The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1917-02-15

some badge of authority. It is import
ant to name good men as members of
the board of aldermen but it is just as
important to have men clever and alert
as members of the Board Of Education
and to represent the city in the big
unit of county government. Out in the
county towns where the voters have an
excellent idea of government the office
of alderman and county supervisor
is combined. In fact the man who is
the leader of the town board is sent to
represent the county at the proceedings
of the County Board The plan has
worked excellently. Just glance over
any report of the board of supervisors
and you viii notice that the affairs of
the rural towns are pretty well taken
care of. The men representing these
towns know that they must give an ac-
count of their stewardship to the town
board and through it to the people, In
the city the position of county super
visor is regarded as "minor office. -
The men are expected to give report
Of their stewardship to no one and
when the annual election comes about
it is usually hard to get anyone who is
willing to take the office of county su-
pervisor. We have no objection to the
election of old and experienced men to
these Offices. In fact we believe that
the Office of county supervisor is more
and more becoming one of the most
important Offices in the city and coun-
ty.
A Common Council may levy taxes
and spend a portion of the money
raised by taxation, but even greater
amount is turned over to the board of
supervisors and the Board of Educa-
tion for expenditure. Fixed expendi-
lures must be met by the council and
when these fixed expenditures are met
the amount to be expended by the
members Of the council is considerable
less than the amount expended by the
other boards. For instance, the school
board in the coming year will expend
In the neighborhood Of 100000 of the
peoples money. Not a cent of this
will go for the payment of bonds, bond
interest, state taxes or county taxes.
The school board members will vote on
just how every cent of it is to be spent.
Don't you think that handling such a
sum Of money is job for a real fell
loWg Over at the county building the
expenditures have been mounting high
er every year. We have learned the
lesson of building roads and better
roads; we are learning better every day
how to take care of our dependents and
our delinquents; we are learning better
ways of spending the county money so
as to make it go farther and bring more
In results to the men and women who
pay it. The expenditures of the county
board will mount into the hundreds of
thousands Of dollars in the coming year.
The intelligent expenditure of public
funds is a lot more important than the
raising of them. The portion that the
city must pay in the settlement of the
bills Of the county mounts high in the
figures of the city tax. Just on account
of these things it is impossible to con-
slider the Office of school commissioner
or county supervisor "minor'' Office.
They are major offices of great impor-
lance. The proper discharge of the du-
ties of these offices demands men who
know something of modern methods
and efficient methods. It is a dollars
and cents proposition to every voter in
Kenosha to watch and watch carefully
the makeup Of these boards. Tt is
more important to provide for the de-
velopment of the children of the city