The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1886-03-27
sPAFH FINANCES,
r. q. Keedy Writes Letter and Is Forcibly
Answered by Comptroller Turner.
KEEDY TO TURNER.


fund one hundred thousand dollars, being the
loan authorized by the act of 1870, chapter
422, and contracted on account Of the Deaf
and Dumb Asylum at Frederick, and that this
measure meets your appreciation. Fhe people
have already paid this debt, and to require
them to pay it the second time would be an
outrage to which they will not tamely submit
Article 8, section 81, of the constitution says:
''No debt shall be hereafter contracted by the
General Assembly unless such debt shall be
authorized by law, providing for the collection
| of an annual tax, or taxes, sufficient to pay
the interest on such debt as it falls due, and
also to discharge the principal thereof within
fifteen years from the time of contracting the
same; and the taxes laid for this purpose shall
not be repealed, or applied to any other OBJ
ject until the said debt and interest thereon
shall be fully discharged
! And in the latter part of the same section
| of article of the constitution, in speaking of
the General Assembly, we find these signifi-
cant words: "And they shall not use or ap-
propriate the proceeds of the internal I'M
provement companies, or the state tax now
levied, or which may hereafter be levied to
pay off the public debt to any other purpose
until the interest and debt are fully paid, or
the sinking fund shall be. equal to the amount
of the outstanding debt" Now, the act of
1870, chapter 442, contracted a debt of one
|
requirements of the constitution, o. special
tax of one fourth of one per cent was laid on
every one hundred dollars worth of the tax
able property of the state to pay the Interest
and to create fund to pay the principal.
This act required separate and distinct ae
count of said tax to be kept, and the proceeds
thereof were pledged to the payment of the
interest and principal. After the payment of
the interest, the balance was required to be
invested in Maryland or United States bonds
This tax of one fourth of one per cent,
taking the average assessable basis at S4Z5,-
000, 900, yielded annually revenue of $11, S75,
and after the payment of the interest there
remained S5,875 every year to be devoted to
| the principal amounting in fifteen years to
S8S, 125, which, if invested as required by law,
| the interest, at three per cent. only, would
have amounted to over SIS, 900; SO. that, if the
constitution and law had been obeyed, there
would be in the treasury more than enough
to pay this debt. If the moneF, its equiva-
lent in Maryland or United States bonds, is
not in the treasury to pay this 100000, then
some treasury officer or officers have not per-
formed his or their duty, and have taken,
contrary to law, the peoples money which
the constitution dedicated to the payment of
| this debt, and have spent itfor other purposes.
If this is the case, the people should know
who these officers are, and. their official bonds
should be made responsible.
have said that the people will not quietly
submit to being taxed to. pay this debt the
second time They are not without remedy.
They can apply to. the courts, and compel
their servants, by mandamus, to perform their
duty in this respect. And you can rest as
sured that application in behalf of the over
| burdened taxpayers will be made to the courts
to have the money once paid by them properly
applied, and they shall know whether or not
our constitution is a dead letter. If the con-
stitution and law have been obeyed and the
money is in the treasury, why not properly
apply it and pay the debt? Is it desirable to
keep it in banks for them to make profit out
of it? And is it necessary to have an over
flowing treasury to foster extravagances and
invite populations and jobs. 81. II. KEEDY.
TURNER TO NEEDY.
ANNAPOLIS, March, %, 1886.
III H. Keedy, Esq. Sir; read your
open letter of yesterday, addressed to me and
published in the newspapers of Baltimore
city. | was certainly surprised at some OF
YOUR statements. You seek to leave the i'm
preston that have failed in some manner to
comply with the requirements of the constitu-
ton and the laws relating to the sinking funds
of the State When | became comptroller,
in January, 1884, | declared my purpose to
execute strictly the provisions of the consti-
tuition and laws relating to the sinking funds
of the State, and said that if the expenses of
the government could not be met without
using money collected from the people for the
specific purposes of such sinking funds, |
would stop paying government expenses and
report to the Legislature the facts, In order
that the law making power of the State might
make provision for the protection OF the
credit of the State. From this position l
have not swerved.
SIN my report made to the Legislature now
in session | distinctly stated, and for your
benefit | will here repeat, that all the sinking
funds have not only been kept up during the
current years of my official term, but the
treasury officers have been able to realize
from the unsolicited balances OF former
years, together with the 1855, 900 OF Baltimore
and Ohio Railroad bonds placed to the credit
of the sinking funds by the act of 1884, a sum
more than sufficient to repair and make whole
every sinking fund for every existing loan
that had not hitherto been entirely maintained,
so that at the close of the fiscal year 1885 the
sinking funds applicable to the various loans
of the State were not only in their integrity,
but some of them were actually OVERLOOKING
When | entered office | found the sum of
S41l, 209. 1S to the credit of the sinking funds
of the State. During the two years | have
occupied the position of comptroller the sink
ing funds have been augmented by the pur-
chase of bonds of the city of Baltimore, of
: the State of Maryland and other good securi-
ties to the amount of S743, 855, at cost to the
State of S7S4, 1868. To which add the
bonds of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
Company, above referred to. placed to the
credit Of the sinking funds for the redemption
. of the Deaf and Dumb and Maryland Hospi-
tai loans pursuant to chapter 49l of the acts
of 1884 and we have the total increase of
sinking funds of the State since entered
Office of 81, lO9, 355. Everything that could
; be done to hasten the time when the people
, shall be relieved of all direct taxes has been
done by me since entered office. Differ
ences of opinion will, | know, arise concern
ing the management of the most trivial con-
: Germs, and ! do not expect all men to adopt
my views az to the management OF State Il
nances. But let me say to you there is ono
thing do expect to find among those who
choose to criticise my management OF those
finances as comptroller of the treasury OF
this State, and that is consistency. You are
one of those who insist upon the preservation
of the sinking funds of the State. l am also
of that number, and ] have put my opinion
into practice. The result of what have done
is not only gratifying to me, but has lar ex-
ceeded my expectations. For some reason
best known to yourself you have, in an open
, letter, shut your eyes to the facts which
have stated. You have given me no credit
for what have done to uphold the integrity
: of the sinking funds and to keep the credit of
the State at its present high standard. You
have even gone out of your way to arraign
me for the acts of the legislative department
of the government of the State"
1.-TWO committees Of the present House Of
Delegates have considered whether It wonld
be better to sell the bonds of the Baltimore
, and Ohio Railroad Company now standing to
the credit of the sinking funds of the State
for the redemption of the Maryland Hospital
J and Deaf and Dumb loan. Neither commit
tee reported in favor Of such sale. The ways
and means committee, on the contrary, man.
mously determined that it was better policy
t to retain possession OF the bonds Of the Balti-
more and Ohio Railroad Company, which
paid an annual interest of 6 per cent, and to
= refund the matured 100000 of the Deaf and
Dumb loan at per cent. The committee
was unquestionably right in this conclusion
Coy. Hamilton, in speaking ofthe finances of
the State in his last message. says: There
must be radical retrepehment, or there must
3 be a resort to additional taxation, or to the
sale of our Investments in our internal i'm
, provements, neither of which is either desir-
able or expedient, or is necessary to be done