The Portland daily press., 1874-10-02
Municipal Debt.

In another column appears full abstract
OF an address delivered at Oshkosh, Wiscon-
sin, yesterday, by Speaker Blaine ON the SUBJ
ject OF Municipal Debt" The address is
one which demands attentive perusal, beth
on account of the Importance of its subject
matter and the recognized ability of the gem
tleman who treats 1t.
Mr.. Blaine shows that while the people of
this country have been struggling to reduce
the national debt, they have allowed the mu-
nicipal debts to creep upto more than quarter
OF the nations Indebtedness, or, in round
numbers. S670, 100000. 1t would be nstruc-
tive, if the accounts could be obtained, to look
over statement of the items of expenditure
which have heaped up this enormous debt.
or course part has been incurred in i'm
provements, such as are indispensable in
every thriving town and city, but we suspect,
that the larger portion is represented by
bonds, which in their turn represent specious
enterprises which municipalities rushed into.
but which soon persisted, leaving only legacy
OF taxation behind them. Unfortunately d.
vided responsibility means, too often, no re-
zens are prone to neglect the precautions in
managing the business of the commonwealth
that they observe in their private matters.
The failure of private enterprise means loss
OF fortune, but of public one but few dol
lars from the pocket of each citizen, or
debt secured to the creditor by mortgage
upon the future, and so the city is embarked
in all sorts of speculation, and financial bur-
dens accumulate till they become too grievous
10 be borne. The process by which our pub
lie burdens increase is plain enough. 1t is
simply that which saddles the improvident
and reckless individual with debt. Extrava-
gance, want of caution, and an Unsuitable
thirst for display, account for the most of it.
But there are other evils resulting from the
rashness of towns in business enterprises be-
sides oppressive taxation. Oftentimes the
practice defeats what it is intended to foster,
by offering to capitalists bonds in which they
can invest with absolute safety, thus inducing
them to Withdraw from those enterprises
which build up cities and towns, and support
the laboring classes. Towns cannot establish
factories or.bu.ld railroads so cheaply as pri-
vate individuals, and are not likely to manage
them as well, but as long as they offer greater
inducements to the latter to invest 10 their
bonds than in their business advantages they
will be likely To do so.
The remedies for these evils are briefly sug-
gested by Speaker Blaine. The foremost o.
them lies in the exercise of sound dscre
ton and wise caution on the part of towns
in making investments. There Is no reason
why commonwealth should not as carefully
count the cost OF an enterprise before en-
barking upon it as an individual. But it is
easy to vote money and trust to the future to
pay it. It's a simple process to issue a bond
and sell it, and pay day is so far off that it
fills to excite apprehension, which fact pro-
badly accounts for much recklessness in mu-
nicipal expenditure. If towns would adopt
the rule ''pay as you co." it would doubtless
prove a powerful check upon extravagance.
Another remedy, suggested by Mr.. Blaine, is
to be found in restricting the power of legis-
latures to vote money. In Maine such re-
striction exists. and Mr.. Blaine thinks that
there are many other states which would reap
advantage from similar restraints Then,
too, it would aid greatly to have statute de-
fination of municipal uses, that there might
be boundary beyond which towns could
not go.
We are only able to touch upon some of
the more prominent features of this subject,
which is one of growing Importance, and in
wolves many problems which demand careful
study for their solution. In Mr. Blane's adj
dress it is treated in an eminently practical
and common sense manner, and his sugges-
tions cannot fail to commend themselves to
the thinking men of the country.