The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1904-10-12
Instructs Attorney General to
Proceed In Defalcation Cases.
Recover the Shortages in State
Treasury.
CALLS ON COLEMAN
10 Take Such Legal Steps as
May Be-Necessary.
Governor Offers to Employ Coun-
sci to Assist.
MR.. KELLY'S BACK FIRE
His Counter Charges Are the
Cause of Amusement.
Governor Says He Acted on At
torney Generals Opinion.
HE WAS GIVEN $4,000.
This to Pay Cost of Maintenance
Of Executive Mansion.
Says That 1t Does Not Cover
All the Expense.
HE WAS GIVEN $4,000.
This to Pay Cost of Maintenance
of Executive Mansion.
Says That 1t Does Not Cover
All the Expense.

State Treasurer Kelly Cannot an
swer the criminal charges, sustained
by sworn testimony and the official
accountants report, by attempting to
divert attention by puerile counter
charges against a man like Governor
Bailey, whose character and reputa-
ton are established and whose name
is untarnished.
Governor Bailey has formally in
structed Attorney General Coleman to
take the necessary proceedings to re-
cover the shortages in the state treas
ury.
He cites and lists to the attorney
general certain findings of shorta ges
by the state accountant in the state
treasurer's accounts and books. He has
given him dates. amounts and descrip-
tions, involving an examination of
twelve counties.
A number of these specific items have
been made public in the reports of the
accountant printed Monday.
A number of other specific items
have not been published by request of
the attorney general, presumably not
to forestan legal action or to give op-
portunity for the return of more money
by mysterious drafts, or other meth
ods
Governor Bailey wrote a formal letter
to Attorney General Coleman Tuesday
afternoon. in which he explicitly direct
ed him to proceed in the matter of the
shortages in the state treasury.
Accompanying the letter the governor
gave Mr.. Coleman the papers submit
ted in evidence of the shortages. The
latter names the counties which have
made remittances to the state treasury
which have not been credited to those
counties nor accounted for on the books
of the treasurer. and also the two in
stances in which the money has been
turned in to the treasury since the in
vestigation started.
Governor Bailey instructs Mr.. Cole
man to go over this matter and then
directs him to take such legal steps as
he may consider proper in the matter.
These, of course. would be suits to re-
cover the missing money to the state
and TO punish the parties guilty of the
defalcation.
The letter closes by offering to en-
ploy legal counsel to assist the attorney
general in the matter whenever Mr..
Coleman deems it necessary.
The charges in retaliation for the re-
port of Accountant Rowett made by T.
IT Kelly against Governor Bailey and
some of his appointees are laughed at
by the people around the state house
today.
's,The money which 1 have used has
been used exactly for the uses for
which it has been appropriated" said
Governor Bailey today. The old fund
for maintenance was nearly all used up
by Governor Stanley. When the bal
ance was exhausted the bills came in
to the executive council and there was
NO tn d.
vice of the executive council and the
attorney general it was ruled that Il
contingency existed and such bills We're
paid out of the contingent fund until
the new appropriation was available.
The legislature then made an appro-
priatiOR OF s., 600 for maintaining the
executive residence and placed its eX-
penditure with the governor instead of
with the executive council. / under
stood that this fund was for the ex-
press purpose for which I have used it,
but before using it 1 got Mr.. Coleman's
opinion to the same effect 1 under
stand the auditors office also asked the
attorney general about the matter and
got the same opinion before auditing
the bills.
THE $4,000 appropriation does not
cover the maintenance of the executive
residence. I have to dig up my own
money right along for that purpose"
When Governor Stanley went out of
the governors office he made the
statement that it had cost him to live
a thousand dollars a year more than
his salary had amounted to.
1t would be difficult to tell what
maintenance" means if not construed
as Governor Bailey and the attorney
general construed it. A separate ap-
Dropriation was made by the legis-
~lature for repairs and for furnishings
for the executive residence. This ap-
preparation was put in the miscella-
neous appropriation bill. The $4,000
appropriation for maintenance was put
in the executive appropriation bill for
direct expenditure by the governor. It
would be difficult to imagine how else
it could be used for maintenance
except for the running expenses of the
governors residence
1t was clearly understood at the