The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1900-10-19

There was nothing to spend money for"
But the use to which the moneys re-
ceived by the Snively commissioners have
been put has already been clearly indi-
Gated. 1t all comes under the general
head noted in the final clause OF the
agreement:
IAN money remaining In the hands of
the treasurer after the payment of $500
to the superintendent president Baxter),
5000 to the secretary and 500 to the treas
urer, shall be paid to the commissioners
at the rate of 81 per day
Funds Misappropriated.
Under this agreement. drawn up at the
dictation OF II. J. Snively, chairman of
the state board of audit and control. the
state fair commissioners since June IL.
1897, have disslpated and divided among
themselves legislative appropriations
amounting to $i3,5o0 the donations OF citi-
zens and the legitimate and illegitimate
receipts of the fair itself amounting to
fully $4,000. AS each fair under their
management has been a failure. fnan-
cially and otherwise. the result may be
considered a net waste of money amount
ing to fully $4,000.
The apologist for the raiders of the
fair fund says: "A month before the
fair was held this year the Post-Intelli-
gencer. with view to Gripping It, pub
lished an item to the effect that 1t would
not be held at ALL
1t has already been shown that early
in the year Baxter and Gum urged that
no attempt be made to hold the fair.
The state appropriation had been ex-
haustcd and there was no further chance
OF personal profit to them. They were
ready and anxious to quit. This was
generally understood In North Yakima.
and about September l Joel Shoemaker
a ~ ha
Yakima correspondent OF the Sc
attic Times. gave the Post-Intelli-
gencer's Yakima correspondent an Of
fetal statement OF the alleged reasons
why Baxter and Gum did not favor
fair In 1900. That Baxter and Gum did
intend TO abandon the fair is proven con-
clusively by the following letter. writ
ten by Shoemaker. August 80. to w. L.
Mcdonald. of Tacoma, a member of the
commission:
A TeIItaIe Letter.
Dear Sir: There will be a meeting OF
the state fair commission held at the
office Of the secretary. on Wednesday.
September 5. at which you are. invited to
decided that II there was no better show
for fair by the 1st of September. IL
would be called OF. The indications are
does not want TO proceed any further.
as there Is no money now TO pay bills.
and the chances are the income Will not
pay expenses DR. Gum Is sick with ty-
phoid favcr. and has notified the COM
mission that he cannot be expected 10
do any further work. Yakima people will
he fairly in the midst of hop picking
when the fair is on and no attendance
can be secured. There will not be any
excursions from the Sound cities. and
everything at the present looks gloomy.
II you have any suggestions as to how a
fair can be held under such circumstances
the commission will be ready, OF course.
to hear them. The president and secre-
tary request me 10 write you. stating the
conditions, and ask you to he present II
you can. This IL not for publicatio until
after Wednesday, and II you do not at
tend and they decide not to hold the
fair | will write you full particulars.
Joel SHOMAKER
Assistant Secretary"
The citizens OF Yakima, however, forced
the issue. The fair was held and n IL
not probable that Assistant Secretary
Shoemaker has ever written Commissioner
Mcdonald the full particulars"
The apologist for the Snively commits
sioners says that one OF their frat acts
was TO use the pruning knife This fact
is quite apparent The pruning knife was
held In hand until September 10 1900. when
the last cent was pruned from the state
fair fund. The present condition Of the
state fair. It's property and its treasury.
II ample evidence OF the effectiveness 81
the snively pruning process.