The Weekly Kansas chief. [volume] (Troy, Kan.) 1872-1918, 1877-04-12
The Bond Question.

Since our last issue, very many tax payers of
the County have expressed to rs their grstihca-
ton At the prospect that something decisive will
soon he done toward relieving the County Of its
unjust bonded debt, or at least to reduce the
amount. One Of the Township Trustees INFORMS
us, that as be has passed among tne iaimoi''
many have offered to subscribe or pieoge tnen-
selves for sums toward . fund for employing
competent legal assistance in overhaniins the
matter. II al the Trustees would agitate the
question, We have no doubt they could raise ss
least q 200 in voluntary contributions, which
,um would pay lawyers for pushing the question
to such stage that they could determine what
v.s In IT, II found favorable, the County could
ss,ums the responsibility for the necessary fse.
We think majority Of the people would be
satisfied with . compromise by which they could
take M the bonds st so to GO cents on the dollar;
bot Others insist upon testing the legality of the
bonds In toto, contending that the County is not
legally bound for them, they not having been
applied n stipulated In the contract, and having
besu disposed Of without authority of law. In
the ffst place, two distinct propositions were
oouplsd together, 90 that voter could not vote
% BE- chose on each, but was compelled to vote
IL
NOT fres election, bot was threat and bribe
se one and the same time. The express coudi-
tion upon which the 100000 were voted was,
that the County was to have 500, 900 of stock in
the st. Joseph and Denver City Rsilroad, and
100000 in the Atshison and Nebrasks Railroad.
Before this stock was issued, or the roads built,
few leading citizens were invited to confer
ence with railroad managers, and humbugged
and deceived into asking the County Commits
sioners to give away all this stock a. free gift
to private individual, or the representative Of
body Of capitalists, If he and they would build
the roads. The Commissioners did this, without
. petition numerously signed, and not being
authorized by vote of the people, upon which
the bonds were issued. The st. Joseph and
Denver bonds went into the hands Of men who
used them in building q road not thought Of
when the bonds were voted. The Atchison and
Nebrasks bonds were hawked of at half their
face, or less, which was 30 much clear gain for
the sharpers who had got hold of them.
Thoss 800 900 of bonds brought less than $780,
900 cash. The County has already paid more
than $500 900 to the bolders in the way of inter-
est. II paid off at one-half their fsce, the own
srs would make . heavy speculation. Really
tho County ought not to pay another dollar on
them, until the fullest extent of the law has
been tested. Not the least aggravating feature
of the matter is that the railroads on account OF
which this immense debt was incurred, never
willinly pay their proportion of the taxes, but
every year the County is involved in lawsuits for
the collection of taxes, and large proportion OF
them are lost By quirks and bubbles of the law
The City of Troy has an Indebtedness Of the
same charscter-au Indebtedness held by virtue
Of black-mailing arrangement, and on condi-
tions which were never fulfilled. She ought
never to pay another cent of it.
With this mountain of unjust debt taken from
her back, Doniphan County would enter upon an
era of unsxampled prosperity. Our taxes wonld
bs light, property would increase in value, set
tiers would pour in until all our land was occu-
pied, purchasers would be seeking for property
and the County would become one of the most
populous and wealthy, IS it is the best, County
in the State.