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Show a 1 Misuse of Agricultural College Funds y I Troublo has broken out in the Agrl- I cultural college. It Is alleged that the reason therefor I i3 0 a rellglo-polltlcal character. '' I The real reason Is gross misapplica- E tlon of the public funds In tho man- agemont of that Institution. I Funds voted by tho people, through 1 their legislative representatives, for H specific purposes, have been diverted II unlawfully to other purposes. i The president of the college faculty, B William J. Kerr, has "worked" tho old H board of college trustees to a finish; I ho has "gulled" the dally newspapers H till they will not or dare not let tho B people know tho real state of affairs. 91 Truth did not caro to butt into this B case till occasion demanded. Tho oc- B casiou has come in tho bolts of false- H hood that have been launched against B the three now trustees, who aro not B Ken's servile tools. Truth will give H In this Issue a few of the facts. Tnero H is so much that is wrong that a big U reservo of Information will bo held I for future use, as circumstances require. re-quire. Vov years past the state funds appropriated ap-propriated for specific uses in tho college col-lege have been diverted to other purposes pur-poses than tho law directed. That unlawful un-lawful diversion has been made under the management of tho faculty president, presi-dent, Professor William J. Kerr, whose administration of tho college affairs lias been at onco unlawful, highhanded, high-handed, tyrannical, insolent and extravagant. ex-travagant. It has been unlawful In Its diversion of funds contrary to law; high-handed In carrying on measures meas-ures and methods over tho lawful now- Icrs of tho board of trustees, some of whom have given so little attention to college affairs that thoy have left trustee matters to him and thus have been his tools; tyrannical to an extent that no self-respecting Instructor remains re-mains with tho institution, except through much sacrifice of personal feeling, duo to a sense of loyalty to tho state; Insolent In tho way that superior state officials, directly responsible re-sponsible to tho people, have been kept from obtaining legitimate Information of tho college affairs, and havo been overridden In matters required by law; extravagant In tho use of funds In a way the public would not tolerate, toler-ate, if familiar with tho facts. Further than making ono suggestion, sugges-tion, this issuo of Truth will not glvo attention to more than tho diversion "f public funds, and to that only briefly. Tho suggestion is that tho lime has fully como when Governor cutler. If tho duty rests on him, or with him. Secretary of State Tingey and Attorney General Breeden, as tho state board of examiners, should put an expert accountant to examine and report on tho collcgo ncccounts for the past two years. Now for tho misapplication of public pub-lic funds. The primary purpose of tho college is to advance tho education of tho people along agricultural lines. In view of this, tho legislature appropriated appro-priated money to defray tho expense of farmers' institutes throughout tho state. Funds thus appropriated for a specific spe-cific purpose havo been put to other uses by President Kerr. That other use is unlawful and unjustifiable. Tho Item of diversion also should havo caused tho retirement of Prof. Kerr tho moment it became known to tho trustees. If tho trusteees also are culpable cul-pable for Its diversion, out of decency those who are guilty should hand in their resignations at onco. More; Two years ngo tho college got an appropriation from tho legislature legisla-ture for tho express purpose of completing, com-pleting, enlarging and improving its barns. Tho needed work on tho barns has not been done; but tho money was used. If the improvement in the barns was unnecessary, then the money was obtained from tho state by false pretenses. If It was necessary, then tho agricultural division of the college was Injured by failure to do tho work. In any event, the use of tho money for other purposes has been unlawful, and the president of the college faculty, Prof. Kerr, ought to have been discharged long since for this disregard of tho law. Tho public will observe by these items that Kerr's methods of misapplying misap-plying collego funds have been directed direct-ed toward crippling and destroying the agricultural work of tho college. Further: The head of the experiment experi-ment station, Dr. Widtsoo, is an expert ex-pert in this line, than whom there Is no more gentlemanly, capable man In tho state. His assistant, Prof. Merrill, Mer-rill, occupies a similar plane. These two eminent educators In practical agrlculturo form tho backbone of the college's value as an agricultural school. This spring W. J. Kerr started start-ed out to rid tho collego of theso two professors. He had got rid of other highly qualified agricultural instructors, instruct-ors, such as Professor Dryden and otjiers. Theso two would have gone, but that men Interested in tho Agricultural Agri-cultural Collego urged them to remnin, that tho very life of tho Institution as an agricultural factor should not bo knocked out of it. Then Kerr, finding that too much of a storm would bo raised, decided to throw Prof. Merrill out this year, and leave Dr. Widtsoo till next year. That Kerr knew tho failure to keep either one of these men would Injure tho Agicultural Collego was shown In tho fact that ho proposed that, if Prof. Merrill were not re-employed, ho would recommend that tho money appropriated ap-propriated by tho legislature for certain cer-tain work in agriculture should bo covered cov-ered back into the treasury. Ho had doubtless learned there were sumo members of tho new board of trustees trus-tees who would not stand for Its misuse. mis-use. , Thus Kerr Is working with might and main to cripplo tho collego In Its agricultural department, whllo ho is falsely accusing others who do not bow to his will of being unfriendly to tho college. In fact, ho Is Its greatest enemy in tho stato today. President McCornlck of tho board of trustees is absent from tho stato. Ho requested that no meeeting of tho board be held till his return. Kerr, in his high-handed way of dictating to his superiors, had tho board called together on short notice. It was stated stat-ed that ho had fixed up a deal by which ho was to get tho votes of three old members of tho board and one now ono, and thereby gain his ends. But this trick failed. Tho three new members, while It had been sought to keep them In tho dark as to tho Internal In-ternal regulations of tho colllogo, know enough of its affairs to stand by President McCornlck, and refuse to organize. Trustees Gates, Smart and Stohl did tho right thing not to bo worked into a corrupt scheme. We believe that when President McCornlck comes homo thero will bo such a hustling that the Agricultural Collego 'will bo relieved of tho greatest danger that has over threatened it, namely, the presenco of W. .1. Kerr, who is directly responsible for all the rumpus about tho college that has been stirred up tho past four months. |