Kansas City daily journal., 1897-01-06
MR.. LEEDY.s MESSAGE WILL DE-
VOTE MUCH SPACE TO 1T.
TO RECOMMEND LEGISLATION.
COMPROMISE ON BONDS OF DOUBT
FUL VALUE URGED.
Big Blocks of bonds on which Inter-
est Is Not Being Paid-Governor
Morrill, Opposed to Abolish
ing the Board of
PurdOnS.

Topeka. Kas.. Jan. 5.-(Special) Govern
or-cIect I.eedv will devote considerable
space in his message to the legislature to
showing the condition of the state school
fund and recommending some legislation
that will enable the school fund commits
sioners to effect 4 compromise with West
ern Kansas counties whose bonds have
been allowed to default. Under the pres
ent law the commissioners cannot effect
compromise of any kind. They must re-
quire the payment of the bonds IN tuil.
This is something that many of the coun-
ties cannot do and they have quit trying.
For instance, the permanent school fund
has $4,000 in bonds of Lane county. which
declared itself insolyent Il few days ago.
There is no possible chance of collecting
that debt in full. The plan which the gov
ernor-elect proposes is TO clothe the school
fund commissioners with power to take
what they can get for this class of bonds,
unburden the fund of all worthless paper,
and have nothing in it that pays no inter-
est.
1t is the opinion of the present school
fund commissioners that if some power
were given that body, deals could be made
benefited. As it is now, there is n large
amount of bonds on which interest has de-
fauted just because the counties cannot
meet their running expenses and pay out
| on their bonded Indebtedness. 1t is claimed
that in many of the counties the people
could afford to and would willingly pay
half or three-fourths of the debt held by
the school fund and that they are anxious
to make arrangements of that kind. But
they will not attempt to pay the bonds in
full, and if something is not done to enable
compromise TO be made the fund will
lose the whole amount instead OF a portion
of it.
1T is variously estimated that there are
from $l,0O0OO0 to $2,00O,OOO in bonds in the
school fund which would be subject to "a
compromise. The interest from the bonds
is divided among the school districts of the
state in proportion to the number of chill
dren of school age. For the year ending
February H. 1898, the interest collected and
paid out amounted to $5OS 0l6.39, or $1.02 for
each person of school age. The school fund
then had on hand $6lO6, ,14OS1 in bonds.
For the year ending February, 1896. the
interest collected and paid out aggregated
only $35, ,643.56, or IS cents for each person
| of school age. The bonds held by the fund
| aggregated about S6,S0JG 600. While there
were 100000 more bonds held in the fund
in 1896 than in 1893, the interest collected
was about $T2,372.S3 less. This shows that
there is n large amount of non-interest
bearing bonds on hand.
There is no charge of doodle made in
connection with the purchase of these
bonds. They Were simply bought during
| the boom times, when everything was con-
| sidered good in Western Kansas. The
only blame attached to those who did the
! buying is that they exercised no foresight
when they acquired the bonds. They did
rot look ahead to see what the possibilities
were of the counties being able to meet the
| bonds when they fell due
According to the state treasurer's books,
the permanent school fund holds bonds is>
sued by Western Kansas counties for the
following amounts: Morton, 1850: Ste
vens, s2l, 291.61; Seward. $27. $50; Meade, $21.-
01S; Gray. $TOiO; Haskell, $11 700; Grant.
$S6.Ol6; Stanton, $50 lbs; Greeley. S74. 500;
Wichita. $4,000; Scott, $150,S9O; Kearny, $2S-
| 300; Finney, $3,556; Lane $1960O: Ness, $39-
6sS; Rush. $25,5S9; Clark $l9, sos; Stafford,
| S4l,244; Hodgeman. $19,25S: Pawnee, $17, $40;
Edwards, $33 sos; KiOwa, $24 .G04: Comancha
$2O,262; Barber, $T1,917; Harper, SAG, ,49O; Pratt,
S25,ls9; Cheyenne, s14,733; Sherman. S27. .695,
Wallace, Sl5,2SO: Rawlins. $50, 100: Thomas,
Sl$,l75; Logan, $5S, $50; Decatur $74, $50; Sher-
idan, S23367; Ford, S40,015: Cove. $12 SI5: Nor
| ton, SCI ,632: Graham. $lS0i7: Trego $50. .52j;
Phillips, $66,511; Rocks $64, 5i3 Ellis. SIS 900.
Many of these counties are meeting in
| terest, but the majority of them have been
unable for the past four years to pay all
| Of it, and some have stopped trying to
| pay anything.
| The present bond commissioners have
| been extremely careful in the purchase of
| bonds for the school fund. They have not
| touched a bond west of Reno or Kingman
| counties, and have refused many from
counties in the eastern part of the state
Attorney Genera! Dawes. one of the pres
| ent commissioners, says that in his opin-
| ion there are fully s2,0OO0OO worth of bonds
! now held in the permanent school fund
| which will never he paid unless some pro-
| vision is made for Il compromise The
| dealers in Western Kansas county bonds
| feel aggrieved because they cannot sad
| die eff any of them on the present COM
missioners, and are charging discrimina-
tior. but the charges are having about the
| same effect as pouring water on a duck s
| back The commissioners laid down a
| rule when they first assumed control of the
| school fund. two years ago. that no bonds
| of any kind in the western half of Kansas
would be purchased by them. and they
| have adhered to il TO the very letter.
| 1t is very likely that the legislature will
| follow the recommendations of the gov
| etncr-elect and enact some legislation to
~l-gr