Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1871-04-20
ItCsPVVVfuTI I0"''
GEO. w. COBB.
Gen'l Manager Construction Go.

MINERAL PoIsT, April IS. 1871
GEO. w. CoBp, ESQ Dear SIr;--To
your enquiries Of me as to the attitude
Of such towns as are disposed to pay
their portion Of the county Indebtedness,
in which yon state that many persons, in
view of your proposition addressed to
the people of Iowa County, are desiron
Of being assured that an acceptance Of
your offer to any extent will operate to
release them to that extent from liability
upon the county Indebtedness; ! answer
The question is one which any person
familiar with general business affairs
may readily answer Under tine laws Of
our State different persons may be the
owners Of different portions of the same
dcmand-as Of promissory notes or judy
mcnts-nnd Courts will protees the Ge-
fined rights of each owner.
The Iowa county Indebtedness origin
ally consisted of County Bonds OF the
denomination Of One Thousand Dollars
each with coupons for semi.annual sums
of interest attached Some of those cou
pons have been sued, and now stand in
the form Of judgments against the toun-
tv 80 that the present form OF the
County Indebtedness consists in the orig
inal bonds the coupons for interest, and
such iudrmerts rs have Been rendered
upon coupons. Your proposition To- the
people embrace the facS that you are
clothed with authority to deliver up to
every town in the County such portion
OF the outstanding demands against the
County as shall BE- equivalent, dollar for
dol ar. to- the sum that the town sh
| furnish vou TO MD in extending the Mn
ersI Point Railroad Owing to the form
Of the demands against the County, it
might be dii'icult in given case to h2
upon an amount whereby the exchange
can be made in eXac. sums, without
there being something over or under.
For instance. If town were TO- deter,
min, 10 free its portion Of the Indebted
ness, amounting to fifty Thousand dollars
/ owinr to an accumulation of interest mp
on bond. from which the coupons had
/ been severed the exact sum OF fifty
thousand dollars could not be delivered
| over by you in exchange Tor that sum
| pnil YOU by the town And so with re-
tar,l to any Judgment or judgments
against the County that you might wish
to transfer to town 1t might ne n lit
tie difficult to make change; but, where
yer there is u will there is II way. All
business transactions are 10 certain
extent based upon a kind Of mutual
| conf lence. Somebody must he trusted
either the towns must rely upon your in
teoritv to transfer the indebtedness
against the County, as they shall pay
! over to YOU the money, or they must with
YOU agree upon common trustee, to act
| for the parties Let town select any
bank in either Milwaukee or Chicago
that shall be beyond all question resp0n>
! sible. and with that bank let the amount
of County Indebtedness proposed to be
paid by given town, be- held in trust
| for such town as Its payments shall he
| made to YOU as the work 10 m vour eN-
! tension progresses; and wnen the town
| has paid All that 1t proposes to pay, 1t IS
| then the owner Of an equlva ent sum OF
| demands against the County III the hands
| OF its own agent When the time shall
come that the County shall lay Il tax for
the purpose of paying OFT the Comfy IN
dcbtedness, justice would require that
the towns which held u portion OF that
! indebtedness should not be taxed, pro-
yidins they would yield up to the County
the demands held by them. Bat in the
absence of any law restraining the Coun-
ty authorities well founded apprehensions
might exist that tho County would be
unwilling to liquidate an aliqnot portion
of its Indebtedness without doing 1t
through the medium of a tax, In such
case the town holding part Of the de-
mant against the County would be
Obliged 70 raise its portion OF the tax
le,ied, which would 80 into the County
! Treasury But, upon presentation OF It's
demand tho money would be paid back
t. the town, and if the County SHOULD
proceed to pay of by instaIlments, the
first payment by q town would be on
hand, with which TO pay the second, aud
SO on until all should be paid and the
last would reimburse the town Tor the
first install ment together with interest,
l. is true that ii all OF the towns should
take of the County Indebtedness less
than the whole, when the County comes
to levy u TAX to pay an ms alllaen' the
towns which hold u part o! the County
debt would be liable in the commence
meg: for It's part of the in,tallmeat upou
the whole Comfy debt, AMI would be re-
Qurel on the first payment, to raise
more than they would if legy were
made upon the amount which tho towns
had not purchased, aui by purchasing
paid Still. at the sesond and each SUBJ
sequent levy to pay M eustnlsment, each
town hts cotton back its Judgment Of the
first instalhuent, aud has on band SUR