Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1922-06-27
Ed TO RIAL.
INSULTING GEORGIA INTELLI-
GENCE.

ONE Of the grayest forces for i'll
in Georgia is the prejudice which
exists too greatly in the minds of
many of the people, and which is
famed rather too constantly by as
tute and more or less unprincipled
politicians who take advantage of its
existence, knowing full well how to
play upon it and use it to their own
advantage. Just now we have the
spectacle of J. j. Brown, state COM
missioner of agriculture, fighting
losing first round with ringing APP
peal to the prejudices of the people
such as he has seen succeed so we'll
before.
Some weeks ago Governor Hard
wick in furtherance of his promises
to get Georgia back on a sound finan-
cial basis and check as far as possible
the huge wastage of the peoples
money that we all have known has
been going on, without being able to
lay our fingers on the exact spots
where the leaks were occurring, hired
the best firm of accounting efficien-
cy experts ne could secure. The firm
happened to have headquarters in
Chicago fact entirely in favor of
real service in that not being a Geor-
gla concern it could have small
chance of being interested in any fac
ton or individual. 1t had orders to
survey the state departments, as far
as the funds available for that sur
vey would permit, and make recon-
mendatiOns wherein charges could be
made for effecting savings to the
state. That firm of accountants
made its report last week. II rec
commended first of all the establish
ment of state auditing department
Tor the checking of all account, and
made the estimate that the cost of
| such department would not exceed
! $4,000 for the remainder of this
year and all of 1928, and that the
saving it should make would run from
100000 to 100000, depending
upon the authority with which it was
clothed by the coming legislature and
the promptness with which it was es-
tablished.
The reports Of the experts goes
into variou sdepartments rather OK
haustively, but deals more severely
with the state department of agri-
culture, of which J. ]. Brown is head
Excessive costs of operation amount
ing to more thaams1OO, 900 a wear,
due IN part to bsF~ laws and in part
to bad administration, are pointed
cut IN the agricultural department
alone. The oil inspection work. the
experts say, costs the state SIS. 0on
more than good system, such Is
they suggest, would require. They saw
the fertilizer inspection work docs
not afford the armers the protection
they need, and it is not properlv on,
quoted, while other phases of the 40.
rlcultural department work arc
branded as inefficient or raedIoggI,,
expensive, or both. The Rproa, If
Markets, branch of the agricultural
department, is given some scant
praise for its aims, and some If its
work is said by them to be swell
done, though much of it is said NV
lhem to be operated without nroro,.
Plahnlng, and the experts saw Tho
farmers OF the state are without the
service and without the information
1hey are paying for while a comnar,-
lively small number of individual
reap the benefits from the Wort,
Done The report says the Burean
u markets has more than paid if
way but, the report also asserts with
Che money available a great deal
more should have been done. Tho
report says the Market Bulletin 4"
the official publication of the Mar
ket Bureau, takes more than half tho
total appropriation, and that publ
cation is severely raped.
winch causes ]. J. Brown to rise
up on his hind legs and begin to
shout Chicago EXPERT" says he:
The efficiency man from Chi
cage had been brought into the
state to tell the governor and the
present legislature that the laws that
nave been passed by the general as
sembly for the past forty years. and