The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1877-01-05
GheGntelIiqeunr


We understand that the Finance Com.
mit,ee Of Council have decided to recon.
mend to the two branches, at their
meeting next Tuesday night, to adopt an
ordinance submitting to the voters OF the
city whether our present floating indebt.
edness shall be funded into bonds bearing
8! per cent interest, or whether it shall
continue to remain IA now n charge,
principal and interest, upon the current
receipts of the city.
There il no donbt that Council will
submit the question to the people at the
coming charter election, and, we may
also add, that there il no doubt that
the people will authorize the bonds to be
issued The credit Of the city ia excel.
lent, and she ought to be able to fund the
present floating debt alta very reasonable
rate Of interest, (possibIy as. low as 6 per
cent and freedom from city taxation) in
stead Of paying, US now, s per cent OIL m
overcheCk in bank.
The present bonded Indebtedness Of the
city is az follows:
List Davenport bonds sg7O coo
Brady WliklnSOn compromise bOnd1..D... ltO, ,00s
ChPlA L0An.,'',''' vO,9OV
Gas Loan tHelI'piyihR A65V0
$50 0Og
This indebtedness will bs materially
reduced this year by payment Of the
usual ANNA! irsttlments. Last year we
paid $4,000 ou the first named loan, and
$4,000 on each Of the two following
loans, or $4,000 in all, Deducling the
saTe amount iOr this year and there will
remain bonded debt OF only $j2O,O0O.
Toe present. assessed yalultion in the
city, exclusive Of titheables, is SI3,G74,.
Oj!, viz: $S,sSI0lO for real estate, and
Sl,7SG, l22 personal property, Five per
cent ON these valuations amounts to
SG53,7O3 10. So that, putting all our
present bonded debt together, and adding
Sl2OOOO more, as now proposed, and th'
sum total is $C76,5OO, or about S7,OOl
below D per cent Of the city valuation.
Wemay remark that the valuation abov,
given is the assessment for state an,
county purposes, which is lower than til
city valuation by several hundred lhous
and dollars. The Constitution require
that all issues Of bonds hy any county
city, school district, or municipal Corpor
ation," shall be based on the state an,
county valuation, and that valuation il
as wehave given it.
10 rccsptu!ate the re'ant hl.dcd
u'ot I,';, 800
Proposed addition OJJ
So
Tue state and county Asses,lurnt IN
the CllyOi real anl personal proper
~ &c!
Five per cent on this valuation li..... I'M, ,fOt /
Deduct irom ih,S the debit ~ PROPOSED $3.50 D
And there remains over aud nhOvc5
PF ttht...'.'.'''.'.....,..-.... 7,2gI
We are not the advocate of city deb
and have no pcnchnnt for the issue O
bonds, but the debt already exists lha
We propose TO fund, and il must be paid
We must therefore either levy n, once
tax sufficient TO pay it of, or else fnnd i
Some persons are under the crrone0u
impression that tax sufficient 20 pa
this debt of at once cannot I've levie
in one year. Ii such persons will tnrl
TO page 4Gl Of the Acts Of 1928, the
will find that all cities containing pop
ulation OF more than 10000 inhNbilant
have the power to levy two per cen; "ol
the assessed value OF property ior Stat
purposes and that therefore The who'll
Of the present floating debt can be leviel
for this year.
This being the case, coupled with lh
fact that We are paying 8 per cent ou tht
most Of it, it becomes us to make up our
minds 10 get it out Of the way at al
early day. The bonds proposed are ten
Ihirties (thatis, bonds redeemable after II
years aud payable in 30), to bear G or 9,
per cent interest, and to be free from
city taxation.