The Louisiana Democrat., 1886-02-17
THE REVENUES OF 1895.

The General Fund ouly gets of the 6
mills for 1855, On the same basis of calcu'
lation as employed for 1884 it would give
one half of say $37s, 1000 or ...... .$1s9, 900
Licenses say, the same. ............ 263, ,3la
NJ Making a total of................$4 of $452 ,315
This would leave an apparent de-
tency of..... ........... 3,9lo
But as has already been said this deficien-
cy is more apparent than real aud will be
largely reduced by other sources of rcve-
nue. than the mill tax and the estimated
licenses, and l do not expect that the re-
ports Of the Auditor and Treasurer will
show any, or at most All insignificant def
cheney. However this may be, the trouble
for this year comes from the necessity of
giving II mills to the raising of the fund
to pay the interest on the public debt
The trouble does not arise from exec ssivc
appropriations, but from the smallness of
the General Fund tax. The School Fund
only gets II mills this year,
Of course l know that some one will say
that the appropriations must be kept with
in the limits, and if the Legislature has
only 50 much to spend it must spend no
more. The reply to this is that the large
majority of the appropriations are fixed Ell
ther by law or necessity and that the real
question is: The State being unable to
maintain both its home and its foreign Gre
dit, which shall be sustai ained and which
shall be allowed to sufferi was i'll May,
1884, and shall be in May, 1886, in favor Of
sustaining the home credit. If somebody
must suffer let it be tho bondholdcrs.
am not in favor Of repudiating the debt
which seems to have been recognized by
the Constitutional Convention, although j,
is known that large portion Of it is fraud
ulent. That question is settled and have
no wish to reopen it, but when the qucs-
ton is between the bondholders and our
officers. State servants, the insane, the
blind, deaf and dumb dependents upon the
bounty of the State, the Public Schools,
and all the material, the home interests of
Louisiana, do not hesitate to choose
They can better afford to wait than our
officers and dependants can afford to starve
and the children of the State to grow up
in ignorance. We may be able to pay the
debt after awhile. We cannot recall the
time lost to the children nor repair tho in
jury doe to our own people.
When the Constitution requires so much
to he done with so little it requires the
performances Of III i,npossibility. When it
seeks to oblige the Legislature to discharge
half bnshel measure Of obligations with
a peck Of resources it forces somebody to
suffer. lfin the vain attempt to perform
the onerous task tho Legislature should
leave q deficiency" submit that it does
not necessarily follow that it is extrava-
CANT, but it may be that it has honestly
striven to do the best it could under the
circumstances. l think that so far as its
management of the finances of the State is
concerned, whatever may be it's shortcom-
ings and sins Of omission in other respects,
the present Legislature may very justly be
given the credit of proper intention and
the hest practical application of limited
resources to very large and exacting de-
mands. 1t was to prove this by way of its
yindication from unmerited reproach that
have, as one Of its mcmbcra, taken the
trouble to write this long lotter.
Very respectfully,
ROBT. ?. HUNTER.
?. S.-.dy article on State Finances, as
you know, WAS written more than Il week
ogo, and has been in type several days
Since hen l have sren statements Of the
State Treasurer published in the City Item
and States OF Saturday last covering the
same grounds. The difference as to the de-
iiencies for 1854 and 1885 are not large.
could only estimate the revenues. The de
ticicncy lie makes for 1884 is S1s9, 500. II,
and for 1855 it is STAG, ,21669. OF the 1851,
OIL. .13 cash now on had. there are about
$780, available for the reduction of,
these deficiencies, which for the two years
aggrenate 1884,, 1876. This $luO, 900 ill.,
cludes the items cash OH hand to the credit
of the General Fund of both years and pre-
vious years, Which he reports making $751;
4.O9 and transfers Of balances to the Gre
dit of the lntesest Fund. This will reduce
the total deficiency for both years to say
3234, ,725.76, The rents from the Peniten-
tiary and st. Louis Hotel for the two years
will take off the odd S34, 1876, and leave
the total deficiency for both years S20G, 900
in round figures
The further collection Of taxes, sales of
land and funds from other sources and q
more accurate statement of actual receipts
rather than estimates, will doubtless very
largely diminish this apparent total def
cheney or at any rate so reduce it, that the
Legislature will probably he able to pay
the balance cut of the licenses Of 1886 now
on hand. 1t must not be forgotten that
the fiscal year for which the appropriations
are made expires June 30th Of each year
and not with the current year. When the
accounts are made up to correspond with
the fiscal year, there may be a change in
the statements now made. r. P. H.
AUCTION Auction! ut Hetherwick's,
Saturday, February goth.
DIED:
AT Buxton's Landing, on Red River, in
N.ko Do Oh Eok