Holmes County Republican. [volume] (Millersburg, Holmes Co., O. [Ohio]) 1870-1895, 1872-09-05

The New Railroad Question.

- lHc NEW AaiIfOad QuestiVn'
In our last issue we stated that peti-
ton had been presented to the Trustees
: of Hardy township asking them to call
(. an election on the question of the pro-
. posed Lake Erie, Wooster & Muskingum
VALLEY Road, under the Railroad Law,
: passed by the last Legislature. And in
4 order that all may get better under
n standing of the workings of this law,
: we give few statements as we under
stand it.
Upon petition of One Hundred tax
! paying electors of township the Trus-
) tees of that township shall call an cleo
ton to be held at the usual place OF vo-
: ting, and after due notice the election
shall be held, and if two-thirds of the
electors of the township voting at that
election shall vote sRailroad-Yes,"
then the Trustees shall issue the bonds
of the township for the amount asked
IN the petition, provided the same is not
more than five per cent. Of the total
taxable wealth of the township, for the
purpose of paying for the construction
of railroad through that township.
The bonds are delivered to the Treas
urer of State, whose duty it is to record
and carefully keep the same and pay
them out only on the order Of the Trus-
tees and certificate of the Chief Engin-
eer of the road, that work to the amount
named i'm the order has been done on
the road-reserving always fifteen per
cent. to be paid on the completion of
the contract. If, for any reason the
road is not constructed, the bonds are
returned to the Trustees and destroyed,
Now to illustrate. Suppose that $780,,
600 shall be appropriated to secure their
new line of road in Hardy township. If
the people so decide the question, the
bonds will be issued for that amount
and will run from ten to twenty years,
s., 900 OF the amount being payable
every year, commencing ten years from
this time or in 1882, and closing in 1882,
or twenty years from this time. The
annual interest on this 10000, at per |
cent, will be 81 400 per year for the ten
years, or until the first payment of
1000 is made, when the yearly interest
will diminish as the debt is reduced by |
each yearly payment of principal.
The tax for this yearly payment of |
interest is what the people will have to
meet for the next ten years, and the
levy for that purpose will be four mills
on the dollar or four dollars on the
thousand. For example: If A owns
farm and stock, the total value of which
stands on the duplicate at s., 700, his tax
for the railroad will be So per year for
the first two or three years, or until the |
value of the property in the township /
had so increased that four mill tax will
raise more than will be required, and
this will be the case as soon as the road
shall be completed, as that will then be
put on the duplicate and help to pay for
itself as well as pay its share of all other
taxes. In three years, or in 1875, the
rate could be reduced to three dollars
on the $1,000, and Mr.. AS tax on his
81, 900, would be only six dollars per
year for three years more or until 1878,
when it would be reduced, to 81 on the
1000, or four dollars per year for his
railroad tax until the year 1882, when
the first 90, ,OO0of principals due. when
the tax for that year would be 81 ON
the 81 900 or eight dollars for his rail-
road tax and perhaps the same for the
next year, but then be reduced to So
per 81 900 and finally to 81 per 81 900,
as the debt is reduced and the aggre-
gate amount of property in the town.
ships increases-as it certainly will do
if the road is built. The advantage of
building railroads by this system is, that
it is really built on the credit of, the
township, and the people then have the
use of the road to help them pay for its
construction. I,
If man buys farm on credit of
twenty (20) years, agreeing to pay an
nual interest on his notes for the first
ten years, before paying any of the prin-
cipal and then paying one-tenth of the
principal with the interest on the re-
notes not due, it will be nearly
the same as the building of the railroad
by these bonds-the man takes posses
sion of the farm and by good manage
ment makes his payments out of it. IfE
the railroad is completed in two or three
years it will then begin to pay for itself,
and will afford the people the means of
paying the debt without their fully re-
alizing the burthen, as it will be only
the first two or three years of payment
of interest that will require a tax of
four mills.
The above illustrations are based up
on the idea, that the trustees of the
township have to provide for payment
Of interest upon the bonds, and the
principal at maturity. But the railroad
company, in purchasing the road from]
the trustees under the law, propose to |,
assume the payment of the bonds, and i
also the interest thereon after the road |,
is completed, and thus relieve the towns h
ship from the taxation. II
In view of what benefit another rail-
road would be to this town and town
/