The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 18??-1935, 1897-04-16
A BbND ISSUE THREATENED.

passed the legislature. Inc HERALD
looks with the special disfavor upon
bond issues. The bond advocates
can always make a good showing on
paper, but when it comes to results
they most generally slip a cog and
the people pay for the experiment.
The present proposition is to fund
the Indebtedness at less than per
cent, the rate we are now paying,
and to have bonds to the amount Of
$2,5OO falling due every year, and
that the County Court shall provide
a special fund for the retirement Of
these bonds as they fall due.
This is all very plausible; it
sounds we'll enough; but can it be
done, or will it be done?
TO pay off $500 bond every year,
the County Court would have to do
one of two things. Either they
must reduce current expenses and
save that much money for this
special purpose, or else they must
raise the tax rate and apply the in
creased revenue to that purpose.
Now if the latter named plan is
propOsed-and whether it is at pres
ent proposed or not, it would most
likely be the one finally adopted
we say if this is proposed, in the
name Of the already overburdened
tax payers, we protest. The farmers
are in no condition now to be called
upon to liquidate the county's in
debtedness. 1t is all they can do
just at present to meet their private
and personal obligations. They can
better afford to pay the interest and
wait for better times to pay the
principal. The debt is not overly
large; it is not threatening the coun-
ty with any law suits; it is not
damaging the county's credit; the
holders of our warrants are not COM
planning much. In the main they
come easy to those who get them in
pay for services, and can stand the
slight discount they are subjected
to. Our county offices never go
begging because the officials are
paid in warrants. If any resigna-
tions should occur on that account
their places could doubtless be flied
by men just as competent and trust
worthy, without much trouble.
Jurors and witnesses and the
magistrates themselves get very
well paid for the services they per-
form, even after the slight discount
is taken from the warrants, and
those who buy them-counting the
interest they draw-make a good
per cent. on their money. So on the
whole we fail to see any urgent
necessity for compelling a people
these hard times to pay off the prln-
cipal Of debt they had little voice
in making, and which, if left to
them they would prefer carrying
until that promised prosperity we
have been reading about reaches
here.
On the other hand, if they propose
to pay off the debt gradually, year
by year, by system of economy, by
appropriating less to other purposes
and applying the saving to the gem
eral debt, what is the use of bonds?
That is highly commendable thing
to do, it they will only do it. But
we fail to see where or how the bond
issue will help them; indeed it
might hamper them.
For illustration. Their plan, we
are informed, is to issue bonds in
denomination of $4,000, to run from
one to twenty years, one bond fall
ing due each year. Now if they can
cut down their other expenditures
and make a saving sufficient to re-
tire $4,000 bond, why could they
not just as easily retire $4,000 of out
standing warrants.
And suppose by some good for
tune or strict economy they should
find at the end of the year that they
had still surplus of another thous-
and dollars; with floating debt
they could retire another thousand
dollar warrant and stop the interest,
but they couldn't retire a bond for
another year, for none would be due,
and, unless needlessly and eX-
travagantly spent, that thousand
dollars would lie idle for that time.
In short, if the magistrates are
disposed to economize they can do
so as we'll If not better without the
bonds than with them; and If they
are not disposed to economic they
would be unable to retire the bonds
as they fell due, except by raising
the tax rate.
This is purely a business question,
in which the people are directly
concerned; they should study the
question and make their wishes
known to their magistrates.