The Evansville journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ind.) 1866-1870, 1870-08-05

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of the bouds2 Evidently upon the
entire issue of $400, 900 Of bonds. IF
but half that amount should be want
ed in succeeding years, and bonds only
to the amount of 5000. O0O should be
sold of the entire issue, the FIRST sales
would have been made upon q false
estimate, which might materially affect
the amount realized from the bonds.
Il is the spirit and intent Of thesstatute
TO guard against this, and thus pro
tect the interests of taxpayers and
the revenues of the county.
If, as may be implied from the an
swer of the defendant, the whole loan
or sale of bonds will be negotiated az
once. but the bonds not be delivered.
money received or interest paid there
on. except as the Commissioners may
hereafter decide that it is needed, the
same result would follow, and the
bonds would have been nego-
tiated on the same false basis.
It is true that the affidavit states in
the first instance that they supposed
about 800 900 would be required be-
You'd the resources of reasonable
taxation, but this is afterwards quail
fed by statement that the expendi-
ture will run through a period Of
four or FIVE years. and the fact that
just what will be the resources
of reasonable taxation in three, four
or FIVE years hence can not now be
definitely sscertained. It is, there
fore, the opinion of the court that to
dispose of the bonds as indicated by
the statements in the afida-
Wits filed, will not be upon a
basis warranted by the statute,
for the reason that the purchasers
each year can not know the amount
of the loan in which they are invest
ing; and if the whole loan is to be
now negotiated, the bonds to be de-
livered from year to year, In such
amounts as may be determined by the
Commissioners. the statements of the
Commissioners show that they would
be negotiating and contracting for an
amount which In their own minds
may or may not be needed, over and
above the resources of reasonable
taxation, as they may hereafter de-
termine. In either case the burden
of taxpayers might be materially in-
creased by thus stepping outside of
the obvious intent and spirit Of the
statute, comforting the power to make
the loan, and if the order, as it now
stands, is executed and carried into
effect as shown by the afidavits to be
intended, it will not sufficiently
guard and protect their interests.
The temporary injunction prayed for
will therefore be granted.
By this decision, it will be seen that
the principle upon which our Council
has ordered the printing of 100000
nine per cent. bonds for future use, is
vicious and inimical to the interests
of the taxpayers, although they may
not all be placed upon the market at
once for sale. Capitalists, when they
purchase any portion of them, will
base their figures upon the issue Of
the entire amount. For this reason,
therefore, when the Council author
lied the Finance Committee to
have one hundred thousand dollars
nine per cent. bonds printed,
and said committee offers any portion
of the said amount for sale, their
value will be fixed on the basis of an
addition to the debt of the city
amounting to the full hundred thou
sand dollars. If only twenty-five or
fifty thousand dollars of these bonds
should be sold, they may be disposed
of at figures higher than will be
realized were capitalists assured
that the full hundred thousand would
not be thrown upon the mar
ket. We cite this fact as still an
other Indication Of the prudence and
financial sagacity which characterizes
all the actions Of our municipal
Solons. Take it all in all, if their
like can be found anywhere else, We
shall be gratifed to know it. Just
now we are under the painful impress
sion that for financial stupidity the
Evansville Finance Committee stands
pre-eminently conspicuous.
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