The Cass County Republican. [volume] (Dowagiac, Mich.) 18??-1880, 1860-09-06
NUMBER 20.

of Michigan have never received much
if any advantage from it. The de-
mocracy' SO managed it that although
the State sold the Michigan Central
and Southern Railroads, upon which
most of tho expenditure had been made
for $4,000, ,O0o,T or sl5s, 900 moro than
the original debt, amount due to bond
holders on account of it when the Re-
publicans acceded to power, January
lst, 1855, sixteen years after it was
contracted, was 81, ,531 ,544 or $18s, s,5s5
more than the debt originally made.
Incredible as this appears, it is never
theless, officially recorded truth. And
yet, with glaring evidence of wrong
before them, the democratic State
Convention refers the people back to
democratic administration as exam
Piles of "tbrift and honesty l''s.aoEs
But their management of the part
paid bond debt exhibits the most glar-
ing inoompetency or dishonesty. AS
before stated, the original amount of
that debt was 1855, 800. But the dem
ocrats' not only did not pay the inter-
est on that part of the State debt, but
actually issued State bonds at sundry
times to the amount of $363, ,34I to paw
up the interest on the other portion of
the State debt. We give a table of
their own official figures to exhibit their
peculiar and characteristic manage
ment, and the annual increase and ag-
gregation of that debt to the time they
were driven from the State offices in
January, 1856: frr
m PART-PAID BOND DEBT. 8 an
AMOUNT OF DEBT. INCREASE.
1883, (orlginal) 955 $50
1858. (increased 1,s5s,554 7os,5os
1000 1,95S,S95 302,34l
Accumulated Unpaid Interest on princi. ae-I
pal Of original debt - 1,o1l,s
Add Bonds issued for interest on other .ff
part Of 100000 ss8,s41
Shows total of accumulated interest ,s7s,1s5
Add to which original part-paid debt 955, $50
Shows total of Accumulated Interest .trais
and original debt of y. sts a.ssl,I45
ANNUAL Interest on Accumulated Interest 7
at per cent. is se,2es
ANNUAL Interest on AccumuLated Interest -.
and original debt Of 955, $50 16s. $50
These tables prove our charge, that
"but for the gross neglect of demo
" "cratic' administrations, in their duty
"of providing for an annual tax suffi-
"cient to pay the interest (aIone) of
"the State debt, there would not now
"be any necessity for raising dollar
"of State tax to pay the ordinary ex-
"penses of the State government du-
"ring the five years of Republican ad-
ministration, nor for years to come,
the average taxation,-for ordinary
and extraordinary purposes, THAT is
Asylums and other State Institutions.
for which much the greatest portion of
tax is levied)-having been only $685.
500 a year under Republican admins.
tration, while the interest on the accu-
mulatedinterest paid by republicans has
been and is $3.50 year more than the
entire average annual State Tax assess
ed by the Republicans during the five
years of their administration And
this, too, Notwithstanding the Republi-
cans have paid an average An,.ual Er-
cess of Interest on the State debt of
ss6,s73 more than the average that the
democrats paid! They have, too.
met promptly euery demand on the
Treasury for current expenses, the en-
tire interest as it became due on all the
State debt, and the payment of the
public debt as it became due, ,chich
the democrats failed or neglected to
do ererg gear since the organization Of
the gocer,mae,at, to the extent we have
shown.
Thus do Democratic official records
prove fully, and more than prove, that
with the most prudent management
possible, the people of Michigan will
have to pay direct taxes for years to
come, in consequence of this Demo
cratic folly and neglect, and that but
for the folly and neglect of Democratic
administrations to pay the interests on
the loan and part-paid bond debt, there
would not now be any necessity fora
State tax of single dollar -
The facts warrant the assertion that,
during the last few years at least it was
purposely adopted as the policy of the
Democrats in order to retain the use of
the surplus money in the Treasury for
the State officers acithout interest. They
wanted the free use of these funds, and
they adopted and pursued the policy of
not calling in the part paid bonds IN or
der to secure the free use of them.
They would neither call in these bonds
nor provide for nor pay the interest on
them, nor pay interests on the surplus
and not until 1854 did they ever pay
any interest for the surplus-and then
only one per cent, amounting to less
than 81 900 in all. So tenacious were
those Democratic State officers to retain
the surplus Uithout interest, that In
1853, when Gov. McCleland held the
helm of State, the legislature passed a
law requiring them to pay FIVE per cent.
they obtained repeal Of 1t only three
days after its passage, and had the in
terest reduced to one per cent-See
Auditor General Sweegle's report Dec.
l 1853. - sl
AGES AND RESIDENCES OF THE CAM
bIDATEs.- The following table will be
found convenient for the pocket-book of
politicians -