Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1901-05-10
MEETS D|SAPPR0VA[
winneshiek County's Treatment
Of Insane Censured by
Authorities.
IIowa's Hospital Facilities SUI
ficient for Proper Care
Of All Patients.
c ounty Auditors Having Trouble
Over Their Reports.-ln-
justice to Conser.
pecial to Times-Republlcan.

Special to Times-R Republican.
Des Moines. May l0.-The action of
the county authorities of Winneshiek
county in sending deputy sheriff TO
1 New York with an insane woman. to
| set her out of the state and to, save the
4ccst of maintenance does not meet with
the approval OF the state authorities.
At the state house it is stated that
| there can be no possible excuse for such
conduct in Iowa. With three hospitals
now and fourth being built Iowa is
able to take care of the insane people,
There is no law for having insane per-
sons sent out of the state to be left at
the mercy of people of other states. Ii
it was the desire of the authorities OF
Winneshiek county to avoid the ex-
Ipcnse Of maintaining the young woman
at an insane hospital, it would have
i been less expensive 10 have shown that
4 she was not properly resident of Win
4 neshiek and then the state would have
assumed the expense of caring for the
Woman. There are nearlsa third of the
/ patients at the state hospitals that are
VII w ~ ny tits sltilt ara dIe
i rot chargeable to any county. 1t is true
! that the state board of control which
i Was given extraordinary powers by the
8 Legislature. may order that a patient be
q supported by county and not by the
state, but the extent of the boards pow
s5ers hava not yet been determined fully.
& About a year and a half ago the beard
4 made an examination Of one case and
nirected that the county of Henry
should assume responsibility for one of
the patients at Mount Pleasant. The bill
sent to the county each quarter includes
the cost Of maintenance of this woman,
q but the county refused to pay the bill
& and deducts the amount from the bill
: each time The last time the bill was
4 j,aid however. the s36 for this one per-
6 son was not taken out. which may indi-
ioate that the county Will yield. If 1t
does not yield the attorney general will
. be asked 10 look up the matter and if
necessary bring suit by the state against
the county to test the powers uf the
Il board.
surprisingly small number of the
state cases at the insane hospitals are
I:iupported from estates or by relativ. s
or friends. The only hospital in the
safe which has cases which are not n
burden on the state is at Independence
land of the state cases there but three
are regularly paid. a good many coun-
!, ties secure II refund of their expendi-
isures for support Of the insane. A good
stmany years ago the Polk county board
authorized ar agent 10 make a thorough
investigation of the estates Of insane
..fIersors and Of the standing of relatives
upon whom they might be dependent.
81 and secured a large amount of back pay
en account Of support of The insane.
E0ther counties have compelled estates 10
4 lay: but many counties seem never TO
liave done this. The state has been neg
\ ligent in the matter. also andi is prob
able different policy viii be followed
in the future.
4 The number Of itinerant medicine
vendors in the state is on the increase.
For the year ended April % the state
pharmacy bonrd issued licenses to 14S
8 of them at sl00 each. That the peddlers
Of medicines are will TO pay the state
Sl4,360 n year for tho privilege of gong
! about the country selling medicines IS
= an indicatioflof the profit there is in the
medicine business. Tht fees are reported
each month TO the auditor of state and
turned into the treasury. Failure to do
this IN Other Years cost the state a pret-
s ~ slm--bu' the business affairs of the
state pharmacy commission are now
conducted in a nlodel way
! Ti,e state OF Iowa is ro, suffering for
s funds at this time. The last count
showed sl.2ii0o0 to the credit of the
general fund of the state The banks
sshich put up the bonds on condition
that they should have tsie disposal OF
81 The funds are not complaining that they
= drove a bad bargain. But the balance
Iwil be reaueed materially during the
S summer by the large amount Of work
being done on various state institution
, Ebuildinss.
The county auditors are having trou-
i,le with the blanks whicn were sent out
& this year by the executive council re-
: eI.quiring the auditors to report OH land
, values and land prices. the highest price
! per acre paid for farm land and the low
: lest price. etc The county auditors feel
that this is a clerIcal work they are mot
called upon by law TO perform. But
few Of them are responding in way
8 lroper data on which to make TIE
equalization of assessments. One audi
tor wrote in the other day asking II ha
should quote the price per acre on a
small tract of land. Of IA few acres only.
sold at high prices. He was informed
this was not the purpose Of the law.
The county auditor of Adams county
complains that he can not do the work
required because II would take about
!. two weeks of investigation Of the rec
I ords in the recorders office and he has
no deputy. What any Iowa county
Ineans by doing business without a dep
) uty auditor is hard to understand. II
: has been suggested that the state ex-
ccmtiye council viii never be able TO in
telligently make the equalization of as
easements until 1t is authorized to en-
ploy a competent person and send him
to different parts of the state TO carry
on an investigation as 10 land values
and the value of personal property.
4 An absolute injustice is being done