The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1905-11-27
SHORT OF MONEY.
State Institutions Are Likely to
Run Close.
Orders Issued to Snperinten-
dents to Economic.
CHANGES IN THE Law.
These Are Responsible for Pres
ent Conditions.
Expenses of Maintenance Are
Growing Heavier.

Through the failure of the last session
of the legislature to reappropriate to
the various hospitals and reformatories
of teh state the fees which these institu-
tions receive in the course of tn year.
amounting to from $4,000 to $40, 600, the
work of these institutions Is likely to be
considerably hampered, and close figur-
ing will be necessary to make ends meet
from a financial standpoint
In order to have money enough to go
through the year, the state board of con-
troll has urged the heads Of the state
institutions to handle their funds as
economically as possible, consistent
with the needs of the institutions.
The shortage in funds is likely to be
felt especially at the Boys Industrial
school in Topeka. The boys at this
school make all the clothing and shoes
used there, and the cost of the raw ma
terial is heavy. The last legislature cut
down the appropriation for raw ma
terial from $4,000 to 81 ,OO0 It was then
expected that the fees would be reap
propriated as in. the previous years, but
the legislature failed to do this, and
the result is that the boys reformatory
may run out OF money with which to
buy raw material
The school for the blind at Kansas
City is also likely to be seriously affect
ed. The inmates of this school are
taught the broomnaker's trade, anu
they supply practically all the brOoms
used in the state institutions. The
money received from fees has been
used in the purchase OF material from
which broons are made.
At the OIathe school for the deaf and
dumb harnessmaking is one of the
principle trades taught; and the fees
are used for the purchase of leather
At the insane asyluns where the
patients are unable to do much effec-
tive work, the income from mees mas
been used as part of the fund for the
payment of current expenses. The To-
peka asylum has the largest income
from fees Of any institution in the
state It has large per eentage Of pay
patients. The totel amount Geready
turned in b yti1is institution thus far Is
about $1,000.
The failure of the legislature to re-
appropriate the fees for the fnstitu-
tions is due, it is said, to an oversight.
The session of 1903 passed a law of
general nature, reapprOpriating all the
fees, and the people who were looking
after the matter at the 1905 session
thought that this law would be suf-
fcient to apply to the fees until the re-
peal of that law. After the adjourn
ment of the legislature, however, the
board of control discovered that the
old law could not apply to the current
hibits the appropriation of any state
funds for more than two years in ad-
vance.
The result is that the fees are being
paid into the state treasury, and held
/ in the various funds. The money can
not be used for current expenses or
anything else; it must simly lay idle
until the next session of the legisla-
ture. The board of control expects to
then ask that the whole sum be urned
over to the board for the improvement
of some of the institutions. Until such
appropriation can be made, however,
the state institutions will have wait.
One Of he members of the board of
control, who was in oTpeka today,
said:
1--WE don't want it understood that
we have sent out any instructions to
the heads of the state institutions, re-
quiring them to cut down expenses, or
| threatening them with dismissal.
I Nothing of the sort has been done. We
simply want tn heads of the institu-
tions to exercise good business judg-
ment in the expenditure of the funds
| at their disposal. We do not propose
to cripple the institutions by economy;
we are not trying to make a record.
/ But thel legislature did not increase the
appropriations for maintenance, while
the number of inmates of the institu-
tions is increasing all the time. II
1 also failed to reapprOpriate the fees,
and this further curtailS the available
/ funds I think, however, that by the
/ exercise of care, all the institutions will
/ be able to get through until the next
/ session of the legislature.