Great Falls tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1921-current, 1922-10-13
COWLEY AYERS
STATE HEALTH
WORK COSTLY
Says in Eden Speech That
$4,000 Annually Can
Be Saved.

Forty thousand dollars a year can
be saved in the state department of
health by consistent reductions,
Stephen j. Cowley, democratic candi-
date for the state legislature, told a
large and enthusiastic audience at the
democratic rally in Eden Thursday
night. Leonard Herbolsheimer was
chairman of the meeting, which was
followed by a dancing party. Virtu-
ally all of the candidates on the demo-
cratic county ticket were present.
Cowley, who was the last speaker
on the program, said that the state
health department is costing the AK
payers this year more than five times
what it did six years ago.
Calls 1t Fungus Growth"
He said in part:
illustrating the fungus growth of
departmental service in the state, the
state house being filled to overflow
ing, the state department of health
built itself a magnificent structure on
the capitol grounds.
"This department cost the state of
Montana in salaries during the year
1915 the sum of S9,162.6S (our health
was very good them.
M one underestimate the neces-
sity of general health supervision, but
after building a beautiful building 10
take care of the state health depart
ment, we find that this department
cost the taxpayers of the state over
$4,000 for the year ending June 80,
1922. This department requested an
appropriation from the legislature for
this period of S105, 600. Fortunately,
the legislature, in view of the fact that
this department had been operated for
less than $4,000 in 1916, believed that
they could get along with less than
$105,000 for the ensuing fiscal year.
Local Departments Maintained
"It must also be remembered that
every county and city in the state
maintains a separate health depart
ment at their own expense.
When a single department of the
state government increases its ex-
penses in five years more than 500
per cent is it any wonder that the
state has gone more than $1,50O,0OO
in debt in the last IS months?
Looking over the payroll Of this
department, we find a secretary at
$4,000 a year, a bacteriologist at
$4,000 a year, an epidemologist at
$4,000 a year, a scientific assistant at
$1,000 a year, a director OF food di-
vision at $1,000 a year, another bac-
teriologist at $2,700 a year, an assist
ant bacterlogolist at S2,100 a year,
and the usual complement of clerks,
s~tenographers, janitors, chemists, Of
flee assistants and the like.
1.-THE title of epidemologist would
seem to be worth $4,000 a year, were
it not for the fact that tax money
is hard to raise in these days As
we understand the epidemologist, he is
the gentleman who chases the elusive
bug that causes plaques and epidemics,
assisted By the corps of employees.
Travelled 10000 Miles
Judging from the mileage expense
of this ~epidemologist, who travelled
10000 miles in nine months at the
expense of the taxpayer, this bug is
hard to keep up with and catch. That
he succeeds in gathering in some bugs
is evidenced by the fact that it takes
over $4,000 a yea to employ bac-
t~eriologistS and assistants to classify
the trophies of the chase.
Then we have a scientific assistant
at $4,000 a year. What does he do?
The food and water analysis de-
partment, with a payroll of over $4,000
a year, serves no useful purpose to the
great mass of people of this state.
The democratic party believes that
$4,000 a year can be saved in this
department alone without injuring the
health of the people of this state one
iota.
THE pairing knife of administrative
economy could equally well be applied
to the various departments, bureaus,
boards and commissions that infest the
capitol at this time"