The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1881-01-14

OF the debt by the actual payment and cancel
ment OF the bonds before tic distribution can
be made. Tho questoa was considered OF so
much importance that it was deemed bo't TO
have the opinion OF the Supreme Court thereon.
and case was made and presented 10 that
| tribunal which has not yet been decided. liz
| the court shall determine that the surplus cam
not be distributed until the bonds are actually
paid and taken up, then an amendment TO the
constitution providing for the dlstribut on
should be submitted 10 the peope at once TO
prevent large accumulation of this money in
! the treasury unavailable for years. In In
connection, reafiirm my opinion ext ressed To
your predecessors that the wisdom OF perman-
ently adding the large revenue derived from
| this fund solely to the support OF the primary
schools is exceedingly doubtful. In some
| localities the avails in short time
would be more than sufficient TO mainta In the
schools, and naturally in such circumstances
all sorts of PROF cts will be originated for get
! ting rid OF the surplus moneys. 'ubt, also.
whether schools supported wholly from tins
! fund would be as good az they are now. With
no direct liability for their maintenance. in
difference in the community would !. q subst =
tuted for he1lthful scrutiny, and the schools
suffer for want of local support, for just az
reSponsiDility is removed interest ceases. |
think, therefore. that the proposed amend
ments to the constitution should provide that
| the revenues derived from the sinking fund
may b. applied, at the option of the LegiSla-
ture. elsewhere than to the support Of the
| schools.
ASSESSMENTS AND TAXATION.
Officers of tifty-three counties of the state
! reported TO the Auditor General the assessed
value Of their counties for 1879. From twenty
four counties no reports were received. Tax
! ing the amount thus reported. and the ASSESSED
value Of the twenty-four delinquent counties
for 1876. we have an aggregate OF real and
personal property amounting to S44s, 49,
| 302.52.
This sum probably does not represent more
than one-half of tLn true worth Of the prop
ertv thus a. sessed. If we double the amount,
and then add there TO values not at all included III
the assessment, such az II iroad and street rail
way property. and telegraph and nj ing inter
ests, which pay a specific tax, property legally
| exempt from taxation. such rs churches, ceme-
teIiss, public BUILDINGS and lands belonging 10
the Government or some subdivision thereof,
we should have a result swelling up the total
value of the property of the state TO an aggre-
gate OF not less than Il, 100, OO0,OOO.
The tax levy for State expenses Of 1880 was
at the rate of mill and 273-1 900 of n null. ON
the basis of an equalized valuation of $780,
000,00O. This rate has varied but little for the
past eight years, If we except the year 1879.
when the ordinary tax for current expenses
was omitted, and S466, $3.50 taken from the
sinking fund TO pay the current eXpen es OF
the State Government There Is no probability
that the rate Of taxation can be materially
diminished for the coming two years. Legis-
lation within a few years past has transferred
n large amount of expense formerly borne by
the counties. to the State. The cost of trans
porting convicts from the place OF sentence ia
prison is an item of this ceSfacter that now
annually takes Sl8, $1,000 from the State treas
ury. Then the law that provides that the
maintenance of all patients who have been III
the asylums for the insane for two years at the
expense of the counties, shall be thereafter
charged 10 the STATE. imposes upon il an annual
outGo of $5SS. 1852. New institutions have
been created, such AZ the State Public School,
the Asylum at Pontiac, the State House of Cor
rection at lonia, the Separate School for the
Blind, and the Reform School for Girls, all OF
which have required extraordinary sppropria-
tons for building purposes, and Will require
large sums for current expenses. Then, too
there is a marked difference in the ordinary eX-
penses incident to the new Capitol az compared
with the old. The saving, that If one lives in q
fine house he must pay for the privilege, IL aS
appl cable to the state as 10 individuals. The
current annual expenses of the Old home aver
aged about $4,000. while the new one reaches
S26. 223, or an outlay three times greater than
the other While there IL no increase in the
rate of taxation. and the finances Of the State
are in better condition than ever before III III
history, | have pointed ont this accumula'
ton of State expenses that II may be
borne in mind that YOU cannot launch ont into
new schemes involving the expenditure Of large
amounts OF money without increased taxation
While the Legislature must, i'll its wisdom de-
termine what appropriations are necessary, II
should exercise great caution TO prevent new
exactions from ii e Poop i'll the shape Of taxes
for purposes not OF absolute requirement.
STATE LANDS.
The report of the COminl-SI Of the State
Land Office Will be laid before you. 1t gives
concise statement OF the public lands and
makes recommendations to which invite youl
careful attention. The whole number of acres
held by the State Sept. 80, 1880, was 271o,-
81, and the amount sold during the year
9i,040.05. Ii il clear that some LEGISLATION
must e had to protect the State from loss OF
taxes assessed upon primary school and othel
lands held upon part-paid certificates. Here
tofCrd p tents have not teeu issued until full
payment of all such tax, S has been made. But
II recent decision of the SUI rcme Court indi-
Gates that the certificate OF pur hase Is a CON
tract 10 which the Slate may not add new con-
ditlons, and that OH payment of the purchase
pri of the land the holder is entitled TO q
patent without reference to the payment oil
taX,s, un ess 1t Is made condition by the ex-
pr +, terms Of The certificate that he ehall dc
~. The amount of unpaid taxes of this char
&C or IL quite large, and 1t may be that leglsla
ton cannot al CT them. But. as much of the
law on this subject seems 10 generally lame
and needs revising, l suspended the issuing OF
nts for lands 20 situated until the whole
ildtler COUiu De presented 10 YOU fof your nc
ton thereon.
STATE TAX LANDS.
The lands bought III for tho State ut taS
sales known AZ State tax Lands, are steadily ac
cumulating. The amount on which redemp.
ton had expired at tn close of the sale in Octo
Der last represents I Xes and charges aggregat
M the enormous sum Of .3,035. 54l.5O Tn,
apparent title to these lands ~ in the state bu,
il Is contended that Its rght thereto cannot b,
maintained on account of defects and inner.
fictitious IN the assessments, and subsequent
p,ocoe dngs, which destroy the va idity uf ia,
ST. ~ IT thls be true. some LegiSs tive pr0vi :.
ion should be made without delay for remedy.
Ing the difficulty and enforcing the agment OF
suC h taxes. To accom- lish this end ] do not
b. eve that our entire tax ny III needs sup
plan ting by radically new one. Under tie
law as il is We have / erctofoIe cole ted o. 1
taxes quite as closely rs oth,r States. With a
few carefully digested mo ifcatons am st
isiicd our n stem would work well, if not boi-
ter than new one. To obvlate oiui IL ons a d
defects GA tn part of local Off
c.rs, blanks foc every step from
the assessment to the sale, should be prepared
under competent gal advice, and furnished
bv the state. If townships were made liable
for taxes lost 10y reason OF the bundcrS or eva