Santa Fe new Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1898-1951, 1899-08-19

get out OF It's pfedlcament noHeStiy anu
in the best way it can.
Major r.. ]. Palen was the next speak
err. He said that the annual interest
charge of the county with its present in
debtedness is SAT, 900, and that with city,
school, state taxes and ordinary county
taxes, $100, 900 would have to be raised
annually to meet those obligations. An
individual with ST. 500, 900 assets and
$500, 900 debts would be considered well
off, for he could realize on his assets.
But with a county it is different. Living
expenses of the taxpayer come hrst, anu
taxes can only be the balance over and
above living expenses, or else no citizen
| will be left to pay taxes. TO force the
| collection Of so large a debt as the
| county owes would make 1T impossible
| for the taxpayer to remain in the coun-
ty. He would gather such of his prop
erty as is portable and seek other quar-
ters. Major Palen remembered that ev-
ery one was enthusiastic in voting the
railroad bonds. The county tool advan-
tage of the fatal facility of running into
debt, and it is now suffering the inevi-
table consequences, and as a result ev-
erybody squeals. He advised the ap-
pointment of a committee to make the
best bargain possible, and to ask con-
gress for the necessary legislation FOR a
new issue of refunding bonds that
should be agreed upon. The county
must shoulder its burden manfully and
honestly.
e. A, Fiske said that he did not be-
lieve the debt to be such as the county
ought to pay. There is a difference pc
tween a municipal debt and an ind1vld-
ual debt. 1t was only a very small MI
nority of voters in the county who went
to the polls to vote on the railroad pono
proposition, the others refralnlng from
their right to vote because they knew
that the attempt to issue those BONDS
was in strict violation of the act OF con-
| gress. The supreme court held that a
: bond issued by a municipal corporation
beyond it's legal power to issue is null
and yoid. and there can be no innocent
7 purchaser of such indebtedness. Bu'
while the deb is not a moral nor an
equitable one, it has been made a lega
, one by an act of congress, passeC
n through the efforts of the New Mexico
delegate to congress and a few promi'
| nent citizens of this county. There cal
{ be no reputation Of an unjust debt; IL
L fact, if there can be, the county, by re
= l ,.:- - fl,o tr,farnCf charges f0l
several years, has in fact repudlatet
. the debt, but he favored a compromise
> anyway. OF the 81, 800, 900 valuation O.
this county, only a small part is rea
d estate, while the remainder is persona
t property. How long will that persona
property stay in this county If the tai
{ levy is increased to 10 and ID per cent
. Every one will pick up his belonging
y and AXE them away. The bank IS to-
d good a business concern to remain her
Il under such conditions, business mel
must get out when they cannot max
t enough to pay taxes. The county can
not pay so or 50 cents on the dollar;
l might as we'll fight and go under tina
to make a compromise that it canno
d pay. AT the very highest, rs cents OF
t the dollar can be paid, and even tina
would be a crushing burden. Highe
taxes will drive all business out OF tn
county. Twenty-Five cents on the dolla
u is more than the bondholders will eve
get on their bonds. It is true that thi
- meeting might be larger, but local busl
ness men have a way of shifting tn
burden and responsibility in his mat
y ter. Only the other day a business ma
: on the plaza said: II know that m
: property is not valued at more tina
' one-fifth of it's worth, but I know, toe
d cannot pay more taxes than it is as
sessed for. l couldn't live here if I ha
"a to pay on it's full value Of 100000 Thi
: is not the case of only one business mar
{ but of the majority Of them. An exceed
, lngly convincing statement can b
y made to the b%ondholders that this coun
= ty cannot pay more han 25 cents 0
~ the dollar, and that by no process of tn
y law can they ever hope to get more tina
- that. Ask for no terms, but present
ISIdlGlIltUl, dllu say 81 q VIC Pdi
II and not more. Frequently the other sid
l is as much scared as the attacking side
" Those bondholders can be made to fee
that 25 cents on the dollar given Their
a voluntarily is far more than they Wi
ever get any other way. A 5O-cent com
promise would impose a larger tax o.
residents han n Of them will be abb
- to pay. Make a statement of the rea
. and the personal property Of the county
find out how much can be raised for in
II terest urpose without overburdeninI
= the taxpayers, and then offer that as
: compromise.
y General Bartlett spoke again. Fl
said it is true that business men ar
shifting responsibility not only in thi
question, but in other matters. Man,
of them might either have had mucl
confidence in the ability of others t,
settle this question, or might CRITICS
those who attended the meeting, n
matter which way the question SHOULD
be decided.
The next speaker, Fernando Nolan
said that a compromise should be mad,
:. on 8 or 10 cents IN the dollar, and tina
. the bondholders would accept it. TIL
= bonds were bought by them on specula
ton, and they would make a profit OF
;, them at 10 cents on the dollar.
w. M. Berger thought that 10 cent
would be accepted by the bondholders
He pointed to the great depreciation o
property in the county, and cited man!
properties that are not worth one-fiftl
. to-day what they cost ten years ago
Real estate has become SO ~YaluelesI