The Greenville times. [volume] (Greenville, Miss.) 1868-1917, 1885-07-11
Expressions frOm the Upper Levse
District.

Editor Banner-s50O, 900 bonds,
bearing s per cent. interest and
running 20 years, will require to |
extiDguish principle and interest |
sl,SOO,OOO.
100000 bonds, bearing 6 per
cent. interest and running 20 years
will require to extinguish principle
and interest 81 100000.
Therefore if the Levee District
can carry its bonds at 6 instead of
s per cent. it will save 100000
thereby.
A 6 per cent. bond, secured by a
tax of 75 cents per bale on cotton
in addition to present assessment,
will be negotiated more readily
than the 8 per cent. bond without
the tax upon cotton.
AS at present rated, the eorpor.
ations railroads, oil mills, etc. pay
about 1-6 of the tax. But as time
rolls on, if the levees are main.
tanned, the rapid increase IN the
wealth of the district will reduce
this ratio, and even the next as
sessment year will reduce it as
the property Of the district is now
rated at overfowed valuation.
At the above rate, however, the
corporations wouid contribute to
the payment of the bonds aud in.
terest, bearing 8 per cent. per an.
mum, s2l6,666.66.
Now, if by consenting to the
proposed tax on cotton the cor.
porations we're relieved from the
payment of all taxes, the property
holders would lose in the 20 years
only sl6,666.
But as it is not proposed to re.
lieve them of the taxes now paid,
it is evident the people of the dis
trict will be great gamers by float.
ing a 9 per cent. bond, with a cot
ton tax, rather than an 8 per cent.
bond without it.
This presents the comparative
financial value ofthe two systems.
The paramont consideration
should be this: The levees MUST
be completed. Such legislation as
secures this most certainly is what
we should have.
Very respectfully,
June 20. 's5. wM. IL. SrovArI.
EDITOR GAZETTE:
1t seems to be the opinion of
many persons that the levee in
this District is in first. class condi.
tiou. This is undoubtedly a very
serious mistake. as many miles of
the old portions on the whole line
are unrepaired and insufficient in
height, and the new work con.
structed to but two feet above
the high water mark Of 1882; it
ought to be at least three feet
above that mark.
Our levees and our Board are in
fact, about in the same predica.
ment that levees and boards have
been in from the beginning, for
want of funds,-the one in an in.
complete condition, the other
about bursted; and both once
more on the verge of being con-
sidered a failure.
With an empty treasury on
hand. how is the work to be com.
pleted, aud placed in a condition
to give security against overflow
"a repetition of 1882, 1883 and
1SS4f If we go back to the Legis.
lature and ask for further powers
of taxation, we are lost as to what
shall be taxed-land and person.
atty OF cotton The system of tax
ing land adopted under the Gener.
al Levee Board 1851, was a failures
the Levee law establishing District
No. 1, having been based on the
taxation of land was a failure
and the late act establishing the
Yazoo Delta Levee District, is also
failure, just as complete as
either of its predecessors; and
further, as before, with an incom.
plete levee, and an unprotected
district, leaves us burdened with
a heavy debt and an almost idle
Leyee Board.
If we ask the Legislature fol-
another bill and larger powers ol
taxation and that we place a sec
ond issue of the same class Of
bonds on the market who would
take them off our hands The
difficulty in the negotiation Of
bonds as experienced on the last
occasion presupposes trouble OIL
the next.
The cotton tax is Objectionable
for many reasons-it does not
reach all, &c. But we must have
a levee, if it takes 25 cents an acre
on land, if land will be considered
sufficient security in the money
market; s2 90 per bale on cotton
| mr. q fanfh of tha aarninOa of ths