St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1891-07-09
A CARPING CRITIC,
Mayor Smith Pointedly Re-
plies to Attacks Upon
the City's Credit.
What Has Been Accomplished
by Officials, and Where the
Money Goes.
Hen Who Talk and Write
About What They Know
Not Of.
Dentists of the State Meet and
Have a General Love
Feast.

The statements made editorially by
an evening paper anent the per capita
expense incurred in the city of st. Paul
for municipal government were de-
nounced yesterday by the city officials
as being entirely false, and calculated
TO do the credit of the city the greatest
of harm. Mayor Smith, in speaking of
the matter. said:
An editorial in an evening paper,
giving the receipts and expenditures
of 100 principal or representative
cities" asks the mayor to answer
statement that the editor does not at
tempt in any manner to explain him
self. l have only this TO say:
That the United States census
reports are regarded by the public press
throughout the country as a fraud and
the editor OF the dispatch demonstrates
to my satisfaction how Mr.. Porter ascer-
tanned his results, l will try and
answer-and at the same time, as munic-
ipal affairs seem to be the hobby upon
which the editor of the Dispatch
delights to reVel, would like him to
answer a cOnundrum a la POrter-taking
some of the cities named in his edl-
torial-how does he account for this
state of things:
Chicago. on each $1,000 assessed the
tax payer pays city tax. -. .....---- S45-S0
Minneapoiis' on each $1,000 city tax. 100
St Paul, on each S1,000...........-.-. 1000.
Denver, on each $1,000 .......--..----- 1000
80 [ might go on TO the end Of the
list of cities named, but
The Above Is Enough
for my purpose. Now the taxable
. ,os% of rUafG
TO SlS7, 45O, 900, and the city tax at $40 per
thousand would make per capita tax
of SIT actually paid into the treasury.
Now, Brother Thompson, explain the
S4.52 Porter expenditure. If this city
could levy percentage on the present
valuation equal to the Chicago levy of
$3.50 per thousand we could wipe out
the entire city debt in three years. l
never have denied the fact that We have
large public debt. and | was
among the first to call the at
tention of the common council
to the fact and urge upon them the
necessity OF calling halt in the issue
of bonds.
at has been the policy of the best
fnanciers CT this city for the past
twenty-five years to keep our levy be-
low 2 per cent-not the politicians
SUCH dOl6 ullduGlElS lllC poOi
Bros, William Dawson, Peter Berkey,
the chamber of commerce and the mass
of the people-fOr the purpose of Ell
cOuraging capitalists to embark in BUSH
ness in this city. We issued bonds for
bounties in war times. keeping our
levy below 10 mills, when Minneapolis
and other cities were taxing the people
directly TO pay these bOuntieS. No pO-
litieal party or public officers are re-
SponSible for the large issue of bonds.
The whole public demanded them long
before the editor of the Dispatch was
heard of. We have been
A Generous People.
BONUS bonds were issued 10 the st.
Paul & Duluth: st. Paul x Milwaukee /;
ten acres in lots to the Northern Pacific
railroad; for the Chicago fire; cyclones
grasshODpeTs: Johnstown and Dakota
sufferers; bridge bonds asked for by the
people; sewer bonds: public buildings
parks; for the purchase and extension
Of the water works; engine houses; ice
palaces; public receptions, etc. All
these bonds are registered in the Office
OF the city comptroller, and the purpose
for which they were issued noted, and
an itemiZed account Of the expenditures,
and nearly the whole amount diSbursed
BA IlllCC uOHCSG IAlCu VI
ntegrity-Roehe, REM and Refs. Not
q dollar could have been drawn from
the treasury unlawfully under the man.
agement Of the gentlemen named.
This charge OF public plumber and
robbery against reputable men is mere
bOsh, and the charge constantly rung fol
partisan purposes, thereby seriously
damaging the good name of our city.
"If any of the officers have been
guilty of embeZzlement or misappropri-
ating of the money, make the charge
direct, and do not constantly deal in
generalities. | want to say right here
that we are financially in as good con-
dition as any city on this continent. All
our public buildings completed, and nc
more bonds to be issued of any large
amount for a long time 10 come.
al hope this viii be the close of inter
views with me in city affairs, as l am
not beligerent by nature, and hereafter
I hope you will call on some other city
official to come to the front and fght
parsons and editors, especially the lat
ter"