Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1878-12-06

uldteS VI TeCeiplS anu expenditures or the
District OF Columbia for the fiscal years ending
June 30 1879, and June 80 1850. which estimates
were submitted TO the Secretary OF the Treasury.
as required by the same act, and were by him
returned In the printed form in which weshere
transmit them.
He has approved Of all the eStim1teS excent
three items. The first is oue OF Sl5,e11 in the
estimates for 1873, for worktng1nen. as provided
in the act appIoye June 20. ISIS. and is correct
The'act requires the District To pay one half
and the entry OF only that amount was an Over
sight.
The second exception taken is to the amount
we estimated for the sinking fund for the year
1850. This is matter of grave concern. and we
therefore present our views at some length.
The Secretary of the Treasury refers to the eS-
Inmates presented to him by the sinking fund
commissioners as If the amounts contained in
them would redeem the bonds at maturity, and
bases his objection TO our lower estimates upon
the further mistake that some definite amounts
for this fund were specified in the acts author
lZlng the issue OF the various securities. In re-
gard to the requirements of the law In this re-
spect we refer 10 the opinion OF the assistant
attorney for the District appended hereto.
FROM this 1t appears that SPECIFIC amounts are
to be paid as follows:
For water stock bonds. amounting to si2s,eoo
-Sl5.000 annually.
For market stock bonds. amounting to s. 50 Goa
-SI5,G00 annually.
Also, that sinking fund is required to pay
off at maturity the following bonds:
TWenty-year funding bonds. amounting 10
Thiny-year funding bonds, amounting to
SGGO,cG0
To pay Off these bonds respectively at mat;,r
ny VIII require annually S5i,433 and 2250. il
invested in them at par. The total Indebted
hess represented by the four classes of debt
above enumerated is o99. and the total
sinking fund necessary 10 be drawn from the
general fund to pay them at maturity is about
Si3.650 per annum. There remains Of District
debt proper s5,9so.5oa, for which stated pay
1orpalt Of which 40 provision whatever Of this
kind vas made. AS respects the 36j bonds
any provision that Will pay them At maturity
meets the conditions OF their issues.
our estimate for the sinking fund. therefore
meets ali the requirements OF the contract with
holders Of District securities, White we think
the larger and richer community that Will De
found here twenty or thirty years hence nay
Weli be expected TO bear fair share OF the bur
den Of expenditures Of which they are To reap
tie benefit More even than the present genera
ton.
TO provide for payment of al the District
debt az maturity Of the various securities would
require for the next 121l yearS--when the
S4,teo,G0G loan becomes due-an appropriation
OF about $4,000 per annum 10 the sinking
fGDd.
This amount cannot be SET apart with Justice
10 other claims upon the District revenues
We are Of opinion that there is urgent need
for comprehensive legislation in regard to both
the District debt proper and the 3. Is bonds and
we have presented In our report plan OF re-
lief. to Which we feel justified i'm referring here
as the best scheme we have been able 10 devise:
but II Congress should deem IL unWiSe to adopt
that or any other similar plan for refunding the
whole or part OF the debt, we would then urge
the eNpediency Of permanent provision for the
gradual payment OF the entire District debt all
TO be accomplished within the time the 3.65
bonds have yet to run. TO effect this il is Sties-
gested that fixed and constant amount be paid
annually to the sinking fund commissioner. 10
be by him applied TO the paymen of interest on
all the Indebtedness. and to the purchase for
immediate cancellation, of the outstanding Sc
curitieS OF the District and the 8 65 bonds until
they are all bought In and destroyed This can
be accomplished, with the debt funded as il now
i, by an annual payment, in round numbers Of
s!.l63,r0. The Commissioners Of the District
would in this case be clothed with power to re-
new such OF the District bonds as might be ne
ceSsary in order to carry into effect thiS Sche ne
by which the old District debt would be eXtin-
guIShed in about twenty five years. If payments
were first applied to 1t as bearing the larger
rate OF interest and The 65 bonds az their ma
turlty. The plan in our report, referred TO
above, would effect the same result, With much
less annual appropriation to interest and sink
ing fund.
Our estimates for the nscal year ending June
80, 1879. embrace the sum OF ss,t.5e0 TO pay off
bonds falling due January and March next.
but the above plan for providing for the debt
c0ntempiateS the payment OF about Sl50,0O0 and
the temporary renewal of the unpaid bonds.
There Is loan Of so, o,o0l-represented by notes
OF the late Governor. bearing S per cent inter-
est given in the fall OF 1873 and winter of 1874
made Tor the purpose Of completing the Curtis
school building in Georgetown. Our estimate
OF interest embraces them, and is, therefore,
larger than the estimate of the sinking fund
commissioner.
We are not disposed to contest the views of
the Secretary of the Treasury in respect to the
supplemental estimates submitted by us for the
year 1850. We have felt it duty to present to
congress estimates OF the cost OF work we con-
slider it essential to complete. ii at all practca-
Die, within the coming eighteen months. Hav-
ing performed this duty. the matter is left
without further comment TO the wisdom of Con-
gTesS.
BY order OF the board.
ISisnedl- $. L. PHELPS, President.
OPINION OF THE DISTRICT ATTORNEY.
OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY FOR d. OF C..
WASHINGTON, ID. c., Dec. 2, 1915
To the Commissioners If tie District IF Columbia:
GENTLEMEN: IN reply to your verbal inquiry
as TO 1.-The annual amounts required under eX-
fst1ng laws 10 be appropriated TO the sinking
fund for the redemption OF the bonds men
TONED IN the report OF Mn. Gillian. Treasurer
OF the United states, As commissioner OF the
sinking fund OF the District OF columbia have
to state:
That Mr.. Glduan enumerates seven classes Of
bonds for which be thinks annual apnropria-
tions are required for sinking fund for their
redemption; OF these, two, the market stock
bonds and the water stock bondS,' are TO
have appropriated out of the receipts from the
markets and from the "water fund respectively
sna not less than $1,000 annually which deter
OF which the sinking fund must receive the
money for their redemption.
The acts authorizing the issue OF the Twenty
year wear 6ier cen cent funding bonds the Thirty
creation of sinking fund sufiicfent to pay on OH
said bonds at maturity. In the cases Of the first
TWO an annual fd1 is provided for. and a fair
construction of those acts would, think, re-
quiie such an annual appropriation 10 the sink
ing fund as would pay the bonds at maturity In
the case OF the 365 bonds, ''the faith of the Uni
ted States is pledged TO provide the
revenues necessary TO pay the interest on said
bonds as the same may become due and pay yable
and create sinking fund for the payment of
the principal thereof at maturity" The manner
in which this pledge is to be carried out is left
TO the discretion OF Congress, which may uro-
vide for equal annual payments, or adlpt its
appropriations and the taxes to be levied upon
the people of the District To the eXigencies OF
the times, as 1t may deem best. Nothing how
ever is left for the District but to comniy with
the reQuisftionS OF the acts Of Congress in the
matter
In the case OF the permanent Improvement
6 Eer cent bonds,'' the act OF the legislative
assembly only provides for their gradual re-
denption,' and, in my opinion, ft is optional
with the District how the providing of means
for redemption shall be graduated, There is
certainly nothing In the act that requires equal
annual appropriations for that purpose.
cannot exactly determine what bonds are
feIerTed to as 'rrSt issue of permanent i'm
pTovement per cent. bonds" In Mr.. Gllnllans
table In regard to the sinking fund he speaks OF
them as authorized by the act of aSSe nbiy Of
June 23, 1873 but the only act of that date that
authorizes the issue of bonds Is Chap. HI,
which is supplemental to the s., 4,O00, 900 bill of
I'll M