Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1874-06-16
Continued from Erst page. !

Ntth ltopcftg VI ilttAc Ndiue anu
unprOductive-
The extent Of improvements made up to No
-embsr 1, 1873, is SUMMARIZED by the engineer
in chief In hts last annual report. This gives
TIE chr-acteT and extent Of pavement laid, and
the amount OF grading done under the dIrec-
.son Ct Tie board, up to that date, and ia as
printed IN 1HE STAR
O'ter matters Of less Importance than those
We have Considered might well be remarked
uTOn had we time and space TO do so, but the
end OF the session II 20 near that we must neces.
EARLY abbIegiafe this report. And for the same
reason We are compelled 70 omit notice of
ticu'sr individuals from changes of gra les in
the avenues aid streets, removal Of paVements,
appropriation or old materials inequality In
valHst obs and sss essments, and 10 simply refer
- he L tmOTy bearing on these matters.
DEBT OF The DISTRICT.
The cebt of The District OF Columbia, and of
the late corporations Of Washington and
Georgetown. ard Of the county outside of those
cites, cannot be accurately stated, for rePsons
which Is as follows. a. shown By the report Of
the conf trclier. This TepO {, which ia quoted
ffem slows tue total csbt to be 80 90, 25I1s, as
heretofore printed in The STARI
There = not any bonded debt OF the county OF
Washington outside OF the cities afOresaid. out
there Is set unfuuded a floating debt Of only
The District Of Columbia proper have IN
funded liabilities as follows. Here follows the
aud,tor's statement IN Governors answer, page
4t2 -, footing mp $50 ,ssO52l
To which should he sdGCi for current eX-
peIses 10 June 50, 1S1f:
Estimated liability for salaries Of
officers, employees, support OF
schools, police, fire department,
Payment of iuterest ard sinking
tand on bonds and contingent eS-
TeTsts for the year ending June
30, $3.50 600 %
TO meet these liabilities there are unsolicited
taxes sggTegstiug as follows:
Taxes uneOllected for the current
and past years, as per statement
-. s u 49, LII :; d
about sS0O,0CO can be made available soon after
July !.
About 5000, 900 are for delinquent taxes for
years preceding the present fiscal year, and the
following statement shows amount received on
taxes levied for the current year, up to Feb
rusry l, 1874. This statement foOts up the
unpaid taxes on the assessment OF real estate
Tor the year ending June 50, 1874, TO February
], 1874, II, 131 as 24.l
Since which time about $4,000 have been
All these taxes were due ard payable uly LIST,
1s73- The delinquency in paying taxes accounts
in large degree Tor the present embarrassment
Ct The District government proper.
The following il an approximate Statement, OF
fhe debt Of rhe BOeTd Of Public Works unfund-
meDt Of the floating Indebtedness OF the BOARD
of Public Works up to and including May 9,
1874, fOOts up = 3f5,19S2i-l
From this total there should be deducted an
estimate OF the assets of the Board OF Public
Works, not DOW available, the snm OF
g gIt sec 81.
CITY HALL APPROPRIATION.
ON tie - or March. I,75. Congress made an
aIPrOY ration OF $500 for the purchase OF the
interest OF the District il the city hall build
ing, and provided in the get. (Which will be
found on page 20. Il statutes at large,) 'the
same 20 be applied by said Distri ct only for the
erection of suitable building iOr the District
Offices" The amount OF this apprOpria, on was
drawn from the Treasury; but the board, being
ic reed Of money for other purposes, used sew
eEty thOusapu dollars of the apOuDt thereof,
notwithstanding the specific purpose for which
the 9TUTOLIiaf made. and Sunntipd
place Of the me by dePositing $4,000 OF their
sewer bonds.
In anticipation of the assembling Of Congress.
ana with view 20 getting relief By means OF
appropriations, the board make mp an account
sgaIrst the United States, which will be found
ia the report CT November l, 1873, p. 2. liz is
there stated as follows:
The indebtedness of the Genera Government
tO-the District OF Columbia on account Of i'm
prOyemeufs, e. shown in the statement hereto
appended, Is ss follows:
For work in and around government
reservations and public buildings. SJ73,17l IS
For WOIk OF avenues. 1OJ6.5I4 SO
Fer main Tage..................2,5 @, 6SI 3
.17O,427 "a
The frst item - for work done since the last
appropriations were made. As they were s'prO-
hIblteU' by the act OF January from mourning
or contracting further liabilities on behalf o
the United States IN the Improvement of streets
avenues, and Te.erYa tiOns beyond the amount
CT appropriations previously me- lie by Congress,
AID from entering into any contract touching
such in proyements on behalf of the Unitsd
States except IN pursuance of appropriations
made by Congress, II Is apparent that thi
L. sn expenditure which creates no valid
claim against tie United States. The items
making up this aggregate OF 1913 ,1Tl.75 will |
be found on page 20 OF that report. Part o. |
az il for work done on streets where the !
government las 10 property, bat the grades |
OF which had TO be changed. Another part |
OF this item embraces paving for street railroads
between the Interior and Post Office depart |
meDts, ard on 9Th street east of the same. |
The work embraced in This item having been /
done, (althHugh without warrant OF law it Is |
proper that the United States should pay for |
what vOlld have been properly chargeable to /
the government if the board had been author ]
lied to do the work, rather than that 1t should |
be paid by the people OF this District, who are |
in 10 wise responsible fOI, and had no control |
over, the acts OF this board. But the COMMITTEES |
has rot been able TO ascertain what amount |
sheuld actually be paid, owing 10 the manner |
In which the work has been done and the !
measurements made.
The next item IN this account Is 81 ,O56 ,57436,
Tor work on avenues, and tabRlated Il .tement /
OF IL vIll be found on page 81 OF the report /
lit is here inserted
The table IL undoubtedly widely wrong; ana, |
whether there Is anything that appears in il |
that can be with any propriety charged TO the !
United States is exceedingly doubtful, except
ing IL may be the last column, amounting to |
S2iS, 24O.12, and the accuracy of that can ONLY
be Rscertained by Temeasurement.
Tie next item is a charge against the govern |
rosDt OF $40 ISLES for main sewers
The main 81 Nerage OF the city when com pleted |
will cost -, AS, $50 3; that this charge against
the government for main sewerage is SO4, S26 90 /
more than the whole cost Besides this, not |
more than Il ,i07 ,6f3.63 has yet been expended:
Il ,02s ,2ll.so being yet required to complete |
them.
This charge against The government was ar
rived at in this way: The legislative assembly |
passed the sewer act by which the cities were !
divided into sewer districts, aud fxed rate of |
assessment wss established per square foot for |
sewerage purposes. Then the bOlrd entered
into calculation and aScertained that the gov
eminent IL the owner OF a certain number of |
square feet of ground in the form of reserva-
tons; that there so many square feet in the |
avenues and streets, and aggregating these to-
gether they make calculation III at II the res
ervatiOIs streets, and avenues are taxed az the |
same rate Per loot that private property Is As
srssed under this sewer law, 10 will amount to /
S-,s40,6sl 3, and say, therefore, that the /
United States owes the District that amount for !
nain sewerage. This account was put forward |
eOniessedly for the purpose Of procuring an ap- |
propriatiOn from Congress Tor the aggregate /
amount OF ~ $40 4S7 ~.
The manner in which il was proposed to pro- !
cure appropriations at this SESSION are thus
specifically referred to, rot only TO show how |
this board has been conducting these affairs,
but for the purpose also of showing that, for the
protection OF the government, IL il essential /
thar some Fixed unVarying rule should be estah- |
lshed Tor the ascertaiplASpt OF what the gov |