San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1895-11-03
ANSWERS TO mo FOOLS {"
QUESTIONS.

DEAR SIR: In the OCTOBER 5lSt
issue of the DAILY LIGHT, you ask
the county court twelve questions
which you imagined hard to ans
wer. Well, they are not so hard
to answer as you thought they
were.
/ have waited patiently for
member of that court to take hold
of them and set you right; but
they seem to be too busy just now
SO i, as their next friend, will ap-
pear and answer for them, lest
some people might take the mat
tiers for confessed. They did not
ask me to go to all this. trouble;
but you see | cannot bear to have
their actions misconstrued.
1st.-You want to know what
authority the court had to issue
bonds for the purchase of the new
courthouse site. None at all, my
dear sir; same as the $4,000 issue
of bonds for the purchase Of the
Meny property. But what of it?
Take these $4,000 OF bonds issued
for the court house site, the $4,000
issued for the purchase of the Meny
property and $4,000 issued as Jail
bonds, and you have $4,000 of
so-called county Indebtedness that
exists only in the Imagination OF
the holders of the bonds, for you
see, my dear Mr.. No Fool, they are
void, each and every one of them.
To begin with, there was no au-
thority to issue them, and then
too, there was not even pretence
to comply with the constitution
and laws of this state requiring a
levy to be made at the same time,
and a provision for a sinking fund.
So, after all, they are only bogy;
simply 80 much paper ruined for
all further practical use by the
amount of printers ink spread on
them. OF course, we are paying
taxes on them now; but that is
only until some less patient tax
payer comes along and has the
court to cancel the last one OF
them. So you see we euchred
some unsuspecting Yank out Of
$15S,000. Partly at least for the
benefit OF our dear people, and still
you would cast insinuatiors. Go
to, and beg our pardon, We could
teach Wall street some new tricks.
OF course, the ground we bought is
worth only about $4,000. What
we did with the balance? My
dear sir, / have just shown you
that we have saved you $50, 900 out
of this sum. That ought to satisfy
you. Beside, have no authority
from the court to state what be-
came of the balance. IL you are
what your name implies, you will
understand that the game Of poll
tics is not only queer one, but ex-
pensive at that.
2d.-Now you want to know
what the exact cost OF the new
courthouse is? What do you mean,
be more definite in your question?
Do you mean with or without? AS
it is, / can answer only generally,
some say 100000 and some say
$500, 900. You pays your money
and you takes your choice. You
see it depends altogether on how
you do your calculating.
3d.-Why do we not finish the
new courthouse? Because we have
no money; that's all, and very
simple, too.
4th.-How do we propose to raise
that money? Why, by an addi-
tional bond issue. They could an
swer that question in a Sunday
school. Just you keep your eyes
open and you will see an $4,000 is
sue next year in time for the fall
elections. We will give you
chance to bid on them; but don't
you do it-they are not made for
home use. Vide the $l5S, 600 issue
in my first answer.
5th.-We will begin to finish the
building next year, and keep on
beginning. 1t depends somewhat
altogether; but you know how
those things are not done.
6th.-Can't tell you how much
the new courthouse will cost by
that time. See answers and 5.
Should say somewhere about a
million dollars.
7th.-The annual interest on
these debts OF the county will be
anywhere between $4,000 and
100000, unless some one comes
in and attacks the bonds.
Then there NAV not be any
to pay. 1t depends on the
people. III they want to pay it, we'll
let them go ahead and pay; we
can't help that; il they don't want
to pay there is no way of compell-
ing them to, and the holders OF the
bonds will continue to hold until
the cows come home. However,
even in such an event, the bonds
will have some value; they will be