Daily Republican., 1879-07-14
:. Guthris and Law Tax Rates


ant talk on the financial condition o
the city, and tho low tax rate
of which the REPUBLICAN has beel
conteuding was not high enough " pre-
vent the creation Of floating debt. Mr.
Guthrie is a very pleasant gentleman
to converse with, and we believe he j:
fully convinced that The law rate Of tai
levied will be more thaN sufficient tt
carry the oity beyond the present Hsca
year. He left with US communication
making an apology for sous Of the
reflections which it contained, and
seemed somewhat surprised, yet graft
fed, that We were SO willing to publish
an article which reflected upon our
selves. The following are Mr.. Guthrie'i
criticisms and chas tisements which VI
have seen tit to incorporate in our edi.
torial column:
MBssRs. EDIroks You seem to be
very much troubled at the low rate Of
taxation this year as fixed by the Dem,
Osratic Council. do not wonder that
yOa cannot understand how it is that
the Democrats can run the city one
year on a tax rate Of $l.l5, when the
Republicans could not and did not run
1t but FIVE months on tax rate of il 30.
No doubt if your party had control of
the city this year the tax. rate would
not bs less than 81 so, but for
tunstely for the tax payers, your
party has not, and if the tax pay
ers allow them through their votes to
have control soon again they ought to
have their property confscated. 1t is
strange that the REPUBLICAN and the
''Evsry Evening" do not know when
the Il 'cal year commences or ends in
the city OF Wilmington. Both of thos.
papsrs would have it commence in July
instead of January. Now hereafter
when you writ- articles about finance,
please remember that the appropr;a
tiOns for the city are made in January
and to last until the following January,
and not to July as would bs inferred
from the articles published in both of
those papers. The Democratic Coun-
Gil made their appropriations last Jan
nary and made them last until next
January and they fixed tn. rate at
$l.la tor ths year 1879. They propose
to make tnat Tax rate do, aud We ex- i
pect 70 do more; VIZ expect to do som.
timing that has never been done before,
that IS, 10 ma money enough in bank
to run the city to April next, without
borrowing. You have been talking
abou. running ths city nine months,
hut you viii see that this is fft-en
months, from January lst, 1879, to Ap
ril LIST, 1850, instead of nine months as
you would have people believe. can
not remember when the City Council
ever had one dollar in bank in Decem
ber except IL was borrowed money. So
jou SEQ that the financial condition of
the city At present is better than we
ever rememb it to have been before.
JOHN GUTHRIE.
Wilmington, July 18th.
We are glad that Mr.. Guthrie has
answered in the same paper in which
they appeared, our criticisms on the low
tax rate, for which he as chairman of
The Finance Committee is more respon.
sible than any other member of Coun.
Gil, anil We can assure Mr.. Guthrie that
not only he but any other political op.
pon1nt cal get q respectful hearing
through the columns of The REpu BLIcAY
80 long as personal illusions are avoid.
ed. We h. ps Mr.. Guthrie is correct in {
his an'icipations of having money
enough from his sl.l5 tax rats together &
With the revenues of the city to run the Z
after through to April, 1880, without a
borrowing dollar. We must confess t
ha: We did at first think that the fiscal I
Tea- Of ths city extended from July to t
July, but our error was afterwards de- 8
ected and We based our calculations on s
he fiscal year extending from January I
% January. This however we consid- d
bred immaterial, as it took twelve t
months to maxi a year anyhow, and t
'ur object was to show that the low tax ii
ate was not sufficient to run the city a
Trough twelve months. Taking the a
appropriations that have been made We G
ind that leaving out the special appro- T
'riations of 1878, there are not more t.
han abont $4,000 difference between n
hose Of that year and 1879, and these l.
y; 900 are about absorbed in salaries to I
he increased police force and other in. t
;ldehtals which require more money. Fl
hen ii tax rate of 81 20 was not suf- f
lcient iu 1873 to meet the appropria- b
ions and Legitimate expenses of the c.
'ity, it is difficult to see how a rate Of il
sl.l5 sill meet the same in 1879. Il
1t is an unwarrantable assumption p
N the par: of Mr.. Guthrie to suppose il
hat the city taxes in 1879 were suuan- Il
ertd' VS. heard Mr.. Taylor, one of r.
he abest Democrats in Council, and ii
rho las been there for a good number P
I years say on the floor of Council, Il
hat the city was honestly conducted, "
nd that the money was leg ti1nately n
and Mr.. Paynt-r another
,adiag Democratic member O. Council.
AID the great secret o. rulnins be- :,
'Int from year to year and Grating :,
oatns debts was that the tax ra,. was VI
AVAr hiob aponub o,J "