The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1919-06-06

immediate resignation from their po-
sitions and the abandonment Of the
attempts they are making at legisla-
/ ton.
! Instead of reducing the high sal
aries paid the state officials and sub
ordinate employees of the state, the
legislators propose to increase them.
Their pretext for this is the increased
cost of living. How ridiculous this
is may be understood when h IS
known that the comptroller, for ex-
ample. was living very comfortably
three years ago on $4,000 year,
whereas he is now being paid $500
a wear. which the legislature proposes
to increase to $4,000.
He, the state treasurer, the attor-
new general, the secretary OF state,
the superintendent Of public instruc-
ton and the commissioner of agricul-
ture. are each getting $500 a year
out of the state treasury. Ii their
salaries were reduced to $1,000 a year
as should be done, not one of them
would resign. All of them know, and
the legislature knows and the people
know that there are plenty OF good
~ IN he
would be glad to get those jobs at
$500 a year and would support their
families comfortably on that salary.
But the legislature thinks that these
officials should each be paid $4,000
a year. and that is what is proposed.
It's a wonder that it is not pro.
posed to increase the governors sal
airy, which is $4,000 a years., 500 too
much.
It is proposed to increase the sal
aries not only of the state officials,
circuit judges and states attorneys
of whom there are between twenty
five and thirty, but every clerk in
the departments of the capitol and
evry inspector and every other emf
ploye who is living at the expense of
the people is to have his salary in
creased. A $500 clerk is to get $1,000,
the $1,000 clerk $1,000. the $1,000
clerk 1850, and so on through the
whole long list.
New offices to be filed by men
at high salaries are being created
Senator o. M. Eaton Of Polk county
wants his county to constitute sep
arate and distinct judicial circuit
with a new Judge and a new states
attorney to be paid good salaries
out of the pockets of the people, and
Senator IgOu of Lake county seeks
the creation of another circuit, the
seventeenth, to add to the burdens
OF the people. These two senator's
are rich and are able To pay twice the
taxes they are now paying; but it
does seem that they would have
some pity for the people with whose
conditions and circumstances they
are fully acquainted.
There is no end to the schemes
and propositions being discussed and
pushed by various members of the
Legislature to add to the cruel load
.rhioh fho pncpIa ora oa v.r.x1ion We
readily admit that many, il not all,
of these propositions are desirable,
maybe necessary, to be undertaken
but the people in general have not
the money to pay for them
1t is eminently desirable and proper
that your beautiful, beloved wife
should have diamond tiara costing
100000, but if $4,000 is all the mon.
ey you have or will have for two
years, you would be an idiot to buy
such costly baubIe Similarly. it
would be grand to have broad. brick
highways running to every county
seat in the state and all connected
up with each other; magnificent state
colleges and other buildings worth
thousands of dollars and their splen.
dor dazzling to strangers: no school
teacher paid less than $1,000 a year.
and everything visible and invisible.
in Florida made to be the admiration
and wonder of the thousands who will
visit the state every winter, but