The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1898-05-31
DURING THE FIRST YEAR
Summary of the Work Of Mayor
Harrington's Administration.
FROM OFFICIAL REPORTS
The Exact Financial Standing OF the
City-A Plan for Bonds at a Lower
Rate of Interest-On a Cash
Basis.

Mayor Harrington completed yester-
day an annual report or state
ment which will be read at tomorrow
nights council meeting. The report
will he a Of all the annual
reports submitted by the various OH
cials and will show. i'm a clear and con-
else way, all the work that has been
done by the city during the nrst year
of Mr.. H~arrington's administration
and what il has cost. 1t will also show
the exact financial standing of the city,
what the Indebtedness is. how near to
the limit the city Is. and IL is under-
stood that the mayor will suggest a
plan for issuing bonds at "a lower rate
of interest To take up the outstanding
warrants.
Ever since Butte became a city the
amount of outstanding warrants has
steadily increased. No matter what
party has been in power or who has
been mayor. the bulk OF outstanding
warrants have been steadily growing
and Butte's floating indebtedness has
been getting larger. On all this ffoat-
ing Indebtedness : per cent interest was
paid by the city until a year ago, when
the present administration had the rate
of interest reduced to 8 per cent. That
is a saving of l per rent on all the float
ing Indebtedness, but by funding this
floating indebtedness and issuing n
at 8 per cent, which can doubtless be
readily sold at par, another l per cent
of interest can be saved The mayor
has recently received "A number OF let
tiers from various Eastern money
handlers inquiring whether Butte Is
likely to issue bonds this year. IL all
the floating Indebtedness could be
taken up i'm bonds. then the city would.
for "a time. at least. be on a cash
basis.
When Mayor Edwards of Helena was
i'm Butte the other day he questioned
the legal right of the city of Butte to
issue "A one mill tax for the sinking
fund, and claimed that the money set
apart for the sinking fund must. un-
der the law. be taken from the general
tax instead of being raised by "A spe-
cial tax. The law limits the taxation
for general purposes to 10 mills. Mr..
Edwards contended that the sinking
fund should be taken from the mount
raised by this general tax instead Of
being extra. Otherwise, he said, this 10
mill limit would be no protection to the
~xpaye at all. Money could be bor-
rowed, bonds issued and taken up by a
sinking fund i'm a few years. and sew
eral mills of extra tax for sinking fund
might be levied.
The Butte officials did not agree with
Mr.. Edwards on this point. They con-
slider that the sinking fund is an extra
] tax and not to be taken from the gem
eral fund. The reason why Butte's out
standing warrants have been increas-
ing is hat there has been such n con-
slant drain on the general fund All
the Jacobs defalcation cane out IF the
general fund. which set the city's
finances clear back. N all judgments
against the city are paid from that
fund. whereas they might legally be
paid by a special tax. All the interest
on the outstanding warrants is paid
from the general fund. too. and ii is on
account of these drains largely that the
general tax has not usually been suffi
Client to meet the running expenses OF
the vernme Could the general tax
be used solely for the running expenses,
IT would. i'm all probability, be amply
sufficient.
The plan of the administration is to
pay off the bonded Indebtedness in 1.
years. The city's bonded Indebtedness
is STAG, 900. by putting 1900 i'm the
sinking fund ZACH year the total
amount will be wiped out i'm II years
This can be done and the interest kept
paid by levying. in alternate years, a
mill lax and "A half mill tax for the
sinking fund.