Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1890-06-13
Vote for Improvements.


EDITOR CITizES:-0ur town is now
under headway 70 permanent prosperity If
the people will only avail themselves OF
the opportunity offered them and vote on
next Saturday to give our town Council
the means with which to 60 on and make
such improvement as the people may from
time to time ask the Council to have done.
We have spent thousands and thousands of
dollars in the last fifteen or twenty years
going ever our streets every Spring shovel
ing the clay from the cutters
to the middle of the street, and
when a mud hole got too deep I'LL 1t
up with stone, and by the time the next
Spring came, had to do the same thing |
over and so year after year and nothing to |
show for the money spent. Now why not |
get out Of this old rut, take a step onward |
and put our town in the same condition all |
oiher towns around US are inf We nave |
streets that if paved and put ia order would |
be as fine as any in the country; and OF
which we would all be proud, if changed
from the mud holes they have been to
properly graded and paved streets
But some say, 'ft will bankrupt the
town." 1--WE can't stand it, 1T will be too
expensive" and many more equally un-
founded statements; now, why do they say
sof 1t is simply because they have not
examined the matter any and don't under
stand it. In the first place, the law of our
State has thrown so many safeguards
around the government Of boroughs that
the town council. even if so disposed, can't
run the town, as some say, 'heels over
head" in debt without vote of the
people to increase the Indebtedness the
Council, for any improvements, can't con-
tract an Indebtedness over two per cent. OF
the valuation of the borough, and even if
the people wanted it they can't increase the
the debt beyond seven per cent. of the as
sessed valuation, which given in round num-
bers, is about 81 800, 900, and in no case
can the people incur debt beyond seven
per cent of this amount. But it is not the
intention to incur large debt by improY-
| ing all the streets in town. Let the vote
on Saturday be unanimous for improve
ments, not vote against it. Still the
| Town Council can't undertake to pave
street until ttco thirds of the property
owners, representing thirds of the feet
| fronting on the street they want paved,
| sign a petition asking the Council to pave
the street This being the law it is easy to be
seen the pcofle have the matter in their own
hands and can at all times keep the Council
| in bounds. The purpose is to, say this
| year, pave Main street, then next year say
| they pave Jefferson street from Main 81.
| to the West Penn station. Then the next
year say they pave Wayne street to the
p & W. station. and so on other streets in
town as the people ask for it to be done
and it cant be done unless two-thirds of
the property owners, as stated above, ask
| it.
When the work is done the property
owners on one side the street pay the one
third of the expenses, the owners on the
other side pay one-third of the expenses
and the borough the other third, or the
owners of property pay two-thirds the ex-
pense and the borough one-third, so the
| people living along the streets have the
| big end of the burden to bear. Then the
| question is asked how il the borough's
share to be raised' The answer is by issu
! ing bonds running over, say 10, ID or 20
| years, rs the Council may think best.
There are plenty Of capitalists who are on
| ly too glad to invest their capital in bonds
| of judiciously managed boroughs and we
| have but little doubt all the money the
| borough needs can be had at from 81 to 4
| per cent. interest; then after say five years
| pay off part OF them each year, so it can
| be done aud the taxes will be very little
increased, while we at the same time have
the benefit of the improvement Once the
| town is paved and severed, or under head
way, capitalists viii come here to live,
| bring their money along, invest it and they
will help us pay off the debt incurred.
You remember what hubbub some peo-
| pie made when the Commissioners propos-
| ed building Court House worth $l25, 900
| or s150,000. They said 'it would bank
rupt the county" and taxes will be enor-
| nous, we had better go slow, ''takc say
| $25, 900 or &c, 900 dollars and repair the old
| one" &c. Better councils however pre-
vailed, and the Court House was built at
an expense of $l47 800, and when people
come from other counties they all admire
| it. Was the county bankruptedf Were the
taxes increased enormously No sir the
| Commissioners kept up the same rate of tax
alton, seven mills for three years, last year
they reduced it to five mills, and this year
to three mills, and the Court House is paid
for. So it viii be with the borough. Let
US have the Improvements, get the benefit
of them, and the debt will be paid little
each year and in few years it will all be
paid off without any oppressive taxation.
Our town Council are ALL or nearly all pro-
perty owners; are judicious men, and it is
for the people, as each election comes
| around to continue to elect judicious men,
and our word for it, we will in time have
our streets paved the town severed and
Butler will have such state of prosperity
as the most sanguine never dreamed of;
and more than that, we will risk our repu-
tation for veracity, that when the people
haye once had the benefit of sewerage and
pavement they would not 20 back to the
old condition of things even if it costs
twice as much as it is going to do. So let
al turn out on Saturday and vote to ''in-
crease the Indebtedness of the borough,
that our Town CoDncil may have the means
at hand when the people petition for
the pavement of any street. Every legally
qualified voter will have the right to vote /,
ON Che question. A TAXPAYER.
THE drowning season has arrived.
Strange to say, more thSn half the cases
thus far were those ofadults. A person who
has reached years Of discretion without |
having learned to swim should chang his 4
clothes on a hickory limb, but not go near |
the water"
THE election held in Oregon last week |
resulted in the reelection of Pennoyer,
Democrat, for Governor by reduced
majority, and Herman, Republican, for
Congress, by 1000 majority. The Legisla-
ture, which will elect United States
Senator, ia Republican in both branches by
large majorities and Senator Mitchell, who
is a native Of Butler county, will probably
succeed himself
Lien Law Decision.
The State Supreme Court recently de- |
cided in two separate caseg that sub |
contraction IN, thf. or.ctiop as ]