The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1899-12-23
HONEST STATE OFFICIALS.
Contrasts Found With Some City Off
GERS in Missouri

Contrasts Found With Some City Off
| GERS in Missouri
| 1t is no secret at Jefferson City that
those who hold state offices retire to
private life much poorer In purse, while
| it seems that a great many who hold
offices in the city find that occupation a
source Of much profit. 1t is stated that
within the last fifteen years three gov
ernors of the state retired to private
life greatly in debt, while the testimony
of Others who have held the Office is to
the effect that they lost money as re-
suit of their public service. 1t is a
fact that within the last twenty years
only one state official has been charged
in which the interests of the state were
at stake. The charges in this instance
were investigated and the official was
acquitted The contract in which 1t
was charged that he had an interest
proved a disastrous undertaking
In this same period one democratic
state official was found to be short In
his accounts The office was promptly
seized by the government, and the Of
Tending official arrested and in due time
indicted And the Indictment was one
that could not be quashed, so he was
forced to serve term in the penitenti-
ary.
Immense contracts are under control
of the state officials, and If they had
banded together some years ago to
plumber the state 1t is presumed that
the public credit of Missouri would
have been considerably impaired long
ago. Every two years since 1879 COM
mittees of the legislature, composed of
republicans as well as democrats, have
investigated the affairs of the state Off
Gals. The reports of these committees
are matters of public record. They
show that the officials have, in all in
stances, been commended for their hon.
esty and faithful discharge of public
duties.
One may hunt these records through
and through without finding an instance
of any state official trying to work his
IClollftS VI pOlitittl lliCuNip INV ooll-
snap contracts" as the city politicians
would put it, And neither do these re-
ports show that there has ever been
any favoritism in awarding contracts.
A prominent republican in central Mis-
souri, has been the contractor for seve-
raj of the largest state institutions and
the official records show that he lived
up faithfully 40 all of his promises.
1t has been said that if the state Off
Gals who retire to private life, or are
about to do SO, had engaged in jobbery
In awarding these contracts. which in
volve many millions of dollars, their
bank accounts would be more effulgent,
the obligations of the state impaired, |
and the institutions a public disgrace
and deserving of as much condemnation |
as republican officials of this city have
leaped upon it's institutions.
Those who take an interest in public
and have been making |
Investigations along these lines are at
/ loss to understand why it is that no |
}dium lie ever attached to the letting of
state contracts, even by republican Off
'ials appointed to examine the same,
while scarcely anv CITY contract of inn
,ortance can be awarded without some
person being accused of dishonesty or
neglect of public duty Under the law,
he city official who connives to rob the
ity is just as much guilty of commit
ing a penitentiary offense as the state
f1cial already referred to, who had to
erve a term in the penitentiary for
nalfasance in Office.
The records of the various instltu-
ions controlled by the state and the
awarded show that they have
II been remarkably free from cause of
and it is insisted that the
anne condition would exist in st. Louis
5 the officials here were as careful and
S discriminating in their line of duty
S the state officials.-St. Louis Repub-
C.