of the prison
would not be allowed to pay any peo-
pie or guard less sum than $50 per
month, and in certain cases where a
man might be employed only as over
seer Of shop or farm work or some
such other service, not involving any
special vigilance or danger and perhaps
only for a few hours pen day, less
sum than $50 would be ample compen-
sation. If you deem it wisdom to
place the discretionary power to in
crease the salaries in deserving cases
with the state board of corrections in
stead of with the governor, L have no
objection.
On page 635 the provision requiring
guards at the state prison to remain
within the limits of the prison grounds
not more than sixteen hours per day
should be eliminated as it is based
upon the eight-hour proposition to
which 1 have already referred.
STATE WARRANTS.
On page 704, section 8, it is provided
that state warrants shall be taken in
no ont of fara
rants in payment of county taxes and
city warrants in payment of city taxes.
L believe the system of accepting war
rants in payment of taxes is vicious
for the reason that it affords opportun-
ity for the tax gatherers to take the
money from the people, buy warrants
at discount and pay them into the
treasury at par. sound public policy
would close the door to such oDpor- !
tunity for profit and speculation. War
rants are drawn on the treasurer and |
should be redeemed at the treasury. not |
the tax office. 1t is urged that
public officers can be prosecuted if they |
violate the law, the answer is that they
must be detected before they can be |
punished, and this is not so easy of |
accomplishment Under the system of |
accepting warrants in vogue some |
years ago, it was freely stated that
spectators purchased warrs nts at
discount and furnished them to officers
to be paid in on account of taxes, and
that the officers trafficked in them
openly, considering that they had a
right to do so. Let US not take a step
backward. Let us put our treasures
upon cash basis and then there will
be no advantage in paying warrants
in on taxes, which. in my opinion, is a
return to the DAYS of due bills and
scrip. In any event I earnestly recon-
mend that you will provide that the
state taxes if none other. be payable
only in cash. Very respectfully,
HEBER NJ. WELLS,