Decorah public opinion. (Decorah, Winneshiek County [Iowa]) 1895-1928, 1900-09-19

| uation, but while the farmer is not hit
| so hard by the assessor, there are val.
| liable features of the law by which
very much hidden property. which
hitherto escaped taxation, has been I'M
earthed. So you see. father, that
while, in fact. the assessed valuation
| throughout the state has been lower,
| the good times have enabled the people
| to pay their taxes so much more
| promptly, and this, together with the
tax on the hidden property that the
in much larger receipts in the treasury
Of the state"
The records in the building and loan
department of the auditors office
showed that there were about 100
building and loan associations doing
business in Iowa. Tie large bulk of
these are what are classed as domes-
tic lOcals-that is to say, they do bust
ness within the county only in which
they are established. The building and
loan associations doing business in the
state have assets aggregating about
$12,OO0,O0O with annual receipts of
about $7,OOOOOO.
In the insurance department it was
developed that the insurance compa-
mics of the state are enjoying a good
degree of prosperity, and, while the re-
ports are not all in for this year. they
indicate large increase i'm business,
and especially so as compared with
1896.
School Fund Loans.
Another feature which showed very
clearly the better financial conditions
in the different counties this year as
compared with four years ago was the
reports of loans of the permanent
school fund. Up to the last session of
the legislature the law required that
the school fund should be loaned at 6
per cent interest, but the good times Of
late made it impossible to obtain that
rate of interest, and the general assem-
bly, last winter amended this law so as
to permit county auditors to loan this
fund at ) per cent interest While on
this subject the attention of Farmer
Brown was called to the following ex-
tract from the Rockwell City Advocate,
printed at the county seat of Calhoun
county:
"a striking illustration Of the differ
ence in financial conditions in Calhoun
county now and four years ago Is
found at the county auditors office.
County Auditor Riley has charge Of
the permanent school fund that the
counties are permitted to loan to indi-
viduals on good real estate security.
Four years ago there was more de-
mand for this money at per cent than
could be supplied, and the names of
those wishing to borrow were placed
on list and they were served in turn.
Now the money cannot be loaned at 5
per cent. In the past year $4,000 of
this fund has been transferred to other
counties because Calhoun county farm
ers would not borrow it,
Auditor Merriam stated that the con-
dition in Calhoun county was but an
( example of the condition in many other
counties of the state, where, instead of
the farmers standing in line at the
auditors Office to borrow school fund
at 6 per cent interest, they were loan
ing money themselves.
At the Treasurer's Office.
Leaving the auditors office Farmer
Brown and his son visited State Treas
urer HerriOtt. He spoke of the fact
that the receipts of the general fund
of the state had never been so large as
OF hn nd rAfn IN thA
promptness with which the taxes are
being RENTED by the various counties.
He thought that this could not be 9TH
erwise than very telling argument in
favor of the claim that theprosperity is
general, and that it reaches all classes,
the farmer and the laboring man as
well as the capitalist The records of
the treasurer's office gave information
agreeing exactly with that obtained
from the state auditor, and only made
more thoroughly complete the proof
that the people in Iowa were in very
much more prosperous condition at
present than in the years when Democ-
racy was in power at Washington and
adversely in power everywhere else.
Decrease OF Number of Convicts.
At the Office of the board of control
Farmer Brown discovered an unique
evidence of prosperity, but one which
beyond questionisp pertinent. He found
there reports of the movement of the
population of the two penitentiaries of
the state, Fort Madison and Anamosa.
He had read somewhere a supposed
relation between hard times and crime
and he thought that possibly these rec
ords might bear out this supposed rela-
tiOnship-in other words, he would find
an increase of crime during the hard
times and decrease when times be-
| came easier. and that was just what
he did find. The average number con-
fined In the two penitentiaries for July
showed a steady increase during the
years of depression up to 1898. when
the average number of inmates during
| that month was 1,152. Last year the
average for July was 1,O27 and this year
on July 81, there were imprisoned Mt
| Anamosa 4I5 and Fort Madison Az, or
total of 947 in the two Institutions.
| This is the lowest number that has
| been reached since 1895. and ii shows