Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1880-03-11
SHALL WE BORROW?
A Plan To Raise Money for Cor
tatn. Municipal Expenses.

lis average citizen and reader ol the
RrdisrKR is supposed to he fully aware
Oi the new improvement Ideas which
have lately struck our city hS-glvcrs,
the Council. These were not induced,
us might be- supposed, by the cxcur
siona 10 Xaucsyillo aud Pittsburgh, but
were only stimulated, IA they antc-dated
those events, but there is one point
which seems meyer 10 have publicly
touched upon, viz; Where Is the money
10 come FROM? The water works stand
in urgent need ot improved machinery.
aud Council boldly approprlaIcs Sl5, OOO
Tor new pump. The capacity ui the
gus works must. beyond doubt, be- in
creased aud tho special committee has
new places under discussion, the con.
summation Of which will require from
$4,000 10 $4,000 Double that sum
could be spent on the streets, without
making any extraordinary showing
Rut WHERE is the money to come irom1
"Oh," said Councilman, yesterday,
tho tax revenue will soon como In aud
We will be- all right" Hut W. will not.
Several sommittccs oyerdrew their APP
preparations last year, aud We are now
borrowing from the Exchange Bank. At
the rate Oi taxation, next ycat, land the
levy is at the maximum figure there
will b. nothing 10 spare IN the way OF
extras. Aud certainly no amount like
$4,000, which seems necessary.
In this emergency there IL hut one
method OF raising money; An Issue Of
city bonds. And on this subject REa.
mrER reporter had several extended In
tcrviews, yesterday.
The charter oi the city Of Wheeling
provides that the city may issue bonds
to an amount equal 10 per cent NJ th
assessment, for state purposes, Of
the real aud personal property OF
the city. The reporter asccrtaincd from
Assessor Ankles books that the total
assessment for 1879 was SlS925, 40.
For 1850 IL cannot well be less. Five
per ceutum OF this sum amounts 20
Si16,9 the amount OF the bonded In.
dcbtrdncss the city may incur
Al the City Clerks office tho reporter
learned that the amount 81 bonds still
outstanding on January lsl, was about
1851 900. Some Of these have since
been redeemed. leaving the bonded in
drb,edness, to-day, about $155, 600 In
round numbers From these figures u
will appear that the city may still Dor
row SOL, 900, without exceeding her
charter limit
Having this power, the question arises,
shall the city use it9 The reporter heard
variety III opinions expressed, yesier.
Day, but the general tenoI Of all was
TO the samc eiect-a loan must
De- negotiated. Tie water works
Committee has been instructed 10 con.
tract Tor apump costing $4,000, and Il
must be paid ior. AT is next meeting
the Flre Committee will recommend the
purchase Of lire alarm telegraph: and
although the Union Company Nill make
favorable terms, II must be paid In the
end. The special Committee on Gas
Works Extension viii recommend Ger.
tain costly improvements, aud they
must bc paid-but here comes another
question. Shall the city or the works
issue The bondsl Andit embodies the
question whether citizens or consumers
shall own the works, and whether The
city win pay her gas bllls
Blu, 10 rvturn-the prevailing opin-
Ion among Councilmen Is that money
must be borrowed. and having Shown
that, the mission Of this article 10 ended.