Great Falls tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1921-current, 1921-11-23
PRESIDENT CUMMINGS
ADDRESS. |


Teachers association, made mos,
interesting and able address at the
Palace theater Monday. Much tina,
he said finds us in entire agreemen,
with him. We wish to note these
features first. In another article
we may take issue with some of his
statements regarding the teaching
of social justice" in the schools.
but that will require separate
space. Here we desire to note par
3ticularly his demand for a state
land board that will not juggle
school funds.
] President Cummings touches very
gently on something that is cry
ing shame to the state. It ought
to be remedied by the next legis-
lature. While Mr.. Cummings
places the blame for what has hap
.pened on the state land board, who
have charge Of the school lands
granted by the United States gov
ernment for the support of the pub
lie schools, the responsibility for
the diversion of these funds from
the purpose for which the state
holds them as trustee, rests on the
state board Of examiners, the legis-
lature, and primarily on the people
themselves. We are all guilty Of
what comes unpleasantly near to
cmbezzlement Of trust funds. A
considerable amount of these trust
funds are lost through our fault
all Of us. The loss should be made
good by the next legislature. The
depletion Of these permanent school
funds came about in two ways.
First the expenses of investigating
applications for farm loans were
taken from the permanent school
funds, instead Of from the loan of
the applicant, as would have been
the case if he had borrowed money
on mortgage from any private
banker or money loaner. Second
a large number of these loans are
delinquent in interest, and con-
siderable number will involve loss
of principal also. They were bad
loans.
AS trustees Of the federal gov
eminent money for the benefit Of
the public schools the state of Mon
tana did not have the excuse that
it could not find safer and more
suitable investment for these trust
funds. They turned down about rs
per cent Of all the applications for
the use of this money for school
purposes, on the security of school
bonds, in order to have more money
to lend to farmers on farm mort
cages, which in many cases have
paid no interest at all, and cannot
be foreclosed without further loss
to the permanent school fund. We
have been unfaithful trustees of the
school children'si money, and we let
a desire to gain political favor with
the farmers, and help out an in
dustry that had experienced hard
times, blind us to our duties as
trustees. The only honorable
method Of now restoring ourselves
to the respect Of the world, is to
acknowledge our fault, make up the
loss Of these trust funds by taxing
ourselves, and then sin no more.
We said that the state land board
was not solely to blame for this
loss of trust funds. Neither was
the legislature that made the law.
In the first place the people-the
voters themselves-were to blame.
We asked the legislature to pass
law to do that very thing. We
may almost say that we forced
them to do it, under threat of our
resentment if they did not do it.
An unenlightened and thoughtless
public opinion, that did not see re-
suits that might have been fore
seen, put that deal over, that has
already deprived the school chill
dren Of the state of about $160,0O0
in interest, and a lot more in ex-
pense Of examinations, and still
more to come in delinquent taxes,
foreclosure expenses, and loss of
principal. Now we see our mis-
take. The only right thing to do
is to make good the loss out of our
own tax money, for this lost money
was not our money. It was trust
funds committed to our care for
the benefit of the schools by a gen.
erous Uncle Sam. Let US then pay
the loss due to our bad judgment,
or worse, and do it without whin-
ing or seeking to hide behind tech
nica1 excuses.