Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1914-10-07

establishment of the merit system,
providing a civil service commission
very like the United States civil ser.
vice commission, to receive the arpli-
cations of those who desire appoint
ments, to examine the applicants, and
to recommend them to the various de-
partments when vacancies occur This
will do away with what is known as
1.-THE Spells SYSTEM" and will make
1t difficult to build up a political ma.
chine composed of state officials Much
can be said in favor of the establish
ment of the merit system. 1t has
not escaped criticism-It creates an
| ot(lce-holding class. Once a position
| in the civil service is obtained it's
holder feels that he has such an in.
| terest in it and such a right to it, that
he cannot be separated from it. The
| inefficient, as Well as the efficient,
claim life-tenure of Office and believe,
| upon their retirement on account of
old age, they should be provided for
| through pensions or other fixed pay
ments. This may be avoided if at the
very beginning appointments in the
civil service are made-not for life,
but for definite term of years-six
| or ten. Say six years. Nothing would
prevent the efficient and capable from
being reappointed, while the careless,
Indifferent and the inefficient would
not be reappointed-much to the bene-
| fit OF the state. The commission hay-
ing to DO with these appointments and
reappointmentS would, of course. be q
nonpartisan body.
The third recommendation of the
| commission relates to the establish
| ment OF budget system. With the
reorganization that is proposed, the
| heads of the departments and the gov.
ernor would prepare estimates of the
revenues of the state, and of the ex-
penditures necessary for two fiscal
years, and these estimates, with de-.
tailed information, would be present
ed to the legislature on the first day
OF the legislative session, so that there
would be abundance of time for that
body to consider and act upon them.
High Taxes Must Cease.
l sincerely trust that this great
work will receive the attention it de-
serves, not only from the members of
the legislature, but from the people
of the state. The high taxation of to-
day cannot continue, the expenditures
OF the state must be lessened, and
| mere is rational and Well-thought-out
plan to promote efficiency and econ
Omy.
Including the swamp lands granted
to the state of Minnesota, but unrat-
ented, the state has some three mil
Of 1or >f
not only suitable for agriculture, but,
when improved, exceptionally fertile
| Every year large number of persons
| come here looking for land. Many
OF them have means sufficient to pur-
chase improved farms and to carry
them on. There are others who would
prove most desirable citizens of the
state who have limited means. They
are strong, ambitious and Industrious
| and would gladly buy the state land
suitable for agriculture. But they
must have land that will respond read.
lily to their efforts and bring quick re-
turns; they cannot drain and clear
the lands themselves for they cannot
DO without income during the process
| of development. The state itself
should undertake to improve these
lands so that they would attract pur-
| chasers who would settle upon them
| and make them productive. It is
greatly to the advantage of the state
| to do this. Its nonproductive agri-
cultural land should be made produc-
tive and pass into the hands of actual
settlers as soon as possible, so that it
would do it's part in sustaining the
burdens of county and state govern
ment. These lands should be cleared,
| drained and made accessible to mar
kets by the construction of suitable
| roads. To permit this fertile, produc-
tive land to remain idle for years,
when hundreds of industrious men and
women would make homes on it and
convert the dreary wastes into fields
OF waving grain, is economically, if
not morally, wrong. Before any land
is offered for sale, however, it should
| be thoroughly examined to the end
that it may be known what is under
the surface as we'll as on it. For the
present we should hold our mineral
| land.
For Land development.
At the Democratic state conference
recently held in St. Paul platform
was adopted containing this declara.
tion-with it am in full accord:
| Our state should adopt a system
attic and business-like plan of develop
ing and settling it's rich resources of
public lands, now idle and fruitless
through state neglect. To this end,
We recommend the creation of a state
department revolving fund, to be used
in improving state-owned lands by
draining submerged areas, by build
ing roads to inaccessible areas, and
by partial clearing of stump-covered
lands; the cost Of such improvements
to be charged to the land benefited and
recovered into the revolving fund when
such land is sold. Wherever lands pri.
vately owned are benefited by such
improvements, they should be assess
ed their full share of the cost. We
urge this not only as a measure of
true conservation and DEVELOPMENT for
the relief of northern Minnesota, but
as a business plan that will profit the
entire state"
Within the boundaries of the state
there are approximately so million
acres of. land; 80 million of these