Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1899-10-04
'|H[ BOARD OF CONTROL
High Standard in the Conduct Of
the Business is Being Main
tanned
Strict Rules in Its Dealings With
Contractors and the Supply
Houses.
No Attempt to Bring Iowa Regiment
to Des Moines in
Body.
Special to Times-Republican.

=
Des Mohes Oct. 4.-The board of
( conerol is setting a standard for the
conduct of the great business that has
peen entrusted to it that will be hard
!. to follow. AS long as the board is com
posed OF men of the character and abil-
ity of the present members, this STAN
dard can and will be maintained. blff
If 1t falls into the hands of a governor
iess careiul as to it's membership, and
cheap men are put on, then it will cas-
lly be seen how soon the good work
done by Messrs. Larrabee, Cownie and
hinne may be undone and the state be
IN much worse condition than it was
uelore the new system was adopted
me BOARD has made strict rules in re-.
sard TO dealings with the contractors
WHO supply the institutions, and these
rules are rigidly enforced. Some of
mem seem severe, and at first unneces-
sarily so. but they are on the side of the
strictest honesty and for the purpose
OF freeing the system of any possibility
OIL even the appearance of jobbery or
= favoritism of any kind No officer or
2 to buy goods of any concern that is
supplying one of the Institutions nor
does any member or employe of the
board do so. The bidders doing business
with the institutions through the board
would be glad to supply the members
OF the board, the officers and employees
: OF the institutions with whatever goods
they might want at the same prices
given TO the board in large quantities
prices often not more than 80 per cent
!, OF the retail prices But If this was
permitted, 1T would be hard to say
where 1t must stop, and ii would be
: considered an undue influence in favor
of the dealers doing business with the
: individuals and giving them the benefit
OF the Wholesale prices. 1t would have
a doubtful appearance, to say the least
though of course it might be done
without having any influence in the
awarding of contracts. The board
thinks, however. that the state would
better pay its employees in cash and let
them do business on their own account
keeping the states business and that of
the individuals entirely separate. 1t
might be diIerent if the law required
contractors to supply officers and en-
poyes of institutions at the same price
as that given the board for the institu-
tons.
The competitive system and the quar-
terly conferences of superintendents
have made the board and the superin-
tendents good buyers of institution
supplies. They have learned by expert
ence what is wanted. what best serves
the purpose. and how to judge of the
Equality of the great variety of goods
purchased. They are learning every
quarter how to get more and better
goods for the money they have to
/ lspend-how to make it "go farthest"
. and do most for the persons under the
care of the state. The system has
brought innumerable comforts and
benefits to the institutions in this way
The board is doing another sensible
thing in raising the wages of some of
the employees who are most valuable
and have important duties to perform
| filing places where a cheap
! man or woman is very expensive
The cooks have had their wages raised
on the theory that it is better to pay a
good price and insure having thorough
/ Ily competent cooks 10 prepare the food
! for the wards of the state, after a good
Equality of raw material has been sup
> piled. The farm managers are now
+ lpaid $40 month and their board, and
: lit is made $50 If they make a good rec
/ ord of business management. That is,
III lif farmer makes money for the state
, he is encouraged by being given share
of the profits.
.The companies from southwestern
Iowa belonging to the Fifty-tirst regi-
! ment can never be gotten to come to
Des Moines or any other place in a
body" declared Adj. Gen. Byers yes
terday. When they reach Council
:. Bluffs they viii be given the state re-
ception and viii then go to their homes
, without delay. The companies from
Council Bluffs, Shenandoah, Villisca,
Creston, Corning, Red Oak and Glen
wood are all on the c., b. &c @. road in
: southwestern Iowa, and they will make
a break for home at the first opportu-
nifty They will never consent to put
off going for a visit to DeS Moines or
any other place. You see, they will be
private individuals then, with no au-
thority but their own desires and wills.
They all want to get home as soon as
possible Every home town is making
preparations to give its company re-
ception that will out-do any previous
effort of the kind. The boys will do
mighty little parading any where till
they have seen the home folks / have
advised the people here in Des Moines
not to try to make the boys go through
with set program at the auditorium
and lot of marching when they get
here. Wait a few days and then give
them banquet and do all the talking
they want to, but first let the boys
have chance to see their mothers and
} other women folks they may be inter-
ested in. They had better consent to this
lin advance, for If they don't they will
be disappointed, for the boys will SIM
ply bolt IL an effort is made to get be-.
tween them and those they want to see
Do you suppose the boy whose mother
or sweetheart meets him at the station
is going to leave her and go off to the
auditorium that night to listen to lot
of speeches before he goes home with
his mother or his girl, or both? Not
much. He simply will not do It. He