Blackfoot Optimist Karl P. Brown, Publisher. >LACKFOOT ... IDAHO IN THE GEM STATE More than fourteen inches of snow fell at Coeur d'Alene In twenty-four hoars. The senate has confirmed the re nomination of William Balderston as register of the Boise land office. The state horticultural inspector, In his annual report, places the acre age of the state in fruit at 120,000 acres. Judge John F. MacLane of the Third district has tendered his res ignation and will resume his legal practice. The Black Canyon irrigation dis trict has voted to bond for $7,000,000 to further the big irrigation project which is under way. The Boise fire department is "break Ins in" a big new 65-foot aerial Sea grave truck, which .will be a great aid In fire-fighting in the capital city. Bugene Tranchard, a noted French sculptor, who has been leading a quiet, life in Nampa for some years, will make his future home In New York. After being banished from Grange wllle for two years, saloons again made their appearance on the. 10th, the county commissioners granting Idaho, with 60,000 acres of fruit in 1910, and about 15 per cent In bear tng, shipped 2,500 cars, which lnclud «4 prunes and peaches, at a value of over $ 2 , 000 , 000 . licenses to six different applicants. Three saloons are open for business at Cottonwood as the result of the ac don of the commissioners at Orange wille in granting licenses. An avalanche started by the warm Chinook wind swept down the side at Sunset peak near Wallace, catch ing Joe 8pellgatti and Joe Blsigh, who were on their way to work In the Idora mine. The outlook for a busy season In Che Big Creek country, In Thunder Mountain district, compares very fa vorably with any section of the state, aooordlng t» Dr. Smith, constructing engineer of the Eagle mine. The druggists who were called to Boise last week to confer with Com enlaaioDer Wallis with reference to the enforcement of the law declared they stand ready and willing to assist the paré food and drug department in their work. That the hop growing industry will In the near future be extensively car . ried on in the famous Weiser valley In proven by the fact that a move ment is quietly under way for the or. g&nization of a company at Welser to engage in the business. The output of apples In Idaho, Oregon and Washington In 1910, amounted to 5,922,000 boxes. This output alone would not supply the cites of New York and Chicago with finit if it were distributed one box to each person per year. The supreme court of this state re cently decided that pure alcohol could be sold by druggists in local option territory upon the written application of the purchaser and that it was not necessary for the applicant to have a physician's prescription. The largest plantings of fruit trees In Ijlaho in 1911 were in the Twin Falls country, thousands of acres be ing planted to orchards in Lincoln and Twin Falls counties. There was nteo an Increased planting in the northern part of the state. The Boise Statesman says it is highly probable that former Governor James H. Brady Will take over the Great W«3tern Beet Sugar company's holdings at Mountain j Home, which waa bid in by Harry Watkins at auc tlon sale, January 5, for $56,547. «Clad only in a thin suit of under «clothing, Leander Lindsten, a miner, walked four miles through waist deep snow to Wallace! to summon help for hla brother and a companion who, with him. had been caught in a snow slide. The rescue party found both men dead. George Wlinter, on trial at Paris on eh« charge of assault with attempt to commit murder, was acquitted. The assault took place in Pocatello, where Winter was superintendent ' of the water department. It was charged that he struck the eomplalrilpg wit ness with a monkey wrench. ' Shoshone county's special ' grand Jury delayed its consideration of the failure of the defunct State Bank oi Commerce long enough on the 10th to permit It to indict three up town Wallace liquor dealers who, according to the charges, have been guilty ol selling liquor to minors. In a snowslide at the Oreano mine just above the town of Burke, Jack Orville, a miner, and John Hanson, camp cook, were caught in the bunk house which was carried off its foun dation and buried many feet in tbe ■now. The cook dug himself out, b it Orville was fatally injured. The distribution of headache pow ders, tablets and sample medicine, as well as other alleged habit-forming drags in this state, has been placed ander the ban, and druggists will be prosecuted who distribute the danger ous mixtures. Placing themselves on record In fa vor of a one-cent postage for first cIbbb mall matter and against the parcels post now and forever. The Idaho Retail Hardware and Impie ment Dealers' association closed lti session at Boise on January 12. tc meet again iu April at Ontario. CAN GUT EXPENSES Taft Tells Congress Results of Economy Inquiry. SUBMITS SPECIAL MESSAGE How Increased Efficiency In Govern ment Service at 'Lower Cost May Bs Obtained, According to 8peclal Commission. Washington.—President Taft has sub mitted to congress a special message on economy and efficiency In the govern ment service. The message in part is as follows: To the Senate and House of Representa tives: I submit for the information of the con gress this report of progress made in the inquiry into the efficiency and economy of the methods of transacting public busi ness. Efficiency and economy in the govern ment service have been demanded with increasing insistence for a generation. Real economy is the result of efficient or ganisation. By perfecting the organiza tion the same benefits may be obtained at less expense. A reduction In the to tal of the annual appropriations is not in Itself a proof of economy, since it is often accompanied by a decrease In effi ciency. The needs of the nation may de mand a large Increase of expenditure, yet to keep the total appropriation within the expected revenue is necessary to the maintenance of public credit. Upon the president must rest a large ahare of the responsibility for the de mands made upon the treasury for the current administration of the executive branch of the government. Upon the congress must rest responsibility for thoss grants of public funds which are made for other purposes. Plan of the Work. In accordance with my Instructions, the commission on economy and efficiency, which I organized to aid me In the In quiry, has directed its efforts primarily to the formulation of concrete recommen dations looking to the betterment of the fundamental conditions under which gov ernmental operations must be carried on. With a basis thus laid. It has proceeded to the prosecution of detailed studies of Individual services and classes of work, and of particular practices and methods, pushing these studies as far and cover ing as many points and services, as the resources and time at Ms disposal have permitted. In approaching Its .ay. it has divided the work Into five fields of Inquiry hav ing to do respectively with organization, personnel, business methods, accounting and reporting, and the budget. Comprehensive Plan of Organization. On organization the commission has en tered upon the preparation of three series of reports. The first series deals with the manner In which the services of the government should be grouped in depart ments. This is a matier of fundamental Importance. It Is only after a satisfac tory solution of this problem that many Important measures of reform become possible. The second and third series of reports deal, respectively, with the organization and activities of particular services, and the form of organization for the perform ance of particular business operations. One of the reports of the second se ries Is upon the revenue cutter service, which costs the government over two and a half million dollars each year. In the opinion of the commission Its varied ac tivities can be performed with equal, or greater, advantage by other services. The commission, therefore, recommends that It be abolished. It Is estimated that by so doing a saving of not less than $1, »0,000 a year can be made. Another report Illustrating the second •erles recommends that the lighthouse and life saving services be administered by a single bureau, Instead of as at pres ent by two bureaus located In different Separtments.' These services have much In common. Geographically, the are ■lmllarly located: administratively, they have many of the same problems. It Is estimated that consolidation would result In a saving of not less than $100,000 an nually. Abolition of Local Office*. Perhaps the part of the organization in which the greatest economy In public ex penditure Is possible Is to be found In the numerous local offices of the govern ment. In some Instances the establish ment and the discontinuance of these lo cal offices are matters of administrative llscretlon. In other Instances they are sstablished by permanent law ln such a manner that their discontinuance Is be yond the power of the president or that sf any executive officer. The responsibility for the maintenance sf these conditions must naturally be di vided between the congress and the exe cutive. But that the executive has per formed hie duty when he has called the attention of the congress to the matter must also be admitted. Realizing my re iponalblllty In the premises, I have di rected the commission to prepare a re port setting forth the positions In the local services of the government which may be discontinued with advantage, the laving which would result from such ac tion and the changes In law which are necessary to carry into effect changes In organization found to be desirable. On the éomlng In of the report, such offices as may be found useless and can be abol ished will be so treated by executive or der. Classification of Local Officers. In my recent message to the congress I urged consideration of the necessity of placing in the classified service all of the local officers under the departments of the treasury, the Interior, postofflee and commerce and labor. The next step which must be taken Is to require of heads of bureaus In the de partments at Washington, and of most of the local officers under the departments, qualifications of capacity similar to those now required of certain heads of bureaus and of local officers. The extension of the merit system to these officers and a needed readjustment of salaries will have Important effects In securing greater economy and efficiency. In the first place, the possession by the Incumbents of these positions of requisite qualifications must in Itself promote effi ciency. In the second place, the removal of lo cal officers from the realm of political patronage In many cases would reduce the pay roll of the field services. At the present time the Incumbents of many of these positions leave the actual perform ance of many of their duties to deputies and assistants. The government often pays two persons for doing work that could easily be done by one. What Is the loss to the government cannot be stated, but that It is very large cannot be denied. In the third place, so long as lscal of ficers are within the sphere of political patronage it Is difficult to consider the queetlon of the establishment or discon tinuance of local offices apart from the effect upon local political situations. Finally, the view that these various offices are to be filed ea a result of political considerations has for Its con sequence the necessity that the prvalden and members of congress devote to mat ters of patronage time which they shouk devote to questions of policy and «smi. tstratlon. Business Method«. In every case where technical pr» cesses have been studied it has been dem' onstrated beyond queetlon that large eoo nomlea may be effected: The subject! first approached were those which lit close to each administrator, vis., offle« practices. An illustration of the possi bilities within this field may be found it the results of the Inquiry into the meth ods of handling and filing correspondence Every office in the government haa re ported its methods to the commission These reports brought to light the fad that present methods were quite in thi reverse of uniform- Borne offices follow the practice of briefing all correspon dence; some do not. Boras have flat files; others fold all papers before filing Some use press copies; others retain on!) carbon copies. Need for Lavor-8avlng Office Devices The use of labor-saving office devices tz the service has been made the subject ol special Inquiry. An impression prevails that the government is not making us« of mechanical devices for economising labor to the same extent as are efficiently managed, private enterprises. A study has l|een made of the extent to which devices of this character are now being employed In the several branches of ths government and the opportunities that exist for their more general use. . The efforts of the commission resulted also In the adoption by several bureaus oi departments of Improved methods of do ing copying. The amount of copy work heretofore done by hand each year. In the many offices Is eétlmated to aggregate several hundred thousand dollars. The commission exhibited, at Its offices, ap pliances that were thought to be especial ly adapted to this kind of government work. Following these demonstration! methods of copying were Introduced which have brought about a saving of over 75 per cent, in offices where used for six months. This change in one small cross-section of office practice will more than offset the whole cost of by Inquiry. Waste in the Distribution of Public Documente. Going outside the office, one of the business processes which have been In vestigated Is the distribution of depart ment documents. This is a subject with which both the congress end adminis tration heads are familiar. Ths prevail ing practice In handling departmental publications is to have them manufac tured at the government printing office; each job when completed Is delivered te the department; here the books or pam phlets are wrapped and addressed; thee are then sent to the postofflee; there they are assorted and prepared for ehlpmenl through the malls; from ths postofflee they are sent to the railroad station, which Is only a few steps from the gov ernment printing office, when they started. The results of this laborious and circuitous method Is to make the use ot the best mechanical equipment impractic able and to waste each year not less than a quarter of a million dollars of govern ment funds In useless handling, to say nothing of the Indirect loss due to lack of proper co-ordination. The use of equipment Is a matter which also haB been Investigated. Up to the present time this Investigation has been in the main confined to the subject of electric lighting. Lack of Specifications. The Importance of establishing and maintaining standard specifications Is found not only In the possibility of very materially reducing the direct cost of gov ernment trading, but also In insuring t* the service materials, supplies and equip ment which are better adapted to Its purposes. One of the results of lndefln lteness of specifications Is to Impose con tract conditions which make It extra ha zardous for persons to enter Into con tractual relations. This not only deprives the government of the advantage of broad competition, but causes It to pay an added margin In price to vendors who must carry the risk. The Budget. The United States Is the only great na tion whose government Is operated with out a budget. This fact seems to be more striking when It Is considered that bud gets and budget procedures are the out growth of democratic doctrines and have had an Important part In the development of modern constitutional rights. The American commonwealth has suffered much from Irresponsibility on the part of Its governing agencies. The constitution al purpose of a budget Is to make gov ernment responsive to public opinion and responsible for Its acts. The Budget at an Annual Program, A budget should be the means for get ting before the legislative branch, before the press, and before the people a definite annual program of business to be finan ced; It should be In the nature of a pros pectus both of revenues and expendi tures; It should comprehend every rela tion of the government to the people, whether with reference to the raising ot revenues or the rendering of service Thfe principal government objects In which the people of the United States are Interested include: The national defense; the protection a* persons and property; the promotion ot friendly relations and the protection of American Interests abroad; the regulation of commerce and Industry: the promotion of agriculture, fisheries, forestry and min ing; the promotion of manufacturing, commerce, and banking; the promotion of transportation and communication; the postal service. Including postal savings and parcels post; the care for and utili zation of the public domain; the promo tion of education, art, science and recre ation; the promotion of the public health; the care and education of the Indian« and other wnrds of the nation. These are public-welfare questions In which I assume every citizen has a vital Interest. I believe that every member of congress, as an official representative of the people, each editor, as a non-offlclul representative of public opinion, each citizen, as a beneficiary of the trust Im posed on officers of the government, should be able readily to ascertain how much has been spent for each of these purposes; how much has been appropri ated for the current year; how much the administration Is asking for each of these purposes for the next fiscal year. Furthermore, each person Interested should have laid before him a clear, well digested . statement showing In detail whether moneys appropriated have been economically spent and whether each di vision or office has been efficiently run. This Is the information which should be available each year In the form of a budget and In detail accounts and reports supporting the budget. I ask the continuance of this commis sion on e onemy and efficiency because of the excellent beginning which has been made toward the remgaclsatioo of the machinery of this government on busi ness principles. I ask it because Its work Is entirely non-partisan In character and ought to apply to every citizen whe wishes to give effectiveness to populai government In which we feel a just pride. The work further commends Itself foi the leason that the cost of organization and work has been carefully considered at every point. Three months were U.ken In consideration of plana before the in quiry was begun; six months were then spent In preliminary Investigations before the commission was organised; before March 3, 1911, when I asked for a con tinuation of the original appropriation for the current year, only $12,000 had beez spent. WM. H. TAFT. \ WIFE FREES MORSE PRESIDENT COMMUTES SEN TENCE OF NEW YORK BANKER, BUT FULL PARDON REFU8ED. Former Ice King Owes His Release to Efforts of His Wife and His Friends, Who Have Been Untiring in Their Efforts. Washington.—President Taft on Thursday night commuted to expire at once the flfteen-year sentence for violation of the national banking laws, under which Charles W. Morse, the New York banker and "ice king," has served two years in the fédérai penitentiary at Atlanta, Ga. The commutation of sentence, which gives Morse his complete free dom—but which, unlike a pardon, does not restore his civil rights—was granted upon recommendation of At torney General Wickersham and Sur geon General Torney, U. S. A. According to the surgeon's report, Morse could not live one month longer in confinement and even at liberty probably would not live six months. Designated as a special messenger by the attorney general's office, Mrs. Morse left Washington Thursday night for Atlanta bearing her hus< band's commutation papers. The commutation of Morse's sen tence came at the end of months ot I «M o»; nF 1 f czcJjBUZs ftrJ/opjz unremitting effort on the part of Mrs Morse and of the banker's friends, Almost since the doors of his cell closed on him, Mrs. Morse and influ ential friends have besieged the de partment of justice and through it the White House for mitigation ol the sentence. 1 Chicago is Cleaning Up. Chicago.—Police Inspector John Wheeler, Captain Patrick J. Harding and Lieutenant George Prim, Daniel T. Kelcher and John B. Enright were ! ordered dismissed from the service Thursday, after a hearing on charges of Inefficiency and Incompetency. Wheeler is the third police Inspector j to be dismissed by the city civil ser- j vice commission since it began Its Investigation Into the efficiency ol the police department. Youth Has Harrowing Experience. Los Angeles, Cal.—Held prisoner by an aballone shell, Roy Hathaway, aged 20, narrowly escaped drowning near Redondo beach. While he vas attempting to pull a targe aballone from the rocks the shell closed down on his Angers. An hour later he was found exhausted from his struggles to escape drowning in the Incoming tide. It was necessary to amputate two fingers. Tenant'* Bullet is Fatal. Salt Lake City.—Thomas Cum mings, 65 years old, a wealthy real estate owner, who was shot down by his tenant, Leo Berger, Tuesday morning, after he had threatened him with eviction, died Thursday morn ing in St Mark's hospital. Berger will be charged with murder in the first degree. Black Hand Threatens Governor. Boston—When Governor Foss came to the state house Thursday from his home in Jamaica Plains he was guarded by detectives and plain clothes men watched the corridors during the day for the possible ap pearance of Black Hand agents staid to have designs on the governor's life. Assassina Strangled. Pekin.—The three men who were arrested after the throwing of a bomb at the carriage of Premlei Yuan Shi Kai, were put to death Thursday by strangling. British Steamer Wrecked. Aberdeen, Scotland.—The British steamer Wistowhall was wrecked Thursday on the Bullers of Buchan a groap of dangerous rocks off the coast of Aberdeenshire. Fifty-three of her crew of Lascars drowned. Father is Faithful. Lynchburg, Va. —Thomas V. Riche son, father of the Rev. Clarence V. T. Richeaon, the confessed murderer ot Avis Linnell of Boston, has dented that he had deserted or ever wool » desert his ml Our Christmas Offer To Our Subscribers for Renewals. The Optimist To January 1, 1913 Omaha Daily Bee All Tire« For Only $ 3 . 60 . To January'1, 19'3 Woman's World One Year Or the above Combination, including the Sunday Bee, for Only $4.50. You can have the papers sent to different addresses if you like. Subscribe now, beforo you forget It. ADDRESS THE OPTIMIST, BLACKFOOT. IDAHO i Draying Is My Business 1 t f f t i ± T T i T T J ? T T T f f v ♦> Office Phone, 236. Care in Handling Goods and Right Prices Char acterize My Work. Hyrum Office at Allen Hughes Jewelry Store 19 NORTH MAIN T w f i i T T T f ± ± T T ± Residence Phone 178 Blk. ♦♦♦ A^a A^A A^a A^a a$a a^a a $a A^a .4« «4« «4 GEORGE HEILIG General Blacksmi thing. Horseshoeing North Main Street. Blackfoot. Money to Loan on Improved FARMS Mortgages Bought and Sold IDAHO IRRIGATED LANDS COMPANY E.M. Kennedy AUCTIONEER Will be glad to date you for a Real Estate Sale or General Farm Sale. All Sales get my personal attention until finished. Blackfoot, - Idaho PHONE liS BLACK J Highest Cash Price For HIDES) PELTS, FURS And Abo All Kinds of Meat Products and Poultry. James W. Killion, R. F D. No. 2, BLACKFOOT, IDAHO. The OPTIMIST Goes Into 1,000 Homes and Easi ness Houses :::: Does that Fact Appeal to you Mr. Advertiser? Our Job Department Leads in Efficiency HIDES! HIDES! Don't give your hides and pelU away. We pay 16c per lb. for dry hides. 9c for sheep pelta, 6cc tor cleam rubber boots and ghees. Green Hide., 7c per lb. u,ed Coyote» from $2 to $3. BRANCH OF THE Great Western Hide Co. M. VOLPERT. Mar. Telephone 15« red; P. o. box U.