The record-union., 1896-06-12

sanitary reforms. The Record Union
suggested that despite the certainty Of
the "postponers," it would be inclined
to wager dimes to dollars that the city
would not be out of debt in five years
or more. This method of bantering ap-
reared to amuse the "postponers," and
they asked if we had not made a mis-
take and intended to say that the wager
would be dollars to dimes. Not a bit
of it. Betting on a certainty is robbery.
The postponerS insisted that they were
certain, therefore the Record Union"
thought they could afford to put up the
heavy end of the purse. OF course, this
was all facetious, but now things have
changed, and were the Record Union"
in the betting business, it could afford
to wager dollars to cents that the city
will not be free of debt in five years,
for the Supreme Court as we anticipat-
ed, has knocked the last prop from be-
meath the feet of Sacramento, and she
must now pay what she has contended
she should be discharged from. Nearly
100000 more of obligation must now
be lifted. 1t will take over two years
Of extra taxation to do it, and probably
three, so that the five-year limit is now
pretty safe one, and dollars to dimes
the postponers would not accept a bet
of dollars to cents upon it. Sacramento
IL now to suffer for not having been
honest in the beginning. The law re-
CURED her to lay a certain tax to meet
her Indebtedness. For years she re-
fused to do it and got along with spe-
cial levies to avoid levying the one cent
required, SO per cent. of which
would have gone to discharge our debt
At last, by order OF the courts, the city
was compelled to levy the one cent
general fund tax. Had we done SO from
the beginning we would not be Grip
pied as we now are. But the milk is
spilled and may not be gathered up. 1t
is now opportune to again suggest that
the way out is to lump the whole bust
ness and create a new debt to discharge
the old one and carry out the sanitary
reforms so badly needed. Interest is
now far lower than on the old obliga
lions; the city's credit is good, since her
outstanding paper is at par and cannot
be had for less, and probably some of
it will now command a premium. The
thing to do is to cease to suffer; to issue
debt certificates enough to take up our
CT. or ocix
system, erect a decent City Hall, secure
clear, clean water for domestic uses,
and erect suitable High School build
ing. The new debt under the Constitu-
will include the benefciaries of the flu
ture, and make the annual one-fortieth
payments easy for a growing, prosper
Gus city, such as this is. Indeed, it
will be cheaper by far to have these inn
proyements than to do without them,
to say nothing whatever of the duty to
conserve the public health. Three or
four hundred thousand dollars in hand
with installnlent payments for forty
years will give US relief There are
some things more dreadful that debt,
and one of them is the sacrifice of hui
man life needlessly. This city is doing
the latter, and everyone who has ex-
amined it's miserable drainage system
and its polluted water supply, knows
this to be true. 1t Is not apparent only,
but real. Put in clear water, abandon
the ceSSpOOls that are satJrating the
soil with the liquid essence of disease
and death, give US a decent drainage
and sewer system and Sacramento will
improve so rapidly, her standard Of
health will rise SO high, her Gesirability
for residence so much enlarge and her
property values be so enhanced that
really the people will be taxed less for
the new system than they are now for
the old