, 1874-01-12
Showing Why the Floating In.
debtednoss Has the APP
Eearance Of a Large
j.. Increase:
The Cana1-F'und Exhausted in
the Restoration Of the
), .Fire-Losses.
What Has Been Deno for tho City
Within the Past Two Years.
Cause for congratu|ation Instead
Of "A Croaking Jeremiad."

PARIS. Dec. 20, 1873.
The Chicago papers containing tho ill.,
angural address Of Mayor Coivin to tho new
Council have just boen rocoiycd. In those pas-
sagos undor the hoad Of
TAXING AN ACCOUNT or BrouK,
the hunncos' of tho city arc tplacod in such 4
light AZ to convoy tho Impression that tho pro-
ceding Administration had been managed very
oxtravasant1y, IT not reoklossly. Tho matter ia
put in this shapes: '..,4
bonded md noatipg debt or city Aprl 1871 AL
bonded and aoating debt Of cty April ls13
sssiSsd from stsis to Api assssla
Expenditures over taxcn. 3,a31 .be3
The public ARC told TINT whilo tho population
has increased only 50 per cont between April /,
1867, and April i, 1873. tbs debt had increased
during tho Same poriod SO per cont, not incl,,d-
Ing tho $2,o96,0 ,0l2 received In tho meanwhile
from tho State. Tho mcasago also states thnt
tho immediate RESOURCES turned ovor to tho
now Administration amount only to 5754 ,707,
with the exception Of 100000 of tux certificates
wllercas tho immediate liabilities amount TO
81, ,SG1, ,70i, the greater portion Of which uaturos
prior to tho 1at Of April 1874" It is admitted,
however, that there aro 81 100 900 in tho Treas
1ry to the credit OF special funds, Rnc1, as the
wator-tunnel, public buildings, otc. But this ad.
mission is slurred over in such wav Ar
to create tho impression that tho money can bo
Of no use in hiding the new Administrator IN
it's fiscal cmbarrassments. The impreaa;on
sought to DO made on the minds Of tho ott;7ons
by these figures is quite obvious. I had sup-
posed
THE EAoTIH0~a1AYon,
in hfs ss y01nEctnrv ', Tn khn ro,,,,,;1 ,~o,11 1
given u comproheusive roview Of tho city's
flnanccs md tho strubshs OF tho Administration
to mako enda mcot daring tho Preceding two
years. especially as ho. had been Chairman of
the Finance Committee tho last year and mon.-
ter Of 1t tho first but in this nm disappointed,
Aud, ut this distance, with no official documents,
reports, or papors to rofor to, aud nothing but
recollection to depend on 1t is difficult for mo to
supply tho omission Of the Acting Mayor. But
I court oil investigation aud inquiry into the
financial management OF thu City Government
from Doc l, 1871, to Sept. l, 1878, an(l think
can safely ndd, to Dec. l. 1878. -.
Mayor Cotvn statoa tho fiscal condition Of tho
city on the 1Bt Of April, 1869, ditto 1871, ditto
1878. But my Administration only commenced
on tile 1st Of December, 1871. eight mouths
after the beginning Of that fiscal year, and not
until after 80 per cent Of tho expenditures Of that
yonr had alroady boon mado in advance Of tho
collection Of tho ta1es to defray them.
TIE FLOATING DEBT
on tho 1st of April, 1860, il stated to have boon
eS06,871, whereas tho floating debt of April l,
1878, is put down at 81 ,840. 1852, showing an in
croRsc OF this species OF liability of moro tan a
million anl q half of doilnrs. But tho mosYaro
neglocts to state that in 1860, under tic city
tax-law then in existence, all municipal taxes
wore required to be paid within the municipal
year for which they were levied. On tho lst Of
Anrll, 1869, all, or nearly all, tue taxes for
1868 had been collected and placod to tho
credit of tho City Government, aud, Of course,
tlofo could not DO much floating obt,-thora
should have been mono ut tint time Of your, So
tho tnxes Of 1870 were collected before April i,
1871, which accounts for the small floating debt
reported on that day. But On tie LIST GpY of
April. 1872, and 1Bt Of April. 1878, scarcely DOL
sE Of the taxsa 81 to preceding years 1871 aud
that there was no law in existonco wiioroby tic
City Government could enforce tho collection OF
tazes prior to April Of those years. Houco on
those DAYS thoro was, necessarily, 1argo out
bo still larger oil the LIST ot April next, for tic
samo roason, viz. that tho taxes OF 1870 cannot
bo collected until after that date, unless the Inv
shall 10 changed this wintor. as It ought to DO,
restoring tho tax-paying time ns 1t was bcforo
tie fire.
WHEN ENTERED
uron the dutioa Of tho Mayors Office, on tue LIST
Of December 1877 no laxes were coming intothe
G'ty treasury, but that was not tho worst OF it.
could bo forced to pay hla taxos. Tho Courts
Lad decided that tho old city tax-law was no
li0ngcr valid, but in fact WIS unconstitutional.
Iho hrst care ol tic new Administrator was to
prepare auch bill Us would insure tho collection
OF tho unropealod and unrehatotl portion Ut tho
loVy Of 187l: 70 got II passed was found to be
slow and difficult n'attor. Nobody utter the fro
seemed anxious to ray taxes, md thoro WIS no
rush to tue Collectors oltlca as vol romonaber
spring, and tho taxes waro not finally obtained
under it until sometime in the summer Of 1879,