Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1908-07-09
Must House, Clothe, Feed and
Manage People Who Would
Make City Of 10000
INSTITUTIONS COST MONEY
Charges That Present System Is Ex-
!. travasant Made Without Information
as TO the Real Facts-Board May Es-
tablish Educational Bureau on Tu-
berculosis.
Special to Times Republican.

Special to Times Republican.
Des Moines, July 9.-Probably not
more than $4,000 Of the 1000 OF
the people OF Iowa realize how big are
the fifteen institutions that are under
the charge OF the state board of con-
troll of Iowa. A short time ago an Iowa
newspaper made the assertion that
neither Auditor Carroll nor Senator
Garst was right as to the expenditures
Of the state money; that Carroll was
| too prone to blame the state admins
istration and that Garst was too prone
| to defend the state institution and that
| IL a diligent inquiry were made It
would be found that the state board
of control is an expensive luxury In
Iowa and that the state institutions
are the read sources that drain the
money from the state treasury.
| There is no denial but that the state
! institutions of Iowa, fifteen In num-
Der, take an enormous amount OF mon
ey every year. But the fact that 1t
costs a great deal OF money to keep
!, them going argues for nothing. The
state institutions are an expense. They
are not run with the idea of making
a profit each year. They are an eN-
pense incurred for the purpose OF
properly taking care Of the insane and
otherwise unfortunate citizens of the
state and for incarerating that class
that insists on disregarding the laws
Of the state. The 1907 population of the
fourteen institutions then open was
over 10000. This gives but an made
quate conception OF the size OF the In
situations. Marshalltown, Fort Dodge,
Keokuk, Muscatine, are cities of from
$4,000 to 5000 population by the CEN
sus of 1905. Waterloo then had a pop
ulation OF $4,000 and Oskaloosa 10000.
Some little conception of what the
state board of control has to do can
be ascertained by considering the fact
that 1t must feed, clothe, govern, fur
nish employment, furnish education FOR
some and medical attendance for oth-
ars of g city of the size Of Marshall-
town, Including men. women and chill
dren. These fourteen institutions have
Z 900 acres Of land valued at $653,771.
The buildings are valued at $7.235,472,
and the personal property at $99S,O9S,
the live stock at $S4O3S and the total
value of all is sS.93S,400. Since then
the fifteenth institution has been add
es2--that at Iowa City for tuberculosis
patients. which would swell the figures
still larger.
Where Ignorance is Bliss.
Think for minute OF the state
board of control furnishing all the
necessities of life including food, cloth
ing, shelter, heat, and light to all the
men, women and children in Marshall
town, and Including also education for
the children, the services of ministers
of the gospel for all with the salaries
of many attendants and physicians.
Outside Of the members of the state
board of control and some of the head
clerks in their office and the governor
who has visited each Of the institu-
tions and possibly some few other per-
sons who have visited them, there is
probably no one In Iowa who has
enough of a conception of the size of
the institutions to make an assertion
as to the efficiency Of the management
by the state board Of control. And yet
every now and then some. editor Of
small newspaper makes the assertion
that the state board of control Is an
expensive luxury. The assertion can be
nothing less than wild, hazardous
guess, such as some of these news
papers are addicted to credliting to cor
respondents In cities not more than a
million miles away.
What the Board Is Doing.
It Is not the intention to hold any
one up to ridicule. 1t Is hoped, however,
newspaper articles, for the benefit Of
the public some conception of what the
state board of control is doing. This
can not be done In one article, how
ever as to whether the state board of
control is economical or not can only
be determined by going into the min
ute details of the various expenditures.
No one yet has ever spent much time
in pointing out any particular items of
extravaganza on the part Of the board
Of control. The charges heretofore have
always been wholesale charges. There
will be no attempt here either to de-
fend the state board of control. They
can defend themselves. The only at
tempt will be to show something Of
what the board has to Go and of the
enormity of it's task and the size Of the
Institutions
institutions Are Immense.
At Clarinda.s aIa., where there is 10
Gated one of the four insane hospitals,
it is one mile around the principal
building and at Cherokee, where anoth-
er of the insane hospitals is located, II
is three quarters Of mile around the
principal building. The institutions at
Independence and Mt Pleasant are
nearly as large. The ground upon which
the buildings at Cherokee are located
is little more than quarter section
of land The grounds are practically
about 1900 feet square and quarter
section of land is 1890 feet square.
The grounds at Clarinda are even larg-
err and those at independence and Mt.
Pleasant are about as large. The in
sane hospitals are the largest institu-
lions in the state but many Of the 9th
er institutions are OF large size. The
smallest acreage at any of the institu-
lions is for the college for the blind
at Ninton where the total is Al acres.
mostly occupied by buildings.
Scope of Work lis Wide.
Tha state board of control consists
of fhrpa 81