The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1877-05-26
CITY TAXES AND CONSOLIDATED
BONDS.
New ORLEANS May %, 1877.

New ORLEANS May 20, 1877.
Editor DeDsoordt--Express mention having
been made in your able journal OF yesterday
morning. under the head Of Municipal Matters"
OF city tax suit against me, which havo re.
sisted, and tho ground Of my defense having
been inadvertently misstated. / make IL my duty
to bring to public notice the reasons upon which
rely for non payment Of the city's claim.
Let me first repel the intimation that have
predicsted any objection the fact that the city
has received for me, and failed to pay me, COM
missions on tai Judgments obtained by me, years
ago, in tax cas- 8. ! would net have stusifed
myself in setting up any such defense, well
knowing hat nothing Of The kind conld SUCCESS
fully be urged Ia support OF q refusal to Day the
city her revenue.
My defense 10 based, first on equity, and next,
subsidiary, on law. The equity part 10 invok
by me in justification II the defense which might
have been exclusively based on pure technical
law, leaving aside the just motives which the
awgiver had IN view when IL was enacted.
am the owner Of q number OF city eonsol-
dated bonds OF 1852, for the pay ment OF the in
they we're ,ssued Thirty seventh section consol-
dation act 1852, contains stringenS provisions.
Coupled with section Of act No. 70 OF the same
year, whereby the town OF lafayette wss annex
provides: "rhat the Common Council shall
annually, in the month Of January, pass an ordi-
nance to raise the sum of six hundred ana nifty
THOUSAND dollars, by special FAX ON zeal estate,
TO be sailed the consolidated loan tax, and the
rate per cent Of sid tax in zach municipal ty
shall be in proportion 10 the indebtedness Of
eich.
"All ordinances resolutions or other acts
,assed by said council, after the lat OF January
in ca ch year. shall be null and cod, unless the
ordinance imposing The consolidation loan ta1
shall haze been previously passed"
1t has pleased the city TO ignore the duty ira-
posed upon her by this law and to smile upon the
penalty inflicted to disregard OF its imperious
ezigencies, and the city has consequently omit
ted to levy the required tax, we'll for the year
1870, as for the year 1877. For the first omission
there existed no shadow OF an excuse.
For the second oms iQn the seventh section OF
the premium bord law was inv ked, which
Though nnconstitutonaily) repeats section 81 Of
The Ut 1852 and forbids the city from lsvs ing
any tax for the purposes OF any bonds, save the
pre- MUM bonds.
The consequence has been that the coupons
dne July, 1875; a. d January. 1877, remained un-
provided FIR and are unpaid 1t 10 true that the
two previously maturing series were paid; but it
wss under the pre- sure OF the Judgment OF the
United States Circuit Court in the Maenlsa,A
case, Of public rotoriety, the holders OF the
bonds being unwilling to submit to the fifty Per
cent ordinance, which needs not, for the honor
OF the ciSy, be more fully mentioned.
rhe city eued me for The tax OF 1878. declined
to sleep my nights AID thong ut that as the city
owed me the amount of my matured coupons
and as there Was good law in my favor, giving me
q right in ccnscencs to withhold payment from
my debtor, 1t was ray interest and my duty to in
woke it-and did 30, claiming that by reason Of
| the failure OF the city to levy the consolidated
loan tax, the ordnance imposing the tax claimed
| from me was zuuity. and that could not be
| fnrcei to pay.
| II is difficult to imagine why the city did mo-
lew the $4,000 conso idatei loan tax for 1876,
| % there was no lao on the statute book dspeps-
ing hsr from doing. But it is easy to conceive,
however, that the CITY did abstain from levying
it for 1877, in consequence OF section OF the
premium bond law; although there be nc jus-
| t.sie ation for euch q conrsa.
Seasopably, in December last, Judge O&mobsll
and myself pro essionaIlv reminded the City Conn.
CT. OF the necessity OF imposing the cDnsoiidased
loan tax tor 1877 sending TO each Administrator
and to the other proper municipal authorities, q
memorial which tmbodied UNREASONABLE au'
tnority, and which, for the further calculation o.