The Grangeville globe. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho) 1907-1922, 1910-12-22
LAND BOARD
OPEN TO ALL
Auditor Taylor, New Member
of Land Board
So States.

State Auditor s. ID. Taylor, who has
land board by an amendment of the
constitution, this fall, as well as re-
elected state auditor. has given out
the following interesting interview
sPfor publication:
There DIS an impression that the
meetings of the state land board are
I closed to reporters and to the public.
II ann dn favor of having the meetings
wide open for both the public and the
press, and so announced myself dur
dng the campaign" He continued:
To make that campaign statement
good, one OF my first acts on the
board was to make a motion that
hereafter all hearings and dnvestdga-
tiors before the board should be in
open meetings. This motion was met
by tle statement from the other
members of the board that the meet
ing wele. open, and with a single
exception. always had been open and
that reporters and citizens frequently
did avail themselves of their privl-
ege to be present. This being the
case, ~ course, had no occasion to
pre;3 my motion.
II believe that there should be no
restraint whatever in keeping the
public away from these meetings.
The doors should be wide open. /
consider 1t to be TO the advantage Of
the individual members of the board
as we'll as to the public. The board
is weighted down with tremendous
responsibilities The land board bust.
ness of the state of Idaho amounts
to more than 500, 700 900. Great
discretionary power is vested in the
men who handle this vast busin ess.
The people do, and have a right to,
scruhnize their every official act
closely.
Insists on Open Doors.
THE press and the people gemer-
ally give public official a square
deal when he DIS out in the open and
does the best he can, but when there
DIS secrecy and the people do not
know, they grow suspicious, false
rumors are circulated, and am UNI
pleasant state of affairs develops.
AS a member OF the land board,
shall insist on wide open doors.
There ds another impression that
prevails that is erroneous" said the,
state auditor. ''It is often said that
the Carey act land is about all segre-
gated and that the board will not have
much more to do. AS q matter of
fact the work of the board is grow
ing each year. While there may not
be so much business in the way of
segregations, the work Is growing in
Importance along other lines. AS time
approaches for the completion of the
canals, preparations must be made for
turning the projects over to the set
tiers, the ultimate end contemplated
by the Carey act. It needs no elab-
oration to explain that when this
turning over takes place, the land
board will again be called upon to as
sumo tremendous responsibility to
says nothing of the innumerable con-
troversdes between settlers and con-
struction companies that they will be
called upon to consider.
"One of the important matters in
connection with the land board
work." says State Auditor Taylor, i'm
reviewing Idaho's flattering condition,
''is that of handling the endowment
funds, which are growing to greater
proportions each year. The state of
Idaho is one of the biggest leaning
institutions in the country. The state
now has $2.408, ,569.13 i'm the endow-
ment funds. The state land board
Is required to invest this money in
certain securities or loan 1t out en-
improved farms. During the past two
years | have issued, through the aud
itor's department, state warrants
against this fund to the amount of
$1,500,000 for the purchase of
state warrants, school bonds and
for farm loans. OF course some of
this money has been turned over seN-
eral times during that period. But
the point is that it is no small item
TO invest this vast amount to the best
advantage, and 1t is one of the
duties of the,land board to make these
endowments or permanent funds earn
all the money possible, as these earn
ings can be used for the maintenance
of schools and state institutions, and
reldeve the taxpayer of that much bur-
den. The state land board has been