The Wenatchee daily world. [volume] (Wenatchee, Wash.) 1905-1971, 1909-01-07
.L0RTON MAY Be
BOARD Of CONTROL
GOVERNOR MEAD, 1T IS SAID,
WILL SUGGEST SUCH A PLAN
TO COMING LEGISLATURE -
OFFICIAL WOULD MAKE OLYM-
PA HEADQUARTERS - GREAT
SAVING IN EXPENSE.
Special to the World.

OLYMPIA, Jan. 7.-Eugene Lor.
ton, Cosgrove's choice for member OF
the state board of control, may be
the entire board if the coming legis-
lature follows the suggestion Cover
nor Mead will make in his message
and abolishes the present board to
place the entire power in one officer.
Governor Mead first suggested this
plan some time ago in a tentative
way, but since he has gone into the
question more thoroughly he is now
quite convinced such change will
be step forward
The absolute fixing of responsible
ity in one individual executive is the
chief argument the governor ad-
vances for the change. Economy is
another ground.
An objection that has been raised
to the change which is that it will
do away with the present bipartisan
ship of the board, the governor ex-
poets to meet by his other plan to
place the state institutions under
civil service.
Under the present law one men,
Der of the board of control has to
visit every state institution at least
once each month, irrespective of
whether anything there demands his
attention or not. Every fourth
month all three members of the
board have to visit each institution
and quarterly also the entire board
has to go to Walla Walla to attend
sessions of the state prison board.
The governor argues that If the
three segments of such unit. He in
sists the board has purely executive
duties to perform, has no judicial
functions, and that one man could
hire a superintendent, buy supplies
on bids, let contracts for buildings
and perform the other duties just as
we'll as could three men and in the
case of the one man there would be
no divided responsibility.
1t is considered that the mandat-
DRY requirements of visits to each
institution each month could easily
degenerate into a series of practic-
ally social calls upon the several SUI
perintendents and that while men,
bers of the board are absent from
Olympia matters of the utmost i'm
portance demanding prompt atten-
ton might come up and loss to the
state follow because no one was
there with the power to act on them.
The governors plan has not been
entirely worked out in detail, but
generally it seems to contemplate
that the executive officer who takes
the place of the board shall be in
Olympia practically all the time, the
travelling to be done by some sub
ordinate. Under this executive Of
ficer will be expert employees includ-
ing, for instance, a competent pur-
chasing agent. who will attend to
the buying of supplies, and an ac-
countant who will have supervision
over the books of all of the insti-
buttons and financial reports there
ana of the records of the board at
Olympia.
Possibly the Office employees of the
board will include an expert steam
engineer, who will have charge of
the supervision of the heating ap-
paratus at the several institutions,
and an expert carpenter and build
er, and an expert plumber, who will
similarly supervise work in those
lines. These will be all under di-
rect supervision of the head of the
office
This plan with a system of weekly
detailed reports will, in the opinion
of the governor, give the Olympia Of
fee perfect control of all the insti-
buttons, result in absolute harmony
of work between the institutions and
generally be more satisfactory and
economical than the present scheme.
He will suggest the change in his
message to the legislature If it is
adopted it is possible Governor Cos
grove will give the position to Lor-
ton, although the lack of experience
of the latter in such work may make
change in that appointment