The morning star and Catholic messenger. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1868-1881, 1868-09-20
The City Pay-Rolis.

The past week witnessed demOnstra- +
lion on the part of the police force which
presents, in forcible manner, to
our public the peculiar condition of city af-
fairs. New Orleans has city government
without any money to pay it's current ne
cessary expenses, and without the means
of getting any. Through the action OF
former councils and officials, an immense
of bills, called city money, has been
issued, legally or illegally, and they are
now held by the public. The public claim
that the city is bound to receive these bills
in payment of taxes, and this is the cause
of the whole embarrassment. These bills
are no longer current, the city cannot, le-
gally or honestly, tender them to her credit
ors=as money, and yet she receives nothing
else into her treasury.
AS long as the city is obliged to receive
her own due-bills for taxes instead of re-
ceiving money, so long she will be without
a revenue, without cent in her treasury,
and without the means of carrying on the
necessary operations of her government.
And this disastrous state of affairs must
continue until all the city money is paid In,
which will, probably, require about two
years more. If, therefore, the courts main
! tain their most extraordinary ruling on this
point, and if the Legislature continues its
past policy in this regard, the city govern
ment will either have to be run for the next
two years without making any payments, or
cease operations altogether.
The consequences of this condition of
things can be easily imagined. A faint
foreshadowing of them is seen in the action
taken by the police, as above referred to.
Suffering, starvation, death in their families
from privation will, naturally, produce
their result, either of characterization, law
lessness and disorder, not only among
these men, but among other classes OF city
employees, or, what would be still worse,
the dissolution of all municipal government.
1t may be that some of the parties con-
nected with the demonstration alluded to
have acted unjustifably, that their threats
of violence were unreasonable and misdi-
rected, but much must be excused to suffer
ings long endured, and of which the pubic
| have but little idea. They do not know the
! long list of rents unpaid, of furniture seized
} of credit exhausted, of every available Oh
l iect pawned or sold. Men, women and chill
: aren arc all involved in this distress, while
a the CITY of New Orleans owes them enough
o amply to pay all debts and obtain every
e thing necessary to comfort. 1t is idle Il
n talk of discharging all the school teacher
o and street laborers, SO as to supply thel
n places with persons Of means, who will b.
c able to work for couple of years withou
y needing any pay. In the first place, l
t. would he impossible to get suitable persons
IF and in the next place such q course woul
of be inhuman.
Is But while the sufferers have just rigi
e, to complain, they ought to be careful not
D. turn their indignation in the wrong diret
D. ton. The feeling among some of the police
= as manifested against the present Git
at Council and officers, was entirely misplace
and unreasonable. The city treasury II;
not a dollar in its vaults, and no way
'' getting one. 1.-The Council cannot force co
,rs lections in greenbacks. They have ineffe
to tually endeavored to borrow small amour
IN from the public spirited banks OF this cit
.ot by pledging bills receivable to the amou
In of three hundred thousand dollars and CT
ch money to the amount of half a million mo,
we Those moneyed institutions were not SAT-
III fed with the security, and the Councli
'n impotent to take any further action.
' cannot go beyond the city charter.
Ter. The remedy is with the Legislature. IL
ish- body has been urged time and again
heir grant some relief, and there is not
ted slightest difficulty in devising plan to
is feet it. If it Intends the city to ha
In money in its treasury, it has only to
ded L.. ,,o sb.u nov tba;r +axes in mon
urs. ~, -. r -o.,,I CO.., o,,, ~,
say nv :; -, -
ntly eih"en''