Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1909-09-30

Topeka, sept 81. United States
senator Charles Curtis In q public
speech 1t Eskridge Kan, recently
told his audience that II they wanted
to know the cost Of reform in Kansas
Ito look at their tax bills this year,
stating further that we have a real
reform government in Kansas now
IHe is also sending out letters Great
ling the impression that the present
| Legislature and this administration
have caused enormous increases In
1.-The expenses Of the state government
for this year, and many Of his politi-
cal followers throughout the state
are attacking the reform movement
lin Kansas in the same general way.
i "These men who are making a
general assault on the reform move
ment in this state, il they want to be
fair and tell the truth. should admit
that this movement has resulted in
saving our people more money every
year than the entire cost of the whole
state government, The saving In
freight and passenger rates alone
amounts to millions of dollars an
nualIy to say nothing Of the business
like methods which have been estab-
Ilished in every department of the
state government.
1.-THE plain, unvarnished truth IN
the whole matter is that all state
ments and insinuations which have
been made for The purpose OF Great
ing the impression that the expenses
Of the state government have been
enormously increased during this ad-
lministration over the preceding bien-
NAL term are false and utterly with
ont foundation. The men who have
been circulating these reports have
themselves known that the increased
tax levy was not caused by increased
appropriations or increased eyoenses
|fD, the maintenance Of the state go'
eminent this year, but was solc'y
caused by an insufficient tax lew
last year, which provided only two
million dollars revenue to pa three
and one-half million dollars expenses
In other words, the exploitation OF
the comparison of this years taxes
with those paid in 1908 instead OF
l19O7, the corresponding biennial
year, is a mere political trick to mis-
lead and befuddle the taxpayers by
comparing the levy for this year, that
was made on basis that will pay
all the expenses of the state govern
ment, with levy made last year that
lacked almost one million dollars OF
paying the current expenses Of that
Iyear. The 1907 levy raised approx
mately three-quarters of a million
| dollars more than the 1908 levy.
lit is thus perfectly apparent why the
l1sO7 levy was not used for COMPARE
son purposes.
James M. Nation, State AUDITOR
| in a letter to the Legislature on
January 20, 1909, advised that body
that there would be shortage Of one
million dollars on account OF insuffi-
cient tax levy for 1908.
fortunately the state subsequent
liz collected some old claims from the
federal government amounting to
over one-half million dollars and
other claims and extraordinary fees
which will probably tide the State
Treasurer over until the new taxes
begin to come in in December. The
appropriations made by the present
| Legislature, including all fees amount
to practically the same sum as the
appropriations for the preceding Leg
islature af 1907, but the 1909 session
of the Legislature has to its credit
the following items: 100000 for a
memorial building for the veterans
Of the Civil war; $2S1,O00 for coal
for state institutions, made necessary
by the removal of the Oklahoma
prisoners, and 100000 for the nor
NAL training courses in 100 different
high schools and other Sums for
farmers Institutes, stamping out to-
berculosis, experiments at the Agri'
cultural college end other items, ell
Of which aggicgate more than 5000
900.
I'm addition to the above, the In
situations Of the state have grown to
the extent that there will probably
be an average Of 500 more patients
in the charitable institutions to be
taken care Of during the current two
years than there were during the
preceding two years. and 500 more
students in the Agricultural college,
c.,.a ,,rtvareitv ana normal school