San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1896-01-15


The mayor says we were behind
on the first of this year $77,737.79; ;
in other words IL we had asked for
100000 instead of $300,000 to pay
past due indebtedness, we would
be on a cash basis today. That was
a mistake. 1t seems that our
finance department did not know
what they were about when they
asked for 100000.
The general tone of the mayors
message is cheerful, but the reli-
ance upon the collection OF the en-
tire list of back taxes to make
good all deficiencies seems like
leaning upon broken reed.
In opening his address the mayor
INDUCES in a remarkable congratu-
latory sentence. He says: can
other year has dawned upon US,
while the one just passed has been
peaceful and uneventful, &C."
Well, we'll, we have had no foreign
or domestic war! truly, truly. A
little episode or two don't count,
you know. But from whence should
be expected war?
Let the people do the mayor the
compliment to read and discuss the
message. It will do him good and
do the people good. The late
Mayor Paschal believed in talking
to the people through the city
council, often. Mayor Elmendorf
will find the practice good. The
people want to know right from
the head of the government how
things are going.
Our advalorem tax assessment
for 1894, foots up $2S,754,SS0, which
produces a tax roll of $47S,954.59. or
this amount $685., 0S0.64 was col
lected up to the 3lst of December,
1895, leaving a balance of $ll4,-
l73.SS uncollected.
Now, add taxes, according to the
record, due on back taxes from
1880, and reaching 1898, $34S, 17S. 10,
and we have total of 1852 ,352.03;
from this amount we must deduct
S20, 21l.77 back taxes collected from
June to December 80, 1895, leav-
ing $442, 1925.
Now this is large sum Of delin-
quency. A good business firm
would 60 carefully over this sum,
and see how much of it is genuine
and capable of being set up as as
sets.
Let us deduct the bad debts,
uncollectable; people hav-
ing gone out of business, died,
away, or wrongfully as
sessed during this Is years Of de-
and we find that $127,-
1864, will cover the amount which
would still further reduce our
available assets to 1914, 953.42.
This sum Is the proper total de-
accruing in 10 years,
which equally divided makes an
annual delinquency Of about $21,-
900.
Surely the charge cannot be we'll
sustained that our taxpayers are or
have been largely delinquent, or
that there has been a growth of
delinquency that threatens to wipe
out our revenue for the support
and maintenance Of the city gov
eminent.
In fifteen years we have acquired
a delinquency OF 1914, 953.42, but
during this same period we have
poured into the city treasury over
four millions OF dollars.
A squirt of good times would
come very near wiping out the de-
linuuent score. AS 1t is we can
hardly hope for greater sum than
$4,000 to be realized before the
next tax rolls are available.
Mayor Elmendorf builds high
hopes upon the threatened confis-
cation OF the property of delin-
quents, through the courts. The
city, according to the city attorney,
will become a bloated real estate
owner. There is many a slip be-
tween the cup and the lip.
Suppose the city became the
purchaser of real estate for taxes,