Mexico weekly ledger., 1897-04-29

VIC IntO Vi tdAco INV P"ia by ahy hioAi
in this State one single cent. This is
true and no one can deny it. Further,
had this bill passed the taxes on the
people would have been less tor the
next two years, at least, paradoxal as
it may seem, than they will be now.
This is not demagoguery;it is the truth
and cannot be denied. Our laws pro-
vide that 10 cents on the $100 valua-
tion shall be assessed and collected for
an ''interest and sinking fund.- to pay
the interest on State obligations and
to buy up and cancel what State bonds
remain unpaid, all of which now bear
31a per cent. interest.
The constitution further provides
that for the general revenue of the
State not more than 20 cents on the
800 valuation shall be collected, and
when the assessed valuation of the
State shall reach 5000, 200, 900 not more
than Is cents on the 800 shall be col
lected. This is called the general
revenue fund" The constitution says,
also, that not less than one-fourth of
this fund shall be used for the benefit
'cfbur public scf76Ufs, Due 0uT fegfsfa-
ture has seen fit to make law turn
ing over one third of the general rev.
enue for the benefit of our public
schools. In 1892 the assessed value of
the State ran slightly above 5000, ,0OO,-
600 and under the constitution this
lowered the general revenue fund from
20 cents to Is cents on the 500, cut
ting down said fund almost one-fourth.
Then, taking out the one-third of Eaid
fund for public schools leaves tax of
only 10 cents on the 500 for the en-
tire support Of the State government,
criminal costs, insane, deaf and blind
asylums, State officers, normal schools,
State University, sc. Thus we find
the general revenue fund at present in
a very strained and cramped condi-
ton and really insufficient to meet the
necessary demands of the State iu-
stitutions. Right here it may not be
improper to say, by way of parenthe-
sis, that this stringency has in no way
been caused from lack of economical
State administrations.
We are taxed lower than any of the
seven adjoining states, and I believe
than any state in the Union-and this
is Democracy pure and simple, to
leave every dollar in the peoples
pockets that is not needed for gov
ernment economically administered.
The change of the levy before men
toned from 20 cents to Is cents, cut
short the general revenue about
$780, 900. There is now a deficit in
this revenue, or general expense fund,
of about 100000, while the interest
and sinking fund, which also gets 10
cents on the 800 valuation, has
enough money this year to pay all the
interest on the State bonds; and then
after paying off double as many bonds
as the constitution requires, have
more than S125, 900 left over.
Iwould like to ask, Mr.. Editor, if it
would not be better sense, better busi-
ness Judgment, TO support tIo Univer-
sity out of this abundant fund, as
Governor Stone suggests, than to have
made draw on the already ''busted"
revenue fund for 100000 to support
the University, as the last legislature
did, thus compelling the already
"over-burdened taxpayers" to borrow
more money at 8 per cent. and pay a
higher rate of taxation to meet this
deficit?
At the present rate, the 5000, 900 of
31s per cent. option bonds now out
standing, will all be called in and can
celled within five years. Now, Gov.
stones idea was that it would be a
good piece of business judgment in
many ways to support the University
out of the interest and sinking fund,
which is very flush, and thus tease
up" and relieve,to great extent, the
now deficient revenue fund. Had
this been done, the revenue fund
would have been relieved of the
800, 900 appropriation which the legis-
lature made for the support of the
University, (Which helped to make
the $4OO, 900 deficit now in that fund.-
and the taxpayers would not have
had one CENTS increase in their taxes
by reason of this change. The only
difference on earth to them would be
felt five years from now. The can
collation. of the State debt would be
postponed nine months longer; that is
all, but not one cent increase in the
present rate of taxation. But now,
one word about that $780, 900 deficit
in our general revenue fund. How
about that? The taxpayers must pay
that somehow, or the States paper
will go to protest, or probably the
lunatics will be turned out of the
asylums upon US for lack of support.
say this deficit would only have
been $500, ,0O0--instead of $400, ,000-if
Gov. stones bill had passed.
This S40O, ,0c0 must be paid, and there
t%A . DAiy t"o w SCc RhO ihohOy
that can see. The first is to call an
extra session of the legislature and
have bonds issued against the State.
and Mr.. Bradley says he win vote
against that. The second is for the
State Board of Equalization, (whose
duty it is to equitabIy adjust the
values of the assessed property of the
State,) to increase the assessed valua-
ton of the property of the State, and
I do not believe there is any.law fol
that, but it is the cheapest plan. The
State board has realized the emer-
gency, and has resorted to that plan
the result is, increased taxation or
the people these hard times. The
State board felt compelled to increase
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