Daily independent. [volume] (Elko, Nev.) 188?-1915, 1915-01-20
Scalp Bounties.

providing for the payment OF boun.
ties for the determination OF wild
and obnoxious animals have been
and are being abused. and that this
abuse is made possible by the lack
of uniformity in the laws of our own
and our n~eighboring states.
suggest that your honorable
bodies take steps to bring about I'M
mediate negotiations with those adj
joining states whose legislatures are
now in session or about to be con-
Fened. looking to the enactment of
a uniform bounty law which should
have the effect of stopping an illegal
traffic.
The Short Ballot.
II has beer apparent for some time
that u system of state government
is cumbersome, expensive, and in
efficient. Patterned as il Is after the
scheme peculiar to our state gov
ernments throughout the union, it is
interesting to note that a nationwide
movement is on foot. sponsored by
the leading students of political
science. including President VIII
son n eX-Presidents Tafts and
Roosevelt, in the interest of what is
known as the Short Ballot.
Under this system the governo.
and II other state officer. qualified
to succeed him. would be elected.
The subordinate executive offices
would be filled by appointment.
In a few words, the short ballot
means simply the adoption of the sys-
TEN employed in the National gov.
eminent where the people select the
president, who in turn appoints men
especially selected because of fit.
ness as the members of his cabinet
and the heads of the coordinated
branches of the government.
The absolute fixing of RESPONSE
bility on an individual rather than
the distribution of this responsibility
over a number of Independent depart
ments will unquestionably result in
genuine efficiency. At present we
have a headless organization made up
of departments which do or do not
cooperate in the general plan of gov
eminent, as they see fit.
The electorate may be the proper
judge of the character. general abil-
ity, and integrity of men. but ex.
perience has shown that il is not
qualified or prepared under our poIiti.
cal system to pass on the individual
technical qualifications Of numerous
candidates for public office. 1t is ap-
parent to any on e who carefully in.
vestigates the matter that the centra-
lization of authority in a man
who would be, because of the
position. selected with more care
than is now given to the selection of
a governor, and who would be solely
and directly answerable to the peo.
pie for all the acts OF the executive
department and subject to the recall,
should result in an approach to a
more ideal and responsive govern
ment, as well as a less expensive
government, than we can now possib.
ly obtain under our existing plan.
Provision can and should be made
for a bipartisan cabinet to prevent
the building of a political machine
! should the short ballot be adopted,
and II should be Understood that no
officer now in o,~rIse could come
under It's provisions before the gen.
eral election of 1918.
The Appointive judiciary
a constitutional amendment pro-
viding for an a%ppointive judiciary sub.
ject to ratification by the people and
to the recall. would, in my Judgment,
meet the views of a majority OF our
people.
Superintendent Of Documents.
The state printing office is itself
a model institution. but the facilities
which II affords the other state de.
partments have opened an avenue for
the abuse of the service which II has
to give.
We are annually publishing tons
of matter for free distribution which
is promptly consigned to the waste
basket by those to whom It is sent.
A partial remedy is ut the disposal
of the board of examiners. which
may prove or disapproye of all mat.
ter sent to the state printer, but
substantial economy can be effected
by ~delegating to some one depart.
ment the work of distributing state
literature.
1t Is therefore recommended that
the state printer be made ex-officlo
superintendent of documents without
additional compensation, his duties
being extended to include the storage
and distribution of all matter prepared
in his department.