The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1892-02-15
THE TRUE FIGURES.
Actual Condition of the City's
Indebtedness.
WHERE ALL THE MONEY GOES.
How 1t Is That the Present Admins
tration Seems to Have Incurred
Heavy Load of Debt.

tr.t,or seems to Have Incurred
n Heavy Load of Debt.
There ha We been such fragrant niisrepre'
sentations made by Democratic campaign
speakers al to the financial cohuitioh %
the city. anil the statements nave SHOWN
such n profor md ignorance OF the supJect'
that rneoohers of the city council ana oth
.rs familiar ", tn il have sought to OBTAIN
authorit.tive statements OF the actual
facts, Delegate S. NJ. Shipley, who has
had snecial oppo rtunities for becoming &C
ot,afuted viii, the figures. IVES interviewed
bv osr-Ixrrtrd GEscEp reporter IN rela'
ton to the princip al questions raised dur
ing the municipal campaign concerning
the present hiatus of the city's financial
affairs, and particularly as 20 'hose relat-
ing 10 city fndebtedn ess, ana Lhe cofnpaFa-
tive expenditure bein 8 made by the pres
eut eitv government and those Oh former
administrations. ,-.,
nnsers,aod The dinic,fty Of making show
ing OF tbe financial Affairs Of the CITY Dy nsnres
90 as to make statement thas WIZ ~ Ies',Iuy
uu,ierstood without going more NJ Ieheth INTO
detsu than volir space will aliow, therefore
sban continc myself to sien general showing
by round numbers as msy DO Veriueu " any
time By any citizen takisE pa'ns - ~ 70 .iio
public records in our ei'ccs any i"'iNs slie
figures with the city boeks. nav s'Ncn p''ils
y, ,.o,,arc .t,,cme,,s which have been using
IN mis- campaiQu. not for the purpose simply Of
c.n.,at,,,, srg,tr,er,t bu. for the reason That
feel mas a Great deal Of Misunderstanding has
arisen through the fact that INC actual trahsae'
,to.,s az the city government arc not studied by
citizens generally. I hare telecled from the
records, which are OPP n 20 al. shch iignfes as
will lie not only OF inter sf put OF great Value 10
any one who really wshss 70 p po.Ied hs 70 .le
exact status of the fnaieiai 'p0i"'iohS VI 'uo
present city government.
The hanks in the Office Of tho com ptrollcr will
show thai unon tho lsr day of October. 1880,
whom tho present city charter was adopted, the
indebtedness OF tho city sttod as follows:
Road fund .''--.'| S5e'z9 20. 10
Fire fund ......,.............-'.' lll,i9s ~
ssaai s.fsei oo and bonds $1,000 %
Total absolute aeS.. ~ ........ 1.4so,ooS 60
The amount Of contingen, indebtedness,
liability for which bad beon incurred prior to
October I, 1890 was as follows:
Condemned property Voc w W.
One yenr interest 1900 w w
odd special improvement, lnneotsuhess i.3'pV w
Fire department contracts ....-.. I<,yVO W
Total iilherIted contingent indebted
ness That is now q part OF citys III
ferest drawing debt ,........-. t-..-. af3'0J' w
Making the actual debt at the time the present
city government svlaeen In power 1893 bo2''s.
Taking change Of the city government, the
present administration. at as early date as
possible, funded sigaooD OF this debt. reducing
the interest thereon TO per cent. thereby saw
ire the taxpaser ss3,0U per annum in interest
alone making bonds payable In twenty years.
Since October l. 1890, said debt of 81 1896 1926
hns been INCREASED By the present government
issuing warrants upon different funds to carry
on the public improvements. pay current ex-
penses ana carry out cid contracts from the
former government by tho sum Of SOS, "a,
making the total municipal indebtedness at
sAl8 time amount 10 t2S5eJ1.
bis increase Of sa5.297.tf does not represent
aasbt that has been wholly contracted by the
! rrstent administration. and to illustrate will
as that now recall several payments of large
sgms thai we were compelled to make 10 carry
o'st either old contracts that were made and in
CARED prior to our time, such as these: Ten
pet cent Of liquor licenses that had been col.
iected by the city aud which we had to pay the
state on account Of our predecessors,
amounting to nearly sg7,O0o; settlement with
Engineer r. Williams, by which we drew the
ei,s out OF a eentraciual obligation that it was
pasty ~, by which the city would have been
compelled 70 incur debt OF at least s259o,GC0 to
complete and psy Nj. Williams about $4,000,
which settlement cost an additional $4,000; tho
eiiy in return securing complete plans for the
water and sewer plans OF the city. Thus |
could show whercv have been Obliged to pay
out sums aggregating nearly 100000 that this
city government is not responsible for, to say
nothing of such autlays as the purchase by Mr..
Dlgie Of over $4,000 worth OF water pipe, re
engines, etc
Then, again, We have laid over thirty-threc
niles Of water pipe. and while we had the pro.
ceeds Of ssi5.ooJ worth OF bonds with which to
pay The original purchase price OF water works.
viz, tSl2s5.7e, still we fad the cost
o. the whole plant, including the sum paid
from water hind on hreboat, to be at this date
tea.723sf, thus leaving a balance after bonds
were exhausted that had 10 be met OF $50 IN 81.
which went into actual construction work. less
the profit derived from the revenues received,
which wehld reduce thls balance TO about $780,
OG0
New' then, II will be seen that, taking into
seeeant the unexpected decrease in revenues
derived from fines aud licenses. that the present
administration has not, aito- all, increased the
Guy ashs sbeye what il was whom they came
INTO power BY any management that could havo
been avoided, but on the contrary It can bo
demonstrated that the debt ia today less than 1t
would have been had the rate OF expenditures
whioh We foand IN vogue been kent M.
Al IL fNiihed taat great increase has been
made III the item Of salaries, while the fact is
that there IS being paid out today, for salaries
preper'not more than $3.50 20 81 SOC in excess OF
WHAT was PAID under the former city govern
n' ', 'l'se.S oeeasioaed by reason OF the new
Offices created by the present charter.
To prove these statements Will call the at
tenion o. the taxpayer not 10 the idle assertion
OF myself or OF any OF my democratic friends
hg. 70 the records and books az the CITY officers
For instance, TIE citizens OF Seattle during tho
year cnding October I, ls paid To the eynpiovcS
OF the engineer efee the sum OF Sto-it. 80. and
while during That period no record of sums Maid
'or ssAuf'eS was preserved the money was paid
getting of light Comparing cxns,,,tttr,c. fa-
like services for period of the saenn lcp,.th nm.
der the present government and NO and the sal
AIRY account fer year caiiug October. 1881. 10 DO
sia,saes'e or saving IL the one DEPARTMENT of
ysl,sal.0a.
The hre department Is today being opcfa.nd
At saving ei setl PEE month over what the
same apparatus would cost under the old roy-
erniasni al tao rate 'ae city then paid for serv.
Ices, etc.
The sewer department, 10 the vcsr ending Oc.
tobor /, ISa1, laid ltoS l,aeal fees AZ ,,p,, aver
aging to Il inches IN diameter. vorpirr. MOI,
10 hours IS daS work. az total ,,st 81 &,
cas 81 We have during The same l,-,,e nj .t,,,,
laid issla iiaeal feet oi pine svo-s-t,,. 5 >, ~,
inches IN stiametc' n5G wo-si1- NM : ,,,s,.s.i
of Ia hours. as provided By tse new ,f,-r,r "a
sinkisg pipe tive !eci deeper, ala total cost Of
ie,e9..
In the street dena''aeot We aad that it cost
eur predecessors = lay l.a51Sta i{,eal fa,. a,
street rlankiag. with raca working Ia bor-. .
aay. the toia. sur OF E5o.5lIsa. 0['r r-Dso,, a a.
,nIuistra.inn III the Same iras.h ~ ti.,, ma