The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1912-02-13
Missouri Pacific Bond Deal
Rises Like a Specter.
Taxpayers League Displays 1t
Before County Commissioners
TAX OF THE CITY SCHOOLS
E. E. Roudebush Calls Atten-
ton to Financial Condition.
Would Avoid Building Addition
to the High School.

That the county commissioners de-
Iberately sacrificed $45, 900 to $4,000 of
the peoples money in the sale of the
I Missouri Pacific bonds, was the sensa-
tional charge made last night by H. c.
Root before members of the tax pay
ers' league. Root stated positively that
the board fatty refused $4,000 for %he
bonds. again declined IS or even 70
cents on the stock and hurriedly closed
a deal with Kelley & Kelley. who sold
the stock for $50. 900 and drew 81, 500 as
commission.
Because of the hurried transaction
with Kelley & Kelley, the county is
now involved in expensive litigation,
there is shortage on the records in
the county treasurer's office and the
county lost many thousands of dollars
because of the hasty action of its board,
was the charge made before the league.
On top of all the trouble. the county
paid Kelley & Kelley 20 per cent of the
sale price for their services. The same
more money for the bonds, could have
been had for from 4 to 4 of I per cent,
according to Roots charges.
MedIicott Is Reported Short.
Trouble started over the report made
Monday afternoon by County Auditor
J. z. Larimer to the county commits
sioners. This report showed 81, 500 de-
felt in the records of Stanley Medlicott,
retiring county treasurer. This short
age was due to the orders of the board.
requiring the payment to Kelley &
Kelley of 81 500 for the sale of the
bonds. When the matter was brought
before the league, Root took the floor
and proceeded to relate history that
was unknown to many in the court
room.
When the sale of the Missouri pa
cific bonds was pending declared
Root "a certain Topeka commission
man called on the board concerning the
sale and asked an opportunity to sub
NIT a proposition. He was told that it
was an open contest and this man
spent $25 in kilograms to his fiscal
agency He learned that he could get
$4,000 for the bonds and submitted this
proposition to the board. The board
was asked to place the stock with n
local bank subject to the sale at this
price and the benefit of an Increase in
the offer II it could be secured A
commission of 1s to u of 1 per cent
was to be paid the commission man.
"A few days later, the commission
man learned that the bonds were To fra
converted to Missouri Pacific stock
then selling at 70. Then he learned
that he could readily sell the Shawnee
county bonds of the railway company
for % and in few days, possibly OBJ
tain as high as 20. This information
was conveyed to the board In the face
of the handsome offer the hoard hur-
riedly closed a deal with kelley &
Kelley, who sold the stock for $50 900
and drew nearly so per cent commits
sion for their services
Many More Thrills.
But the thrills of the evening did
not stop here. E. E. Roudebush a
former member of the school board,
READ report concerning the annual
budgets of the Topeka public schools
which caused the taxpayers to easD
Tor breath. He declared that in ten
years the cost of educating pupils in
the Topeka schools 4Bas increased GA
per cent and that other advances in
the work in local schools were equally
alarming.
Roudebush said that in 1900 it cost
$2-26 per capita for the years educa-
ton OF each pupil enrolled. In 1910,
1t cost 1912. That wasn't all In ten
years the number of teachers has
increased from 40 to 225, or so per
cent; and the salaries have advanced
so per cent. On top of these facts,
RoudebuSh'S figures showed that the
number of pupils per teacher had
dropped SO per cent. Owing to the
change in valuations. school properties
show an increase of 500 per cent in
valuation. Bonded Indebtedness has
grown wonderfully and in 1910 was
6S per cent ahead of the previous ten |
years. Expenses haven't stopped there |
Ihere has been an increase in all |
funds Of 80 per cent, Roudebush an |
nounced, and still the school board is |
confronted with overdrafts and in
sufficient funds to complete the school |
term without serious retrenchments. |
Charges Unfair Methods.
The former member of the school |
board went event further. He charged |
in his report that certain school prop |
rise to demands for new school build |
ings and that taxpayers have found it |
necessary to go deep in their pockets |
to meet the bills. He pointed to the /
school addition. Here the city as
sumed the unpaid bonds and spent |
$4,000 more in improveme tents. Three |
years later the Central Park school |
was built. The Martin & Dennis !
school prop rties=buildings and lots
were sold for $2.5OO.
Added to these conditions, Roude-
bush said there was a demand for an /
addition to the high school building. /
he proposed to remedy this trouble
by holding afternoon classes and
of the manual training
to class rooms.
Zimmerman Not There.
People who attended last nights
melting expecting q renewal of the
Swayze- mmerman-O'Nei1 scrap were
The county clerk and
commissioner failed to attend the
melting and Swayze applied fighting
language to Zimmerman's earlier
charges But there was no one pres
ent who volunteered to defend the |
county clerks record.
Swayze charged that Zimmerman .
himself had advanced former Auditor |
K oening $40 in lieu of his subsequent |
paycheck; and that former County
Treaser Medlicott had advanced the
auditor money. These loans were re-
paid, when the commissioners settled
What Swayze termed was a friendly suit
and paid the auditor $3.50 for the work
which they had repudiated.
Then the taxpayers spent a half hour
With the problem & the present spec
al audit Un6er the terms of their