The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1910-02-17
EX- GOVERNOR EDWIN
WAKEFIELD WARNS
Says Maryland State Treasury Is In
Serious Condition.

~ SAe'N e'A y wing uoSb lOl pay
ment of current expenses, Ex-Governor
Edwin Warfield, in a letter sent to State
Comptroller Joshua w. Herring, strong
| ly urges the sale of the Northern Cen
trail Railway mortgage held by the
State.
The former Governor denounces ex-
travagance at Annapolis and says that
in the last three sessions 1925, 600 of the
peoples money has been wasted and
that this sum will probably reach $780,
600 by the end of the present session.
He says the 1925, 600 went for useless
employees, and he advises DR.. Herring to
refuse to issue warrants unless the
money is in the State Treasury.
The Legislature of 1910, he says, was
( in session in January about 16 hours
and 46 minutes, and he says it cost
| S2l, 1913 to pay the employees of the
/ session for that month. That is 81, 2S8
an hour for employees only, he says, and
/ characterizes this and other instances as
/ 'unwarranted extravaganza and base
/ grating.
In making these statements Ex-
/ Governor Wariield says he is keeping
his promise to the people and to himself,
when he left the Governorship, to
watch the State and warn when he be-
lieved danger is near. He considers the
/ situation now critical
United States Senator John Walter
/ Smith characterization of the talk of
Legislative extravaganza as making
mountains out mole hills" is replied to
by Mr.. Warfeld. He also pays his COM
pliments to Senator Arthur P. German
and those who recently stated that the
State Treasury Is in fiourishing condi-
ton,
Ex-Governor Warfeld, in discussing
the situation, said:
"In my message of 1906 and 1908
went into details in the matter of the
number of employees, and verv severely
criticised the wanton squandering of the
peoples money. The last three sessions
of the Maryland Legislature O9O4, 1906
and 1908 were the most expensive Leg
islatures in proportion to size that ever
assembled in the United States. The
amount of unwarranted and unneces-
sary expenditures of those three sessions
was $225, 900, and 1t looks as though the
grand total will be raised by this Legis-
lature to at least $500, 600. What a
goodly sum this would be if devoted to
educational and charitable purposes.
Remembering how in the past the
extra appropriations for legislative ex-
penditures were passed in the closing
hours of the session, recently wrote
to Comptroller Herring suggesting how
the necessity for an extra appropria-
ton for Legislative expenses might be
prevented
'"The Treasures statement of funds
on hand, published January 81, showed
such a small amount in the Treasury,
not withstanding the speeches made by
/ the Democratic leaders in the House and
/ the President of the State Senate, IN
which they stated that the Treasury
was IN a plethoric condition, that l be-
gan to examine the figures and found
/ that the Treasury was in a very serious
and depleted condition, and that there
was no money in the treasury and speci-
ally dedicated trust funds had been used
/ for current expenses.
ON view of this condition of the
Treasury | think that the appointment
of so many extra and Unnecessary en-
ployes was, at this time, most ineXcusi-
/ BILE; one-third the number would be
more than sufficient for all purposes.
This is apparent to everybody who has
had any experience in legislative mat
at Annapolis.
"Of course, was very bitterly de-
nounced for my exposure of legislative
extravaganza in my message, being
charged with cheese pairing and max
ing mountain out of mole hill.
Senator John Walter Smith had re-
Gently expressed it as his opinion that
all of this talk in Annapolis about econ7
omy in legislative expenditures was
simply making mountain out of mole
| hill
If criticising this wanton expendi-
ture of the peoples money in payment
of useless and unnecessary employees is
cheese pairing, if it is making noun
tain out of a mole hill, then | am gull
ty. | shall never cease denouncing such
unwarranted extravaganza and such
base grating.
Nothing has discredited the State of
Pennsylvania more than the graft I'M
earthed in connection with the furnish
ing of the Capitol at Harrisburg; moth
ing has discredited Maryland more than
the padding of the legislative pay rolls