San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1897-01-28
WHY, OH WHYl
For The Light:


For The Light:
Oh, Augustus, oh, Bryan, most po-
tent and pussiant politicians, why do
you not permit the ink to become dry
on the commissions to your present
offices, before you implore a patient
and long suffering people to elect you
to an office with less pay but larger
pull?
What excuse can Judge CD Augutus
Levy give for seeking to surrender an
office to which he has been so recently
elected, and making an arduous fight
for one that pays legitimately less
than the one he has? Have we again
come upon the days of pure patriotism,
when men sacrifice their individual
good for the general veal? And is
Levy such patriot? or is his race a
part of a general plan to maintain Joe
and Thad in local supremacy, and to
land Levy in Slayden's seat? There
are those who say that future elections
are involved in the present race, if
Levy wins.
Why this unseemly scramble, Judge
Callaghan, for an office which you
voluntarily abandoned little more
than four years ago? Why do you
again seek to administer the city gov
eminent, when Mayors Paschal and
Elmendorf have demonstrated during
the past four years that the city gov
eminent can be run by either of them
more efficiently than you ran it, and
at cost per year of 5000, 900 less than
tion.
Have the people overlooked the COM
binations that have been found back
of the two candidates from the court
house? You selected your county
judge and your district attorney. Did
you do so that they might, by deals
and combines, trade them Off for other
offices? If Judge Callaghan is elect
ed, who will be your next county
judge? If Mr.. Levy is elected, who
will be his successor in the district at
torney's office, (as the governor would
fill the latter vacancy, his appointee
would doubtless come from East Tex
as.) In either event, the people will
have no voice in the selection.
Judge Callaghan administered the
affairs of the city from 1885, to Novem-
Der, 1892, period of general prosper
ity. When he went into office, the
city was not in debt, and it's credit was
good; yet when he left 1t, the city had
practically reached it's bonded limit, and
he had pawned the taxes due the city
for year in advance of their collec-
ton. AS prosperous as were the peo-
pie and the times, they could not stand
his expense account for 1892 amount
ing to $523,6S7.OO
Mayor Callaghan, during his eight
years in Office, added to the bonded debt
of the city, $1,477,691. He left in the
sinking fund and bonded interest fund
when he escaped from the wreck he
had made, the enormous sum of s0,and
there was $4,000 in past due interest
on bonds unpaid. Since Mayor Elmen-
dorf has been n office, all interest has
been paid and there was in the funds
named on Jan. LIST, 1897, the sum Of
$53,0S534. Which shows the better
financiering?
AS you pass st. Mary's street going
either way on Commerce street stop
and look at the space between d. Sui
livan & Co.'S, bank and G.R.Sullivan's
shoe store, and see where Mayor Cal
laghan buried S35,000.O0 of the city's
money without getting title to one inch
of ground. The city will have to pay
for it again, and also pay rent for il
at the rate of s185.O0 a month during
the past five years, or surrender the
property and pay for the rent and i'm
provements. If Elmendorf had done
a trick like that, what bowling shame
1t would have been.
Both CaIlaghan and Levy, loudly
proclaim their purpose, if elected. of
putting the law to all delinquent tax
payers. Query-Will they first take
a dose of their own medicine? FL
mendorf pays his taxes as they become
due.
If Judge Callaghan is defeated for
mayor, he has better paying office
to fall back upon. If Mr.. Levy is de-
feated, he has a better paying Office to
fall back upon. If Mayor Elmendorf
is defeated, the people will have no one
to fall back upon, for the court house
politicians will control everything.
Six chieftains sat in the new court
house, six warning chieftains bold, and
they looked across to the city hall
with a longing look untold. But who
should lead the charge of war, to gain
its iron keys, none would agree, and
thereupon the six were split in threes,
Among themselves they fought to
gain the place they all espied; they
fn,,oLt among them selves until the last