The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1874-03-10
iwortl, OF public and private property Is, In
effect, pledged TO tbe extiDguishmene Of the
debt Unlike q railSoad, the security, is al

ways greatly In excess OF the Obligation, and
the legal means Of, cosfcing payment are OF
familiar form and easy application. Never.
itheless, the market for city bonds is almost
always confined TO the limits of The city
which issues them, while railroad securitie,
arc almost as; invariably not sold at home.
One Of the reasons Of this must be that in
the one case the interest Is eollectabIe at the
great money.centre Of the country, and In
the other only at the point-it may be re.
smote-where issued.s -
again call attention 10 the necessity of
conforming to the law which requires the ere.
Eation Of sinking fund whenever Eew
debt is incurred, asSwell as to meet the ex.
listing debt, 81 ,.Ts -
Next year S40, ,8S7 OF our six per cent. re.
tgistered bonds will mature, aud should be
'extinguished; aud during the six following
years bonds 10 the amount Of 1874, ,5e2 more
viii reach maturity. AS at present con-
Quoted the sinking fund meets none of the
requirements contemplated in its provision,
and, indeed, there has been little pretence OF
even formal compliance with the law. r
A board should be created under whose
control and to whose credit the revenues of
the sinking fund should be placed, and these
revenues should be held as sacred trust for
the eXtinguishm ent Of the public debt under
all circumstances.
The semtanntaa payments of interest and
the discharge Of the principal of the debt
should be under the control of this board.
aud revenues should be provided to enable
the board TO meet with certainty these obli-
cations. - -
Payments on account OF the public debt
should be made by this board, and separate
accounts kept so as to prevent absolutely the
intermingling of the funds of the city appIi.
cable to this purpose from all others.
The estimated ordinary expenditure for
the year ending January 81, 1875. amounts
to $685., ,SS2.45, Of which 1906, ,63s are for in
terest This sum can be raised without diff.
Guilty, without any increase of the rate Of
taxation. e.;sGss= -.
The estimated taxable property. real and
personal, in the city, amounts to 81 .OO0. 900.
At one and half per cent. this will realize
S615,000. We may expect from licenses
$4,000; from gas, s170,000; from water
SOL ,000-total, SS78,009. Leaving to be co..
lected from miscellaneous sources S47 $50
During no year since have been in Office
has the revenue from these sources fallen ay
low as S50,000, so that II the appropriation
bills are adhered to we may anticipate NJ
trouble In meeting ordinary expenditure.
during the coming year.
Before concluding this branch of my mes
sage desire to record my profound sens
of the obligations the city is under to th,
Finance Committee, and especially the in
teligent and indefatigable chairman, for thI
diligence, fidelity, and success with which
during period of great embarrassment
they have discharged their duties. If tn,
Council shall support their efforts by a stric
economy, and especially By Figidly confinins
the various sources of expenditure to thu
amounts appropriated therefor, the finances
of the city In present hands will he satisfac.
torily managed. @aG- .i-
TEE PeoR.
The annual report Of the Superintendent!
of the Almshouse is of unusual interest this
year from the circumstance that for the first
time in the history Of the institution its sta
tistics have been fully and accurately kept
After some correspondence with the United
States officer having charge of the division
of pauper statistics In connection with tht
Census department at Washington, I pro
cured and forwarded to Superintendent Big
ger certain blanks indicating the character
of information deemed valuable in connec
tion with the almshouse. He at once i'll
terested himself in the matter, and the resul
will be found in the valuable tables accom-
panying bis report, wherein he shows no
only the age and sex Of the inmates of tht
almshouse, but their nativity, occupations
diseases, amount OF eduestion, religious be.
lief, and the like.
The average of paupers fed in the aims
house in 1873, was 22s; that of the proceed
year being 237. The cost Of subsistence wa;
$50.55 per capita, an increase of 1921 over
the year 1872. am unaware of any reason
why there should be this advance of over IL
per cent. in the cost Of feeding the inmates,
In the department Of outdoor relief there
was issued during the year $3.50 bushels OF
meal, and 962 cords of wood; an increase OF
724 bushels of meal, and 31S cords Of wood
over the preceding year.
The expenditures on this account would
have been greatly IN excess Of these figures
but for the formation Of q relief committee
of citizens under the auspices and encOur
agement of the elergymen Of the city, to
which the Council has made liberal contri
buttons. To this committee some Of oul
worthiest citizens Of both sexes have gener
ously given their services, and by their aid
and especially through systematic vista
ton of the poor, vast amount of suffering
has been relieved. Indulge the hope that thi
will become permanent organization, ant
resume, with the approach Of each winter
its benefcent Offices to the needy. am tht
more desirous Of this result because an
persuaded that the system Of outdoor poo
relief, as 1t is called, Is one that should no
be associated with the almshouse. The dis
tinction is between the needy and paupers
which it is the interest Of every community
to maintain rigidiy /; and, moreover, the au
thorities having the aimshouse In hant
would themselves, I doubt not, be glad to b,
relieved of distribution which entails or
them much thankIess and unpaid labor, ant
which, of necessity, must be totally made
quate to the support Of those in want.
Iagain take pleasure In referring to thu
admirable manner Ia which the aimShOuse
In both its white and colered departments, il
kept and managed-a result due to the ETH
cient and systematic character of the super
intendens Mr. Bigger, and his assistant
Captain Epps.
During the past year not single com
plaint has reached me from either branch OF
the al iashouse Of imposition, cruelty, or mai
administration in any particular.
TEE aAS.WoRES.
I take especial pleasure in referring to the
very satisfactory condition Of this depart.
ment: sc-
The irregularities detected In the In-
spector's office during the previous year, The
examination Of which occupied so much OF
the time Of the Council and myself, coupled
with very frequent complaints of the Inn.
purity and insuficiency Of the gas furnished,
combined to attract unnsal attention TO this
branch Of the public service.
The Committee ON Light addressed them
selves TO the reformation and remedy Of these
abuses and evils With success attested by
the unexampfed circumstance that during