New Mexico state record. (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1914-19??, 1920-06-25

THE NEW MEXICO COLLEGE
OF AGRICULTURE AND ME-
CHANIC ARTS TO CHARGES
OF GOVERNOR o. A. LARA
| ZOLO.
To Honorable o. A. Larrazoio.
Governor of New Mexico.
Sir:
We. the undersigned Members of
the Board Of Regents of the New
Mexico College of Agriculture and
Mechanic Arts, have each received
your letter dated June 1ith, 1920, and
your notice Of hearing dated June
18th. 1920. both referring to charges
made sgainst US as members Of said
Board. aad notifying each Of US Of
q hearing to be held in your office
on June 23rd, l9D. at tea O'Clock
A. n, At which we are each re-
Quired to show cause why we should
not be removed from office for NAL
feassnee alleged to have been COM
mitted therein.
The charges preferred by you, what
ever the source of your informa-
ton or your motives in making them.
are 50 nanifestiy unfair that we are
compelled to reply in conside Fable
detail. though you have in your Of
flee and at your command, quarter
iy reports which show many of the
financial transactions handled by our
/ Board and indicate the falsity of
these charges.
No present showing of the actual
financial condition of the College
was made at the meeting had in your
office on May 22nd, 1920. Those
of US who attended that meeting did
not understand that a statement Of
present conditions would be requir-
ed and did not have books or book.
keeping officers of the College at
hand. The only reports consulted
were an Auditors report, the clos
ing date of which was February 28,
1920, and the quarterly reports made
to the state officers which were not
down to date.
This Board took charge OF the ms
titution named in the latter part of
March. 1917, though the proper ar
rangements to take over the finances
of the College were not completed
until the following month of April
The first quarterly report following
shows that at the time we took charge
there was a deficit or overdraft of
S402l2.S. At the same time there
was a bookkeeping credit on the
Treasurer's books of approximately
%0,000.00 which was then involved
in the failure of the First State Bank
of Las Cruces. This money was
never recovered until December, 1918,
and later, when it was paid by the
surety company on its bond, and sum
amounted to &e.23026, principal and
interest. and of this amount the
State Treasurer took possession of
$2l !0O00 as State Permanent Funds
which could not be spent by the Col
lege. How this amount of $2l 10000
came into the hands of the Treasurer
of former Board we are wholly
unable to state. We had right
to assume that no such funds would
be held by the Treasurer of the
Board which should have been held
and invested by the State Treasurer.
This left $5823026 to be used By
the College. This amount was for
the most part absorbed to replace
fedora funds which had been lost
IN the failure Of the First State Bank,
ard in addition, the College was com
pel.cd to pay about $4,000 in in
:erest on moneys borrowed to meet
its c, penses and carry on federal
funds until the money was recover
ed.
No money was ever appropriated
by the State Legislature to pay any
of the deficit mentioned above and
the only appropriation ever made,
outside the regular appropriations,
was one of $4,000 to meet the in
terest referred to in the last para
graph. In fact, since the present
Board had charge, the legislative ap-
have been small when
we eliminate special appropriations
made necessary by new laws ard
designed to meet federal appropria- !
tions of like character and which
could not be used for the general
College needs already existing. Also
dur'nc the past two years, the val
ue OF money has SO declined, be-
ing practically fifty cents on the dol
lar at Las Cruces, as shown by a
carefully prepared report made by
the faculty. of the College, that even
atoms made on the basis
Of former years were only fifty per \
cent, effective in purchasing power
At the College.
Immediately after this Board took
charge Of the College. our country
entered the World War, Increased
was called for in every
Kind of foodstuffs to feed the arm
les and the people Of Europe as
we'll as our own. An intensive CAM
,aign was begun all over the Ma
lion; and our State could not lag
behind. The College was in the fore
front of this campaign as the logical
medium of that work. While there !,
we're a few county agricultural agents
when il began, at the end of a year
here were agents in neatly every
of the State. Among these
we're several Spanish-American work.
.rs who did well, and the people
responded as well. The increase in
was from s. to so per
cent. during the first year, though
1 was an exceedingly dry season in
many parts of the State. The in
,rease was largely due to the State
College.
We found the approach to the Col.
ege a mass of cactus. sage-brush and ,
,oapweed. This was cleaned up and
ten acres planted to
yrasses, grains and shruberrv. with
water to maintain them. This ap- I,
,roach was a disgrace to such an
Institution. and vet its eradication
vas made at little cost. Now il is
worthy of the College. Z,
Nea- the front of the College
buildings was a tract of College land
# one hundred acres which was not
producing. and much OF which was
lot broken out. This was all irnpro-
red and now is an income-producing