The Montgomery tribune. (Montgomery City, Mo.) 1892-1910, 1900-09-28


the debt on the fest Of January 1865,
when the republicans first went into
power According to the Auditors re.
port, page 1ib, 1888. democratic au-
thority, was $s6.00O,0oO IN round
numbers.
This was when the republican party
assumed control Of AFFAIRS Of the state
IL went out Of power In 1870 and the
liberal Republicans came In for two
years. Democracy succeeded IN 1873.
in 1860, 600 miles OF this road was
cold under the act Of the legislature
passed In 1887, the same act by which
the bonds wer- authorized. The
roads were sold At = time when they
were bankrupt, with nine years in
terest unpaid, with rotten ties and
worn out road bed, with rickety,
r.iling stock, and engines that had
been ten years IN use. aud brought,
rs MIR. Dockery says In his speech.
1918 i,49s, or s9.0I7 a mile. But OF
this more anon.
! quote again from Mr.. Seibert
through the mouth Of Dockery.
when the democratic party took
control OF our state government In
1873 the bonded debt of the state, the
legacy of republican misrule amounted
to S20,s6s ,00O.'
This debt, MS we have shown from
Official figures OF Walkers Report, was
a democratic debt of $50, 100000. and
according TO Mr.. Dockery II has been
decreased Ia eight years 10 S2O,S69, O05
In other words, the republicans came
into power at theclose of the war, the
state rent and torn by an awful civil
strife, aud according to Dockery's own
figures they paid of SIS, 200, 900 Of the
debt In eight years. What has de-
mocracy done since. The debt Jan. /
1878 was $~2O.s6s,sss. On the lst of
Jan. 1899, according 20 Seibert,s
official report. the debt was $685.
$40. This debt was scheduled as
follows, (see page "a Seibesi's lsss
rsport)
Total bonded debt -. s43 .oQ
schooi fund c~erinoatss. 8.scs %
Seminary mud ccrttiicAtes. 80. 4 II. ~
But this Is not all tho debt. Mr..
Seibert admits that the deficiency In
The revenue was at that time Jan. /,
1, 1899. s207, 067. Then the officers
of the state took s226,00O that be-
longed to the Insurance fund aud used
that instead of paying IL over to the
counties in l897-9s. They also used
$4,000 which was collected from In-
surauce compauies as fines under the
trust law which the constitution says
shall 90 TO the school fund. This
altogether foots up $5l3,5O2,22 %, which
should be added to the debt aud this
leaves the total debt to-day $780,
S4l ~.
The reduction since 1878 twenty
eight years ago, has accordingly bsen
the difference between s2o,s6s,Q 900 the
debt then and the So, 500 ,34l, whore 1t
stands to-day, altogether $l2, 29s,659
in twenty-eigbt years.
Again ! will quote from Mr..
Dockery-Seibert.
From January l, 1878, to July 10
1900, the democratic administration
OF Missouri collected of the peoples
money for public purposes, sl05, 256.-
953. This money was disbursed with
out the loss of u dollar TO the tax
payers
Mr.. Dockery evidently forgets the
steal for which poor holland was the
scape goat and suffered punishment.
and by inference he means this alleged
reduction in the public debt was from
that fund collected from the people,
in taxes.
Under the constitution adopted by
the Republicans, a fund was provided
for, to be securely invested aud sac.
redly preserved for the support OF
the public schools only the Interest
to be used. That fund was invested
in U. S. bonds which drew interest
from the general government. in 1883
(see session acts Of that year, those
bonds were converted into state
bonds aud the latter were cancelled
AMI State certificates issued IN lieu
thereof. A fund hat drew interes,
was then Illegally and demonstration.
ally converted into a debt that pays
interest aud the proceeds used in pay,
ment of the state debt, The amour,
(see auditors report is97-9s) Is 81,