The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1897-03-26
TAX PAYER
Produces Some Strong Ar
guments Against Bond
Issue.
Misleading Statements From The Pen
0f0ther Writers.

Editor of Democrat: Noticing that
your columns are open to remarks
in the matter of issuing bonds for
the purpose Of the town buying a
natural gas plant, being a citizen
as well as tax payer, l feel l am
not intruding by offering my senti-
ments in the matter. To be candid
in the first place am bitterly OPP
posed TO any undertaking that will
raise taxes one cent, and am heart
lily in favor of any measure that
will reduce taxes. In the first
place is ii not a matter of specula.
tion to go in the gas business, and
are not the chances much more
against US than they are favorable? :?
l have noticed some figures in n
recent article in one of our news
papers, from which our prosperity
in the Gas Business is based.
l believeit is unfair to compare
Logan with Lancaster in the Gas
Business, and the proposition that
The city of Lancaster has paid its
self entirely out of debt by its rev.
enues from its gas is entirly false
and misleading.
Lancaster to day is still in debt
much more than Logan, and the
only way they are better off than
Logan is that Lancaster has been
able to meet its interest and bonds
that become due, from its Gas rent,
and if there gas was to play out to.
day they would be in worse hole
than we are. | want TO express
dIstiu city that | am in favor of
Cheap Gas one dollar a fire or less
if possible, but we have q bitter oX-
ample before us, our water works.
There the rates are so high, we can
not afford to use water, in the first
place we the tax payer paid, or
will piy every cent of it, and it is
daily resumiug in debt, and never
will be self supporting, and still if
we wish to have the cOnveinences
of water and sewer we must pay a
very high rate. / use this as
comparison for Gas. Say we do
20 in Gas Business and after sink
ing $4,000 or $4,000 in n plant
then il the number Of fires are not
up to expectation we will undoubt-
edly have to pay high enough
rate to meet the running expenses
and to pay off the bonds and inter-
est that is due each year, and l
doubt if this would not be the case.
We will commence this year if /
am not misinformed to pay off
T5000,O0 Gas Bonds, and expenditure
from which We never received 81
cent in return, another thing what
assurance have we thai the gas is
going to last length of time, that
will justify us putting in such an
enormous out lay ofmoney.
would like to vote for some
measure that would reduce taxes,
but can not see how by adding
10000 dollars 10 our already 100000
of bonded Indebtedness will do 1t,
just think suppose this issue carries
and we are placed under bonded
Indebtedness Of 100000 dollars,
this amount is just about one tenth
Of orr whole valuation Of property
in logan, wonder if that wouldn't
be uice inducement to offer some
kind of an establishment to start
up in Logan.
am anXiously waiting to see
what "back soon" has for this weeks
Sentinel, and l may come back
again myself.
Mr.. L iitor, politically 1 can't see
things as you do butI assure you
that am along with you in this
matter and will help bury this
monstroslty on April 9th.
"a TAX PAYER"
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