The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-07-14

addresses is not a legitimate charge against the state.
 A calculation shows that Governor o'Neal expended on these trips si.5s day during his term of office.
 Salaries and Fees Under our laws all the state officers receive salaries and not fees for their compensation. And yet we find that a general practice has prevailed in some of the departments of charging, collecting and appropriating fees for work done and information furnished, which should prop erly go into the state treasury
 We herewith submit a bill which will prohibit this practice.
 Examiners of Public Accounts
 The present legislature passed a bill reducing the number of examiners Of public accounts from seven to five. We are not prepared to say at this time that this number should be- further reduced On account of the disclosures made where examiners of public accounts have checked over the books of public officials and pronounced them correctly kept, some changes are needed and some system must be inaugurated whereby full faith and credit can be attached to the statement of an examiner of public accounts in Ala bama.
 The system that we propose calls for CIIoiitntHl. bN tnt governor or inrce reputable public accountants who shall constitute an examining board, and who shall examine all applicants for public accountants or public examiners of the state and that no person shall be eligible te appointment as an examiner of pub lie accounts, or continue as such ex- aminer of public accounts who has not passed a satisfactory examination. Tuberculosis Commission
 The act creating the tuberculosis com mission, passed by the legisla ture of 1907 should be repealed. Under this act, which carried O conditional appropriation of s4o,o00 during the month of December. 1910. S2O,0o0 of this appropriation was re- leased by Governor Conner, drawn out by the commission at that time deposited n the hank in the city of Montgomery and there remained without drawing any interest until the fall of 1913, when DOT ton of said money was drawn to make payment on land purchased by the com mission near Cullman for the purpose of locating the tuberculosis hospital The testimony offered by this commission be- fore your committee disclosed that about $l5,00o of this money has, since the fall of 1913, been expended in the purchase of the land, the expense of selecting the same and in boring a well to see if suit able water could be obtained, and the eom- mission is not yet satisfied that a suffi- cieni amount of water or pure water can be obtained on the land.
 It was unwise business venture to purchase the land before ascertaining if there was a sufficient supply of pure water. It is certain that at this time the state is in condition to further pursue this undertaking. We submit herewith a bill repeating this act and providing for the sale of the land and the return to the state of the proceeds of the sale and the unused part of the appropriation.
 The Compromise Board
 We recommend that the compromise board, consisting of the governor, the at. torney general and the auditor, be abol- ished.
 Appropriations for State Institutions
 No appropriation for public institutions of the state should be made without an itenlized statement of the purposes for !, xl.