Repository: UIHistories Project: Board of Trustees Minutes - 1906 [PAGE 314]

EXTRACTED TEXT FROM PAGE:

288

UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS.

[Oct. 27

or purchase of a house to be used as a residence for the Dirctor of th Experiment Station and have so certified their recommendations to this Board and Whereas, this Board is charged by the Act with the responsibility of using the moneys appropriated therein for the purposes severally set forth in the Act as stated in the latter part of Section 8 which reads as follows: "Section 8.—Nothing herein contained shall be deemed to take away from the Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois the usual authority conferred by law over the expenditure of moneys appropriated to said University. The recommendations of the Committees herein provided for shall be advisory, but the use of the moneys herein appropriated shall rest in the discrection of said Board for the purpose herein set forth, and said Board shall account therefor," and Whereas, this Act does not clearly state that it was a part of the purpose of the law to provide a residence for the Director of the Experiment Station; but it does clearly charge that the College of Agriculture shall give thorough instruction in economic production of crops, treatment of soils, the principles of breeding live stock, and economic and sanitary production of dairy goods; and that the College shall provide and maintain live stock specimens, laboratories, appartus and other material equipment and shall provide experienced teachers in order to satisfy the law in expenditure of the money appropriated, and, Whereas, it is the desire of this Btoard in order that it may properly account for the moneys entrusted to it by the legislature to follow as definitely as possible the directions which the law gives in the expenditure of the money appropriated. Therefore, be it resolved that it is the sense of this Board that it cannot concur in the recommendation of the Advisory Committee that a residence be erected or purchased for the Director of the Experiment Station and be paid for from the said fund. O n motion of Governor Deneen it was voted to print the following letter written to M r s . Alexander as a part of the minutes of t h e meeting:

STATE OF ILLINOIS, OFFICE OF ATTORNEY GENERAL, SPRINGFIELD. October'26, 1905. ,

Mrs. Carrie Thomas Alexander, Leland Hotel, Springfield, Illinois: DEAR MADAM—Your favor of the 24th inst, duly received. You state that a meeting of the Trustees of the University of Illinois is about to be held, for the purpose of taking action on the matter of purchasing a residence for the Dean of Agriculture, and ask whether any of the funds appropriated for the College of Agriculture by the Appropriation Act of 1905 could be used for that purpose. If any of the funds appropriated by said Act could be applied for such purpose, it would have to be from the fund of $50,000 mentioned in the first section of said Act. This section states, in substance, that it shall be the duty of the College of Agriculture to give instruction in the economic production of crops; the treatment of different soils of the State; the principles of breeding and management of live stock; the economic and sanitary production of dairy goods; to provide and maintain live stock specimens, laboratories, apparatus and other material equipment, together with teachers of experience, etc., and $50,000 is appropriated for such purposes. The other appropriations in said Act are for specific investigations and experiments. It wnl be noticed that the appropriation in said section 1, in addition to the instruction designated, is for the provision and maintenance of live stock specimens, laboratories, apparatus and other material equipment, together with teachers. I can see nothing in this section nor in this Act which would authorize the Trustees to appropriate any of the funds mentioned for the purchase or construction of a residence for the Dean of the College of Agriculture. The Dean of the College of Agriculture would probably be classed as a teacher within the meaning of said section, but in making it the