The times., 1898-01-30
v|RG|N|A's BOND INTEREST
Ii Will Soon Be Due and Funds
Are Scarce.
SALARIES MAY BE REDUCED
This Is One Way the Money Can
BE Provided 10 Meet the Big De-
nand-A PerpieXing Convict
Question Confronts the Law
makers.


many Virginians who fear that the
State will be sold at auction this year
This is due to the fact that the interest
on the large bonded Indebtedness will
become due. and the belief exists in
many minds that there viii not be
enough money in the treasury to pay it.
one thing is certain, and that is that
unless there is a retrenchment in the
expenses of the Commonwealth or "a
larger tax levy the interest cannot be
paid.
The general assembly has been ex-
pected long before this to take active
steps towards retrenchment. The only
action looking towards a reduction in
the heavy expenses of the State has
been a resolution shaving down the
salaries of officials 10 per cent. While
this win help in meeting the interest. il
viii by no means provide the full
amount.
The work Of the special joint commit
tee of the Legislature to investigate the
expenditures for the State institutions
viii undoubtedly help the treasury.
This committee will report next week.
Ii is understood that the report will
embody some very interesting state
ments. 1t is said that some of the Off
cials have included in their purchases
for their institutions articles for their
personal use. In this way the State
has been losing considerable money
yearly. The legislature Will undoubted-
ly formulate a plan TO prevent such
abuses in the future, and may reduce
the salaries of the officials taking such
liberties.
The office holding community has
been living in constant dread of the
present assembly. They have been ex-
pecting daily to hear of the introduc-
ton of a measure reducing their sala-
ries. 1t has long been an open secret
that the State has been employing too
large a clerical staff in the State library
building. where are the offices of the
treasurer and auditors. : liae of these
men. il is said, do not 10 a fun days
work in a week, and a delegate today
said that from his Investigations he was
certain that half the clerks could do the
work and he was seriously contemplaJ
ing the question Of introducing bill re-
quiring the treasurer and auditors to
reduce their forces one-half. The plan
of the delegate, if carried out, VIII save
the State fully $4,000 annually.
TIL legislature, if it goes earnestly
about the matter Of cutting salaries,
can easily reduce the State expenses
$4,000 and yet leave all the State en-
ployes very handsomely provided for.
The proposition to put the convicts
to work raising sugar beets is meeting
with a great deal of favor. The plan is
to begin using them on the State farm
up the James river and buy or rent
additional land so that the State can
make a large experiment in the grow
ing OF beetS. The sugar beet question
has been agitated among the farmers
for more than a year and a vast num-
Der of them viii plant the seed this
coming spring.
Several refineries are TO be built the
largest of which VIII probably be here.
The experiments in raising the beets
last year were very satisfactory. The
soil and climate are both well adapted
TO the growth of the vegetable.
The question of what to do with the
convicts is getting to be a very serious
one. The penitentiary is not half large
enough to accommodate them and the
State is too poor to build a new one.
Then. too, there is a growing belief
that the conVicts should not be allowed
to compete with organized labor, which
they are doing right along as there
are both shoe and tobacco factories at
the penitentiary. The convicts cannot
be kept in idleness. Some of the law.
makers think that they ought to be
utilized in making good roads. the
majority of the highways now being
in an almost impossible condition in
winter.
As sugar beets need great deal of
attention it has been proposed to hire
them out to farmers to be used in the
summer months. Virginia may adopt |
the Georgia system of auctioneering |
them off 10 the highest bidder.
Senator Lowry has introduced a bill |
to provide for the erection of new
buildings for the penitentiary. The |
measure provides for an addition. con-
tanning steel cages, for the accommo- /
dation Of 800 prisoners.