The daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1873-1877, 1877-02-06
The following veto message by the
mayor was read:


mayor was read:
To the City Council-G entlemen: /
respectfully return for your reconsidera-
ton the ordinance referring to funding
bonds, which has no title What is known
as the floating debt of the city is the re
suit Of a most pernicious system of bor-
rowing money in a manner, as think, not
contemplated by the city charter and en-
tirely inconsistent with careful manage
ment of the city finances.
This Indebtedness amounts at this time
to about $4,000, which bears ten per
cent interest, payable semi annually. |
believe this debt to be a legal obligation.
and every good citizen wishes it to be paid.
1t is imperative, then, to carry it and pay
it in the manner the least burdensome
TO the tax payers of the city, [ heartily
approve Of issuing bonds tor the entire
floating debt, but the bonds contemplated
by the ordinance would be very unusual in
form and hence difficult to sell az their real
value. A bond, any part of whuse princi
pal Is payable annually, is undesirable as
an investment | believe it would be im-
possible to sell such bonds at par, and, it
sold at all, they would certainly have Il
market value lower than that Of regular
rate of interest
These bonds would moreover cause
heavy taxes in the city for many years
without giving reasonable prospect of
| final relief and hence would discourage
the permanent investment Of capital aud
tend to lower the value of property, They
would require the payment of $1,000 OF
the rrincinal annually,
| 4Ho,,cC.l I1ll e ttN,
water works bonds will fall due in five
years, one-ffth of which must be raised
annually by taxation, making a tota! Of
$l2, 900 per annum to be paid on the
principal of the bonded debt, which woulC
raise the city taxes 2S1 per cent higher
than they now are for twenty years.
very burdensome and unnecessary tax
Another objection to these bonds is tht
fact that they would require the paymen
Of 81 900 in February, 1878. which the cit,
has no means of raising. The taxes 70
1877 will not be received before June
1878. and the city having already borrow
ed ailIthe constitution allows, would hay'
no means of raising the money and woul,
! fail to meet the first payment ANY ez
traordinary expenses, such as the city ha
in 1875, would serious ly embarrass her.
TIE proportion of loaued to workin
capital in the country is large and CROWN
Q larger, and the average rate of interest
t decreasing Therefore it is my opinio
that the city should invest her surplu
+ money IN her own and 10 per cent bond
now outstanding, and to that end shoul
put off the payment OF the principal {
those Of her bonds which bear lowe
e rate OF interest.
[ therefore respectfully recommen
= the issuing of $4,000 bono
bearing I per cent interest, payab
semi-annually, the entire princip
,f to be paid not earlier than seventeen year
Such bonds should bring at least their ps
d value. and the saving in interest alou
would pay the entire principal of ii
.r water works bonds before their maturit.
+ If such an issue were made aud tt
city's expenses should be no greater ths
" they now are, she can without any increa
" of taxation pay both principal and intere
t; of all her bonds at maturity and spend
much annually IN streets and other IL
provements as she now does, which wou
" be an impossibility If you should decide
~ adopt this ordinance, Respectfully su
o. mitted, w. P. BUTLER, Mayor.
lfl Alderman Lundy moved for the reco
er sideration of the vote upon the fundil
it, ordinance as passed at the last meetin
te Carried.
1g Alderman Wollenhaupt moved that t
O matter be laid on the table, whieh W
n carried by the following vote:
Yeas-Atkinson, Carse, Davis, Hube
os Wollenhaupt and Woods--6.
h. Nays-Daly, Lundy, MosenfeIder a
4. Yates
lie Alderman Lundy offered an ordinau
id for the funding of the city floating de
IS, to the amount of $4,000 by domes
a. bonds bearing per cent per annum
he terest, payable annually with per ceut
ce the principal at the First National Ba
tie of Rock Island.
Alderman Huber moved that the or
nance be laid upon the table. which v
carried by the following vote:
ct Yeas-Atkinson, Carse. Davis, Hub
lid Wollenhaupt and Woods-6.
les Nays-Daly, Luudy, Mosenfelder a
Yates-4.
An ordinance making it unlawful
Il IL L