The Bemidji pioneer., 1900-10-18

dition of the department by the state
auditor and this Democratic house Of
cards fell fiat. The question Of grain
inspection has become a milestone
around their necks and will drag them
deep
Beneath the Waters of oblivion.
1t has been shown by irrefutable f1g-
ures that the Democratic adminlstra-
ton of the grain inspection department
cost $16,27447 more for the year ISOO
than for the year 1885, when the de-
partment was under Republican adj
ministration, and that this increase N
expenditure was due to a large ln-
crease in the number of employees. not
withstanding there were fewer cars of
wheat inspected in 1900 than there We're
in 1898 by not less than $4,000, or filelf
equivalent in bushels.
AS to the value of -he grain inspec-
ton, it has never during the HllesH
years of it's existence been done 80
irregularly or unsatisfactory. Ihls IS
plainly seen by the Minneapolis mar
ket reports wherein it is shown that
wheat given high grade by the state
inspectors on being sold on sample ire
quently fails to command the price
paid for wheat which has been given 2
lower grade. This is an every Cay oc-
currence, not merely occasional. and IN
dicates most clearly that the lnspec-s
ton is at fault. am informed s.iso,s
that there have been many f1oi, Z ein-
spections and the grade given by
the inspectors has been overturned
oftener during the past year than ever
occurred in any former year; but the
q. +t,;r tap
the buried secrets of the present adj
ninistration, which will not be dls-
closed until after election, when, ana
not before in all probability. the annuai
report Of the department will be given
to the public. S
Increased Cost OF Inspection.
1t also appears to have been the
policy Of the present administration to
increase the cost Of inspection 70 5the
farmers and small shippers In greater
proportion than it has been Increased
to the elevator man and large shippers.
For instance, in the beginning OF the
1900 year the fee for inspection on ar
rival at terminal points, that IS, IN
inspection, was raised from 15 cents to
20 cents, and subsequently to 20 cents
per car load, but no corresponding M
crease was made in the fee for outgoing
inspection. The fee for inspection on
arrivaP' comes out Of the price the
farmer is paid for his wheat The zee
for outgoing inspection is paid by the
terminal elevator men and large ship
pers. Recently the fee for outgoing in
spection has been raised, but not IN
proportion to the increase of the in
inspection fee To-day we find that the
fee for inspection ION arrival Is 20
cents per car and the fee for outgoing
inspection is 40 cents per 1000 bushels.
That is to say, the inspection fee when
comes out OF the farmer has been in7
creased 6622a per cent during the past
year, while the fee that is paid by the
terminal warehouse nen has only been
increased 1875 per cent.
With the smaller crop this year any
one would imagine that the inspection
force could have been decreased and
not increased, as 1t has been. There
has been less work, and fewer inspec-l
tors were needed; a smaller force
would have entailed a smaller increase
in the inspection fee, and such increase
as was absolutely necessary might have
been apportioned fairly upon the grain
growers on the one hand and the eleva-E
tor men and shippers on the other. Al
reduction in the force would have
shown sound business management,
would have shown a sense of justice
and fairness.
No Reason to BE Proud.
What, with Irregularities in the
grading Of grain, the addition to the
inspection force Of large number of
superfluous and inexperienced politi-
cal hangers-on, the consequent large
increase in the expenditure of the de-
partment and the unjust and discrim-
mating increase Of the inspection fee,
our Democratic opponents have small
reason to be proud of their record in
the matter of grain inspection.
If elected, promise to use all the
powers conferred on my office to cor
rect any and all irregularities to make
the service Of the most efficient char
acter and to keep the expense account
down to the lowest possible amount
consistent with good service. &
The record made by the Democratic
administration in it's management Of
the state prison
Binding Twinc Plant
is not one which rebounds to their
credit, nor is it monument to their
business sagacity or intelligence. Since
the resignation of Warden Wolfer this
twine plant has been conducted APP
parently on purely political principles,
and the result has been that during the
past year the farmers who had con-
tracted to buy their binding twine from
the prison plant have been compelled
to pay from to 8 cents more per
pound for it than they could have
bought the same quality OF twine for
from outside jobbers. In former years
the farmers Were allowed to cancel all
or part of their orders in case of crop
failure, but during the past year Of
Democratic control, despite the fact of
general partial failure of the crops
the farmers were not allowed to cancel
their orders, but.were held mercilessly
to their contracts. Why was this arbi-
trary action taken by the prison man
agement? 1t was taken because the
managers Of the prison twine plant
found themselves in a hole financially
and knew that unless they ins.sted on
the farmers taking all the twine or
dered at the beginning of the season
the prison twine plant would come
out with very large deficit. And why