The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1906-12-11

montpelier, Dec. 1.-THE Joint COM
mltiee which has beep investigating
state commissions completed Its labors
at midnight last night and reported TO
the House aud Senate today.
The report is re ihot document In
Interest, for, In spite OF the fragmen-
tary reports that have been 10 clrcula.
ton, neither the legislature nor the
puolIc was prepared for crookedness
and graft that Is revealed.
The Investigating committee was
composed OF Senator'S Stafford OF La.
noble county and Chase OF Windham,
and Representatives Porter OF VIII.
minglon. Flynn OF Springfield and
Jackson OF Rarre. They have been 1T
work for two weeks every spare nom.
ent aud have investigated the railroad
and fish and game commission. The
cattle commission was not taken up as
IL Is already 10 the courts at Chiiten.
den county.
Fish and Game Commissioners Thorn.
as department was found % be all
right In every respect though the com.
mittee says there Is opportunity for
graft there should the department fal
into the hands OF dishonest commits
sioner.
The report next takes up the rail-
road commission aud goes into the
subject In detail. The commission for
the past two years has been composed
OF Fuller Q. Smith OF ST Adams, chair
man; Henry s. Bingham OF Benning-
ton, clerk; AID George T. Howard OF
Craftsbury. Messrs Smith and Bling
ham have been members OF the board
for four years ana Howard for about
three years.
The expenses OF the commission Is
shown to have very largely increased
during the past few years. For the
two years ending June /, 1902 the total
expense was s7,s5l.0i; For the two
years ending June l, 1904 the expenses
jumped TO Gil ,2i5.25; For the two
wears ending June ], 1905 1t was sl2,-
96S. 46.
The committee finds that large part
OF this increase was unavoidable be-
cause OF the great increase 10 the mum.
Der OF hearings called for aud the In
creasing OF the other duties OF the
board.
The individual members OF the com.
mission are then taken up. The ex.
pense account OF each has been kept
separately so that the personal charges
OF each is independent Of the others.
The accounts of II. s. Bingham OF
Bennington are found all right IN
every respect and no suspicion of
wrong doing attaches to him in any OF
the graft uncovered. His only offense
is that of being member Of an ex-
pensive commission.
Fuller c. Smiths accounts are found
to be all right but he is severely GEN.
sured for having acted as an attorney
before the other two members OF the
board in the case of the father of q
BOY who was killed by the cars at
Milton.
Mr. Smith is also charged With max
ing a false statement to the committee.
A week ago he swore that none Of his
accounts had ever been questioned by
the state auditor but the committee
finds that the auditor did question and
call upon him to prove his account
when he went to Birmingham, Ala, to
attend a meeting of railroad commits
sioners.
Mr. Smith went before the board last
night and stated that he had forgotten
this matter when he made his statement
a week ago. The committee found al
80 that the auditor questioned Smiths
bill for five days work at Wilmington
in making reports.
The third member Of the board, Mr.
Howard, did no Office work as he was
neither chairman nor clerk, yet 1t was
found that for the two years ending
June first, last, he charged for Ala
DAYS work for the state while Mr. Bing-
ham charged for only 2S2 days and
Mr. Smit 81. Mr. Bingham being
clerk had more time than Mr. Smith.
The committee finds no good reason