The record-union., 1891-10-30
NEEDED IMPROVEMENTS.
Where Money Could be Had to
Make Them.
Judge Beatty Says the Funded Debt
Commission is Anxious to
Help the City.

y
October 2Sth you express a desire to
know from myself what are my views as
to the Funded Debt Commission furnish
ing money to the city to make needed
improvements.
First, then, | consider the bond re-
demption fund in our hands devoted by
law to the eXtinguishment of the old
funded debt of Sacramento City. Neither
legally nor morally have the Commits
sioners right to divert it from that end
and object. We have no right, and, / can
say for myself, no disposition, if 1 had the
right to use that fund in any way cal
culated to materially delay the object for
which it was created. l believe that in
no way could we confer SO great benefit
on the city as by rapidly paying the debt.
But at the same time believe that under
proper circumstances we can loan the
city large sums of money and not delay
the final payment of the debt one hour.
Five years ago l became impressed
with the idea that the city would within
the five or six years following stand very
much i'll need OF more money than she
could readily raise by annual taxation.
l was also fully impressed with the idea
that as her credit then stood (she had Just
passed through six years of litigation
trying to repudiate her funded debt she
could not borrow dollar in any money
market in the civilized world. | then set
my wits 10 work TO see if I could not de-
wise some scheme by which the Fund
! Commissioners could help the city. l
concluded finally that under proper con-
| ditiOnS we might loan the city part of our
income annually for several years with
out causing any delay in the final pay
ment of the funded debt.
! III 1887 got an Act INTRODUCED into the
| California Legislature amending the
! Funded Debt Commissioners bin in
| many particulars. Among other amend
| ments 1t gave us the right to loan money
| to 0Ry incorporated city in the State
| This OF course included our own city [
! put ii in the general form, however, to
avoid any prejudice among outsiders if
! we made the proposition direct to loan to
| our own city. This amendment was de-
| teated by the efforts Of those parties who
| have always opposed the Fund Commits
! sion. In 1889 | got the same bill intro
| duced and it passed.
IN the winter OF lS80-90 came a COM
mittee of highly respectable citizens
| one Trustee, the Treasurer, one or two
| lawyers, and others-who asked me to
turn over the funds Of the commission
| then in the State Bank, to the Trustees.
| to be used for street improvement, etc.,
| without the pretense OF IL bond, upon
| which alone we were authorized to loan
| our money. As this would have been a
| felonious embezzlement, | politely re-
| fused the request. Then shortly after
ward public meeting was called and |
| was requested TO loan the money on
| bonds; but bonds issued without any
| pretense of compliance with the prelim-
| mary proceedings required to issue LegaJ
! bonds. 1t was also reasoned we should
give written pledge that we would
never collect either principal or interest
on the bonds. This proposal was of
/ course rejected.
| Then il was proposed to call an election
and get a vote of the people authorizing
the issuance of bonds. | undertook to
state what preliminary steps should be
| taken to make the bonds legal and Justify
! the commissioners in loaning money on
them. l was told they did not want my
advice, they could borrow money from
other parties. That settled my connec-
! tion with the issuance of those bonds.
Then this present season the question
| again came up about the Fund Commits
| sion loanlng money to the city for inn
provements. l called attention to the
/ law which prohibits any city from con-
| tracing debt which, with the debt al
| ready owing, should exceed Is per cent.
OF the last assessment roll. l showed the
! assessment roll would have to be raised
! to about SIS 200, 900 before they could bor-
| row the amount required. [ offered to
! recommend that our board should loan
| the greater part of it's income to the city
| If IL would issue bonds that were legally
| binding. one of the Trustees stated that
| the board would not submit the ques-
! ton OF loan to the people. They did not
want to 6OrT0lo money from the Fund
! Commission
| A committee appointed by the Board of
| Trade reported that it would be mex
| pedient TO raise the assessment roll.
! \ on will find that | have been anxious
| for five years past to loan part of our
! funds to the city for the purpose of max
! ing improvements. | took steps as
| early as 1887 TO enable us TO do so. and
! have ever since persistentiy endeayored
TO do so. | am still anxious. extremely
anxious, to do SO, because | think by so
| doing the Fund Commission could facili-
| tate the making OF manv needed i'm
/ progements and could greatly aid in
! establishing the credit Of the city. For
| forty years Sacramento has been deln-
| quent in payment Of interest. Her bonds
/ have been at a fearful discount over the
| whole world. | believe if the city au-
thoritieS would act in concert with the
Board of Fund Commissioners we could
have Sacramento 3 per cent. bonds above
par in two years, and the old debt in a
fair way OF eXtinguiShment. But there
is a set of men here who think they can
| make themselves popular and ride into
office by robbing the funded debt sink
ing fund, and making another attempt at
repGdiation. To carry out these schemes
they have thought it advisable to make
lying misrepresentation about my views
as to ioaning money to the city.
II. O. BEATTY.