The Valley Virginian. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1865-1895, 1876-12-14

: knowledge of this interest, and it is I'M
7 doubtedly true, that, without injustice Of
hardship to any class, a law can be franco
so as to raise the amount Of revenue jus
3 mentioned from the oyster fisheries, and a
the same time, to protect and preserve then
as source of perpetual wealth to the peopl
5 in their vicinity. / commend the subject a.
one OF great importance to be considered Ii
connection with the deficiency in the treas
ury.
1t is for the General Assembly to dc. er
mine the question whether the treasury slial
be supplied by means of the special taxation
. here proposed, Or by an increase of the gen
eral taxation. The special method, which
earnestly recommend, will render the gen.
eral increase unnecessary and will soon jus
tify reduction OF the rate of taxation. But
we touch the crisis Of financial fortunes. and
an imperative necessity requires us to choose
either the one alternative or the other. We
cannot reject both. 10 settle down now
upon the past policy of non-actlon is to i'm
pose upon the people burdens worse than
any taxation The Commonwealth cannot
stand still without intensifyng every exist
ing evil nor without being engulfea in dis
credit, prostralioh and dishonor. Ii the spe-
! cial taxation proposed shall be disapproved,
4 then | do not hesitate to urge an increase Of
1.-The general rate. A slightaincrease will meet
the eSigency 1t will operate as 4 measure
OF ultimate and speedy relief. In Riding
the State OF tile financial incubus Which
weighs down its energy, it will produce bless
ings far in excess of its burdens. The I'M
furnished honor OF this Commonwealth is
| md i-,ha nil
of its people. A few years ago they stripped
| themselves OF more than half their property
and poured out their blood like water to vim
dictate it. To-day they will neither hold
back nor begrudge the means necessary for
its preservation.
PARTICULAR EXPENSES WHICH CAN BE
| RETRENCHED.
A heavy and needless charge upon the
treasury is incurred in connection with the
corporation and county jails. 1t is most no.
| ticeaDle in the matter OF the board and CLOTH
| ing OF prisoners. The cost of such board is
| from three to four times as great as in the
penitentlary, whereas in the crowded iails
of the cities, at least, it ought to be the same,
While in some cases clothing and other nee
| essaries are supplied with needless expense
not to say gross irrcgularity. In many of
the corporations the Commonwealth is feed
ing and clothing able-bodied prisoners, who
are organized into chaill-gangs, and perform
ing daily hard labor, Of grea value, for local
benefit. IL is so much gratuitous labor, fur
nislled at State expense, for corporate pur-
poses. Certainly, the prisoners of each To-
cality ought to be supported at local cx-
pense. They would then be made to work
for their living and earn it.
In the MATES of conveying lunatics to the
asylums and convicts to the penitentiary,
the public money is habitually wasted.
Guards are almost always allowed, and sew
eral persons often travel for mileage and
pleasure as the suppositious escort of a fee
BILE luuatic or the keepers of 4 fettered GRIM
inal When fugitives from justice have been
reclaimed by reqnsition and brought back |
from other States, have in no case allowed |
a guard, and q desperate criminal is often |
conveyed withou. difficulty from a distant |
point and through other States to the place |
Of trial, and always by q single agent with |
out assistance. An important saving will |
be affected if it be provided by law that |
whenever criminal IS sentenced to the PEN |
tentary, the superintendent of that insttu- |
ton shall have notice of the fact and shall |
forthwith send one of his permanent trained |
guards for tile coEyct-paying, not mileage,
but mere actual expenses. Obviously hui |
manity as well as economy requires that in
like manner the experienced attendants or
charge Of adjudged lunatics and convey
them to their places Of destination.
The expenses of the numerous boards OF |
visitors for public institutions now amount l.
to no inconsiderable sum- Most of the |
boards are so unnecessarily large as to weak
en- unduly the separate responsibility of ill-
dividual visitors. II every board be cut |
down to five members, the responsibility |
and efficiency of each member will be n- |
,vyl,i fhoy, half Of t,ar
expense will be saved. Some Of the most
experienced officers Of State institutions re-
commend this change.
The present mode of performing routine
office work at the capitol, is substantially
what it was fifty years ago. Since that time
important Improvements have been made by
most governments, as well as corporations
and the larger business firms, in the meth
DDS, arrangements, and rules for dispatching
office work. In the opinion of competent
Judges and experts, if these improvements
were adopted by the State, twice the present
amount Of public Office business could be ac-
complished by half the present number of |
employees. As the result OF nearly three
years of daily and close observation, am of
opinion that seve. al Of the separate salaried |
offices, now maintained at the capitol. can
be abolished, not only without detriment or
Inconvenience to the public service, but with |
an increase of its efficiency, as well as de-
ciled retrenchmen5 Of present expenses.
THE ARREARS DUE THE SCHOOL FUND.
1t is not difficult to rectify the misappre-
h ensions which have obscured this subject,
and which has assumed the reality of q rela- /
ton to it, which neither existed nor could |
have existed, on the part of the board here
tofore charged with controlling the payment
of certain interests on the public debt. Among |
s~,,, 81 all 81 ha,,
performed by that board, it has been sup
passed that, by its acton OF the 23d of June.
1875, it caused 500, 1000 Of the school fund to
BE- diverted from its legitimate use and pa d /
as interest on the outstanding debt to hund- /
holders; although the fact is that the entire /
amount of interest paid to the bondholders, /
by virtue OF that or any other action OF the /
board, was al96, SASS and no more. As to
the much smaller sum, which, in that year,
and in strict pursuance of law, was paid to |
the credit Of the sinking fund, and which was /
tor OF Public Accounts, it is yet to be seen
in the form Of an available equivalent in the
hands Of the Commissioners of the Sinking
Fund, and it may be reconvertcd into money
at the pleasure of the State. But it is not |
true that the sums thus paid, or either Or any |
part of them, had been taken from the pub
lie school fund Or had ever constituted
part of it. Not only. did the balances due |
the school fund have no connection with tie /
Payments then caused to be made on the |
debt. out the existence of such balances was |
wholly and necessarily unknown to, aud un I
suspected by, the board. Every possible pre- /
caution was used by the board, rs an organ |
lied body, in procuring from the officers /
charged with receiving and keeping all the /
public funds, full and authentic Information
as to the revenues, on hand and incoming,
which were subject to the payment of interest |
and the expenses of the government, and /
which were not subject to any other special |
or prior purpose whatever. The board nei- t
ther used nor applied any fund in the
payment of Interest, except that which /
was thus officially reported to it, from the |!
best sources of Information, as pertaining to
the general treasury, and as being properly |
available and liable for such payment. The |
existence OF the considerable balances, since !
discovered to be due from the general treas !
ury to the school fund, was not only un
known to ths board, but even the Auditor Of
pny,lic I, coouuts npd the Suntrtttpndpnt of |