The Rutland daily globe. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1873-1877, 1877-03-10
RUTLAND COUNTY FINANCES.

RUTLAND COUNTY FINANCES.
The several towns in this county, ex.
GLIDING Tinmouth, from which we have nc
report, and Rutland, and assuming that the
debts Of Sherburne, Fair Haven and Chit.
tenden are unchanged from last year, owe
S52,62l 81; or with Rutland $107, ASS. 90.
Last year the debt of these same towns
was $5S 1888 So; and of the whole county,
Rutland included, was $l01 ,04920. Sc
that the aggregate debt of the whole coun-
ty has been increased something over six
thousand dollars, while the towns outside
OF Rutland have decreased their debt by
nearly the same amount-the large increase
in Rutland being about double the amount
of the decrease in the remaining towns in
the county.
The towns of Brandon, Hubbardton and
Wells were out of debt both years while
Benson has paid off her debt OF over nine
hundred dollars, and Wallingford her debt
OF thirteen hundred dollars, and West Ha-
ven, Ira and Sudbury are now, also substan-
italy out of debt-the combined debts of Ira
and West Haven being less than hundred
dollars, while that of Sudbury is moro than
offset by tax now in the collectors hands,
Dandy, Pittsford, Poultney and Shrews-
bury have decreased their indebtedness
Dandy about seventy-fve per cent, Pitts
ford and Poultney some ten per cent. each,
and Shrewsbury about fifty per cent. Rut-
land has increased her indebtedness about
nine per cent, Clarendon nearly one hun
dred per cent, and Castleton about forty
per cent. In the remaining TWINS, the
change is too slight 10 be noticed.
Mendon is the most heavily in debt, in
proportion to her population and grand
list, of any town in the county-her debt
being $9,79l.56, or nearly seven times her
grand list and some sixteen dollars per
capita OF her population. Then comes
Rutland owing little over three times the
amount of her grand list, or some fifteen
dollars per capita of her population; Sher-
burn some three times the amount of her
grand list, or about nine dollars per capita;
and Mount Tabor two and half times the
amound of her grand list, and something
over ten dollars per capita, The debt of
Rutland is, of course, the largest gross debt
of any town in the county. The next larg-
est is that of Pirsford, being 1861, or
about twenty-six per cent. more than her
grand list then comes Castleton So, sos. SO,
or about eighty per cent. of her grand list
Fairhaven-as reported last year-six
thousand dollars, slightly exceeding her
grand list; Clarendon twenty-eight hun
dred dollars, about fifty per cent. of her
grand list; Poultney twenty-one hundred
dollars, or twenty per cent. of her grand
list Middletown fourteen hundred dollars,
being fifty per cent. of her grand list
Shrewsbury eleven hundred dollars, about
twenty-five per cent. of the grand list the
debt of the other towns, where there is
any, ranging from five hundred down to
thirteen dollars.
Rutland voted q tax of one hundred and
fifty cents on the dollar of the grand list
Mt. Tabor and Mendon each tax of one
hundred cents Castleton tax of seventy
five cents Mount Holly one OF sixty-fve
cents Poultney, Fair Haven, Middletown,
Pittsfield, Shrewsbury and Sudbury fifty
cents each ; Chittenden forty-fve cents
Wallingford thirty-fve cents Clarendon
thirty cents Pittsford, Pawlet and Dandy
twenty-five cents Brandon twenty-one
Tao Nn.. 4
West Haven gets along without any tax.
Sherburn has not as yet held her town
meeting. The taxes of Mendon, Middle
town, Mt. Tabor, Mt. Holly, Pawlet, Sud
bury, Clarendon, and Wells are the same
as last year; and thoso of Fair Haven,
Poultney, Pittsford, Pitts6eld, Shrewsbury
Chittenden, Wallingford, Dandy, Brandon,
Benson, Ira and West Haven have been re-
duced and those of Rutland and Castle
ton have been increased.
The general financial condition of the
county is healthy. With the exception of
two or three towns where the debt has in
creased, the taxes are lighter. The town
of Menden, burthened as it is with debt,
struggles along under tax of one hundred
cents on the dollar, and is compelled to pay
a large additional highway tax besides
while Rutland and Castleton where the
debt has materially increased-the former
on account of an extravagant oyerseer of
the poor this year, and the latter on &C
codnt of similar officer last year-the tax
payers have resolutely put their hands in
their pockets, voted a tax sufficient not
only to keep the debt down, but to retire a
respectable proportion of the principal.
The figures from all the towla, taken in
connection with the tax, show tha. the peo-
pie begin to realize the calling nature of
municipal indebtedness, and are striving to
get out of it that they are rotrenching
and practice the strlctest economy in the
endeavor to get down to hard pan and
that where, from unforeseen causes, their
expenses have been such as to increase