Wilmington daily gazette., 1874-02-18
ELBqfBR FROM FHR STATE TREASURER.
THE MILFORD "NEWS" AND
DELAWARE FINANCES
[ From the Deldioareah.l

accountability for all their public acts, and
that it should lie accorded to every individual
that government or elected there
by to criticse Justly and dlspasslonately, and
free from prejndiSe, the acts OF all those in
whom confidence has been for the time being
officially bestowed. But when the critic en-
teTs intO the arena OF criticism without
thoroughly understanding his subject and di-
vesting himself of pre- iudice he must thereby
take the responsibility OF making himself re-
diculous in the eyes OF an intelligent commu
nifty. With these remarks, and with your
permission, Mn. Editor. | will now pay my |
respects to the editor of the Neass and AdOer
tiser, in reply 10 an editorial published in the |
last number of that paper. under the head of |
Estate Finance and Yaxatien.''
1t is with much reluctance that my name |
appears in public print, but in view Of the
slanderOus and garbled Misrepresentation of
the settlement of the State Treasurer with the |
Legislative Committee. and the charge ''that
it has been continued practice, on the part
OF the State Treasurer. to misrepresent the
facts in the case by subterfage," in refutation
| of these charges deem it n duty [ owe to The
State and to myself to raise my feeble voice
and WELD my pen against all unjust imputa-
| tlonS of her pIoud record, and to hurl back
| into the teeth Of her dcfamers The foul asper
sions attempted to be east upon her fair escut
chton.
| The writer of the article in the Ae1ci says
| the last Legislature was strongly impoltuned
| 10 TtllbNb tHt ptOpc HUH tu6 DuTutUS Vi
alton, and thai it persistently refused to do so,
| Now he Is either very ignorant of the laws
1 passed by the Legislature, or he Is guilty of
gross falsehoo1. Was not certain railroad
company relieved from taxation to the amount
| of $50 900 per annum, to say nothing about
the relief given 10 all the other railroads
of the state and 10 other corporations,
whereby by the revenue of the state was re
duced from $3.50, ,937 60 to the general fund in
1872 to $245, 143 "a in 1873 thus reducing the
of S4i, ,813 56, and also reducing the other
funds in nearly the same ratio. And yet, in
.he.face OF the record, this man putting him
self up to be d teacher on "Poltical Economy
and; Finance says, either ignoranly or
falsely, "the last Legislature persisten,ly re-
fused 10 lower the taxes" Should he not know
whereof he speaks? We would indeed be a
happy people were he exempt from all taxa
ition, but while we may sometimes think our
taxes are too grievous to be borne, does it not
behoove US to- pause and reflect and compare
, our condition with the taX-rdden people of
. some of our sister:states, governed by the
party to which this wOuld-be Instructor on
Political Economy and Finance" belongs; to
reflect that while cur tax, based upon low
| valuation is forty 10 fifty cents on The one
hundred dollars for 8 ate and county purposes
| and che poll tDX, which guarantees the fran
chise, is in one of the counties only seventy
five cents, how gladly would the citizens OF
/ some of our sister states under the tyrannical
/ rule of Black Republicanism, exchange their
conduction for ours. They who are taxed
n upon high valuation from one to fifteen per
n cent. on the vaule of their property, while VT
i pay one half pf one per cent, on the value
a of ours. And yet theirs is but type of what
y our condition would be were We subjected
to The same rule.
d the annual report OF the Treasursrs OF nearly
II a i the states are in my possession and by them
. ind that whl~ our State bonds are at par, th
interest OH tue bonds OF those states governed b!
o | carpet bag and negro rule in some Instances g
e unpaid and their bonds are far below par even .
, low as fifteen or twenty cents on tine dollar -
These are facts that cannon be successfully Vou
tradicted, aud yel these are The model govern
| meRts tho writer III question would have q
D. adopt.
i luggsd ia the school Fund, &c" The Treasure
has made lust exhibit OF the State debl amount
e. ing to the sum OF ST. 3l 900, (and will here stat
D. that the bonds redeemed ana cancelled during th
I'd year. and counted by the Legislative Committe
n as vouchers were S64 600 instead OF SCI 900,
IN stated in the Delacarean). He has include
a rs assets the funds invested for State purposes
N amounting to the sum OF STAB, ,050 90; he la
~ | also included The funds invested for school pu
re noses and 80 stated it IN his report, amounting
ne the sum Of s452, ,419 09 He then added to Il
ee sum the casl in the Treasury and the money
then due and payable, amounting to Sl46, 1856
of making the total assets SlOl ioo ul which, de
,ts Quoted from the the total debt, wall leave II
ed indebtedness pr sloo o9t So over ana apoNe al
m sets. Aud Instead OF paying forty per cent {
'' that sum, tauullngly inanuitei 10y this 'hna
cier,p we pay SIX per cent. on our dent AMI |
ceive six per cent ON our Investments
's,t Another question raised by the writer IN Il
eh Neaps, as / understand IT, is, can the 1rcAsur
~ | properly place the School Fund rs an offs
Nv against the state debis In answer would as
ey is il not as well as all the property OF tho Stat
ne p.edged 10 the pay ment OF the State debts Al
"a. IS II III the province of the Legislature to apply
tntu ia fhu no
tc ment Of that debtg think the Animation q
be proven to the entire satisfaction OF any 'an'l
mind.
Itmast be admitted that States, as Well as ln'
o. yiduals, are morally and legally bound to pay
N their lust debts to the extent oil their aDhty, al
by every honest man Is and should be bouIfd On G
Ter ing into liquidation, TO make true anu hons
exhibit 10 his creditors OF all the assets with VIII
~ be ia possessed But should he withhold fro
os his creditors portion OF his Investments cou
~ he plead In iustihcaton of such act that he
e'y set aside the interest accrulng from that lnve
nee msnt for the purpose of educating his childre
tn What would apply to an individual would apI
the to q state under the same circumstances
an The Neus says that Everybody knows Il
ia the School Fund was provided and loaned to
ely states free OF interest. by the national goveI
'm ment, or we should probably have had no II
ara schools to This day" also that III Is a sae'
'ne fund given for specific purpose. What
'nN bel upon cur aucestoIs' W hat an insui' upon
torv. and an intelligent sovereign state. 10
,h.t at nearly the close of the nineteenth ce
iris nrv the Stats of Delaware would have been wi
OBJ on, n school fund and without free schools W
oy- II mt for the munfcence Of the general COVE
nan, Nothing could be furh her from the tru
erg and vet this man, who says We know moth
',ns ' noore about political economy and finance d
YES. children, uublushinely writes and publishes st
COS falsehoods, to be read by an intelligent pub
lnk Our school fun anu senooi system - ain