The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1901-08-23
FIGHT TO A FINISH
BOARD OF CONTROL AND NORMAL
BOARD ARE STILL AT
OUTS
AUDITOR DUNN TAKES A HAND
SAYS He VIII Not Honor Vouchers
From Normal Board Alone
Acted Within It's
Rights.


normal board has found itself confronted
by formidable setback through the at
titIIde of the state officials. AS matters
now stand the normal board Will SIMPLY
have to bow to the authority OF the
board of control or go to the courts TOT
relief and will have to decide at once
which course 1t will take as it can now 90
no further business on it's own response
bility
State Auditor Dunn has announced that
he does not recognize the normal board
as an Independent factor of the state
government as regards the disbursement
of money and will honor no vouchers
coming from that body unless they are
indorsed by the board of control; nor IS
sue warrants for expenditures upon the
normal schools except they are author
lied by the board of control. Mr.. Dunn
made that determination known yeSter-
day after a long conference with the
three members of the board OF control
in which Gov. Van SAINT and Deputy
State Auditor Iverson also participated,
The auditor disclaims any partisan feel
ing in this matter and takes his position
on legal grounds strictly. In explaining
the attitude he had taken he expressed
himself as follows:
DUNN'S ULTIMATUM.
eve will stand by the law as the legis-
lature passed it. AS far as this ONCE Is
concerned. we propose to pay no vouchers
from the normal schools unless they are
o. KID by the board of control.
mo warrants will be issued unless the
vouchers come from the proper channel,
and that channel is the board of control.
The law is constitutional, so far as we
know We are not the supreme court.
THE normal school board recognized
the authority of the board of control,
lot n
nomal schools. This Office has also hon
ored vouchers for expenses of the normal
schools which came through the board
of control. We will continue to do bust
ness w tn the board of control alone.
Therefore, until there is some adjust
ment of the matter either by decision OF
the courts or compromise of some kind
between the conflicting boards, all sal
aries of officers and employees of the nor
NAL school system and all expense bills
of whatever character, will be held up.
From the time it became officially ex-
istent, Aug. l, until last Saturday, the
board of control was recognized as hav-
ing full control of the financial affairs OF
the normal schools, that condition hav-
ing been acceded to by the board Of
normal school directors in a resolution
passed April 20. At meeting last Satur-
day the normal board, for reasons which
have been previously related in the
G o b at some length from time to
time, decided to rescind it's action in the
adoption of the resolution referred to
and to declare its independence of the
board of control and in future assume
exclusive management of it's own bust
ness affairs. In this action the normal
board relied for justification upon the
opinion of Attorney General Douglas to
the effect that the board of control bin
was defective as far as the educational
institutions We're concerned and that the
authority of the newly created board
could not legally be extended to that
class Of state institutions. Pursuing the
spirit of that action the normal board
has since entirely ignored the authority
of the board of control, and throughout
this week vouchers have been coming
to the auditors office merely approved
by the resident directors of the different
schools and without Endorsement from
the board of control. One communication
received was from George H. Clark, resi-
dent director of the Mankato school, ask
ing the auditor to allow $500 from the
furniture fund for supplies for the man.
ual training department of the Mankato
school. The board of control had, on
former requisition. stricken out the item
Of expense for manual training appar-
atus.
G. A. Morey, the resident director at
whether the vouchers for August should
be made in accordance with the estimate
the board of control or under the
old plan. o. H. Clark, accounting officer
at Duluth sent a telegram asking that
the contractors on the new school be al
lowed their estimates at once, that the
work need not be delayed. These esti-
mates had not been acted upon by the
board of control.
These communications demanded
prompt action, and as Auditor Dunn was
absent from the city, conducting a sale
of state lands at Bemidji, he was sent for
and arrived yesterday morning. Mr..
Dunn consulted the members of the
board of control and Gov. Van SAINT, and
decided, as has been stated, upon his
course in the matter.
Attorney General Douglas is at present
out of the city, and when asked if he
would consult the attorney general upon
his return In regard to this question, Mr.
Dunn said:
ct is not a matter for the attorney
general to decide, but one in which this
Office shall act for itself. That law was
good enough for the normal board as
long as things went satisfactorily. and
now that the members are dissatisfied
with the action of the board of control,
they fall back upon the position that the
law is unconstitutional. That sort of
child's play cannot be permitted to in
fluenee the business of this state. The
normal schools are paid for by the peo-
pie of the state, and the normal board
is not a private corporation to do as it
pleases regardless of the public interests.
WITHIN THEIR RIGHTS.
w. 3. Mitchell, of ST. Cloud, resident
director of the normal school of that CITY.
and member of the state normal school
board, was interviewed by the G o e
last night by telephone regarding the
present status Of affairs Mr.. MitcheIPs
attention was called to the statement
given out yesterday by State Auditor
Dunn. He said:
Il can say this; we are acting entirely
within the law as defined to us by At
torney General Douglas. Before we pass
ed the resolution the other day resembling
our action of April 20, I had a personal
consultation with Mr.. Douglas, and he
informed me that We would be perfectly
within our rights to reverse our action.
The situation was simply this: The board
of control bill, as everyone knows. as
passed, was defective, and left it discre-
tionary with the normal board whether it
should transfer the financial matters I'M
der its control to the board of control.
We voluntarily adopted this course.
Now the attorney general saws we
have the same right to reverse this 10