, 1870-05-15

The new constitution provides that here
afterno county, city, township, school district |
Or other public corporation shall be allowed
TO- become indebted many manner, or for any
purpose, to an amount, including existing
Indebtedness, exceeding per cent on the
value Of the taxable property therein, which
value is to be ascertained by the last preyi-
Gus assessment for State and county taxes.
The last assessment Of the taxable prop
,erty in the city Of Chicago for State and
county purposes was about $85, ,OO0, 900,
Five per cent Of this would be 4,25O, 900.
Assuming that hereafter oil assessments
will be at full valuation, and that in 1870
the taxable property Of this city will be
valued at S275, coo, 0oo, the limit of the city
debt, ufter the adoption of the .constitu-
ton and the new assessment, will be-sS1B,-
75o, 900. The debt Of Chicago on the 1st
day Of April, 1870, IVES 611, s6a, 7a6, of
which there were the following items:
Floating liabilities. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS. <3,4u
Total temporary debt. ,57e
In addition to this, there Was On hand
April l, 1870, in
General sinking fund. und..--................ Sao1,99
River Improvement einking fund...:..... ss.ess
Sewerage sinking fund. ................... Jo.sss
Balaqce In treasury. 1,977,<so
Total. ~, $50
The temporary and floating debt being
paid, there viii be about 81, 23O, 600 On
hand, which will leave balance Of -, 160,-
COO Of debt, less cash in the treasury.
The city proposes to sell during this
year 81, coo, 600 Of bondR for the river im-
provement fand, 95o0, ,000 Of school bonds
SITS, 900 Of sewerage bonds, and, perhaps,
500, 900 Of water bonds an aggregate Of
q LOIS, 600, which will carry the bonded
debt to s11, 100000,
The provision Of the constitution, how
ever, provides that the debt shall not be in
creased beyond par cent Of the last :yalu-
ation Of the taxable property for State and
county tnxea Tho assessment for 1870 has
been made, and the next assessment fo,
State md county taxes will not be made
until 1871, and it is still uncertain whethe,
the ru1e Of assessment will be changed from
partial to full valuation. The new con
stitution, if adopted, will go into operation
on the sth day of August next, and TIL!
Limitation will be in force from that time. A,
the assessed value OF the taxable property II
this city for State and county purposes vii
then be So, oeO, 600, and as tho present deb
is far in excess of s Der cent Of that sum,
will not belawful to issue any bond, or other
wise addto the debt Of the city, afterthat date
Should the rate Of assessment be ndyHnce,
in 1871 to the full value, then,,but not IN
til then, will it be lawful to increase th
city debt
, The provision Of the new constitution
which thus Limits municipal Indebtedness
and places check upon the facile bushes
Of selling public bonds, will commend itse
| to the people as one of the visest aud be.
provisions Of the new constitution. It vi
come not day too soon. Whaterer bont
the, city may be authorized to e1pend Il
my purpose must be issued before Angus
OF they cannot be lawfully added to the eli
, debt. And, in selling bonds, the Commc
Council should remember, that the momel
; the. maximum Indebtedness Is roache
+ there can be no new loan except to the @
g tent Of payments On the old; and, the1
a fore, in issuing bonds now, there should
a a wise discrimination between those objes
4 which are imperative and thos, which 9
= purely experimental