Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1916-03-10

What is put forth by Republican
torial campaign in this state was fir
statement published with consider,
many Of the Republican newspaper
attacking Governor Lister on the q
economy had not been kept, but that
had been far more costly than Hays
Wednesday, the letter being given ou
1t is detailed discussion and compal
follow:
What Hay Said.
Hon Ernest Lister, Olympia.
Dear Sir: For some time I have
noticed articles in the press dealing
with state finances and making claims
of great savings by your administra-
tion as compared with the record Of
the previous administration. While
these articles were evidently inspired
from the same source, no one was
quoted as authority for the alleged
facts presented, and I did not feel
called upon to challenge the mis-
leading statements until you ap-
proved and repeated them in q
speech recently made at Democratic
luncheon in this city.
I feel that regard for the truth and
in justice to the people of this state,
as well as to myself, the misconcep-
tion under which you evidently are
laboring should be cleared away by
presenting the facts in order that
others may not be misled as you have
been.
Says Taxes Jump %, ,6S1 ,S72.
Figures WITHOUT explanation often
lead to mistaken conceptions. You
fall into this error when you point to
the overdraft of $450.000 at the time
you took office, and the balance now
in the treasury of $1,115,000, then
by adding these figures claim a saving
of $1.565,000 in three years.
II we consider that in the last
three years Of my administration the
people were called upon to pay $16.-
S02.542. while in the first three years
Of your administration they had to dig
up $24.483.914 in taxes. or $751;
372 more in the same length of time,
can't you see, dear governor, that
your administration has been more
costly, not more economical, than
mine?
When I entered upon the duties Of
chief executive I found the admins
tration with very little cash in the
treasury confronting q bonded in
Of $1.2o0.000. which was
a legacy from the Rogers admins
tration Of which you claimed to be
an important member. When I left
ONCE in January, 1913, this bonded
debt had been fully discharged, but
the general fund account was tempo
rarily overdrawn $450,000.
Explains His Financing.
In addition to paying of the bond
ed debt of the state, we loaned to the
capitol building fund $4,000 for
the Temple Of Justice, ex-
pecting to return this amount to the
general fund from moneys derived
from the sale of capitol building fund
bonds. as directed by the legislature.
(See secs. and 5. ch. So. Session
Laws, 1911). Owing to the low rate
of interest these bonds we're to bear
and a decision of the supreme court
that the money from the permanent
funds could not be invested in this
class Of bonds. the bonds could not
be sold except at a sacrifice, and we
it better business to leave
the overdraft than to sacrifice the
bonds.
In a paid advertisement in the
Spokesman-Review of November 8,
1912, you made the following prom
Use: ERNEST Lister pledges a reduc-
tion of at least $1,000,O00 annually
and the people know that Lister
means business, for he has been tried
and found true as STEEL"
Takes "Oharitable" View.
This was a campaign document and
I did not then believe that you were
SO ignorant of the state government
as to think that by your individual
efforts you could effect such a saving.
I do not now charge you with bad
faith in giving currency to statements
to show that you have
saved large sums over the previous
am charitable
enough to believe that you fail now,
as you did before election, to compre-
hend the facts. prefer to believe
that you voice misleading assertions
through inability to understand fig