The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1902-09-03

The total for the three Democratic
years is 81, 23S, 1916. Deduct the receipts
of the Republican years from this and
we have a balance of $287, S12.33.
s12O, 2O2.50 of the additional receipts
which the Democrats are charged with
arose from the sale of the bonds which
they issued to pay for the debts OF the
penitentiary contracted under the rule of
Senator .Pritchards friends. And right
here / will remark that the face value
Of the bonds sold was only $40 900.
S144 10000 of these additional receipts
arose from the sale of the bonds by
Senator Pritchard's treasurer, Mr., w. H.
Worth, in order to meet these Same old
debts brought over to the Democratic
Legislature from Republican misrule and
Acknowledgement.
$40354.63 of these additional receipts
arose from the receipts of the Shell Fish
Commission, otherwise known as the oys-
ter fund
So, $4,000 of these additional receipts
was obtained by the sale of the bonds
issued to raise money with which to pay
for the State farm, purchased for the use
of the penitentiary under the manage
mcnt of Captain w. H. Day.
500 1922 of these additional receipts
which Senator Pritchard charges that
the Democrats collected from the tax
payers was paid by the United States on
account Of claims growing out of the
Spanish War.
To this should be added S39, 2O5.47, the
increase in the special tax for Confed-
crate soldiers.
The remainder of the differences in the
receipts between the Democrats and the
Republicans is made up of numerous
small items, including the earnings of
The charitable institutions. the deaf and
dumb and blind and the like. For in
stance, DR.. Cyrus Thomson, Secretary of
State, turned into the State Treasury as
taxes on the seals for the year 1898
$109.74. while last year Colonel Grimes
from the same office. paid into the Treas
ury as taxes on seals $63690. During the
same year Rev. Baylus Cade, who is now
Republican candidate for Judge turned
into the Treasury as fees from his office
as private secretary, $629.85, while Col
onel Pearsall, the private secretary to
Governor Aycock, turned in fees last year
amounting to $1,17990. A most cursory
examination of the figures shows that
the charge made by Senator Pritchard
that the Democrats raised vast sums of
money more than the Republicans by
taxing the people falls to the ground.
1t is a fact which any one can see by
turning to the Public Laws OF the State
and reading the Revenue Acts for the
several years, that the rate of taxation
for State purposes is less under the Act
of 1901 than any year since the Civil War.
The rate fixed by the Democrats is TWEEN
ty-one cents on the one hundred dollars
valuation of property. The rate fixed
By the FUsionists was twenty-five and
two-thirds cents on the one hundred dol
lars, but their act was so glaringly vio
lative of the State Constitution that the
Republican Supreme Court declared it to
be void and the old tax of twentyoIe and
two thirds cents was collected.
FUSION LEGACIES
The Senator declares that for the year
1899 the expenditures exceeded the re-
ceipts by the sum of $40 048.07 This is
true but to whom should this deficit
be charged? The fiscal year began De-
cember 1st, 1898, and ended November
60 1899 The Fusionists were in possess
sion of all departments of government,
except the Legislature, which met in jan
Gary, 1899. Governor Russell and his ap-
pointees retained control of the peniten-
tiary and other important departments of
the State government until 1901, when
Governor Aycock was inaugurated. The
taxes collected for the year 1899 were
those levied by the Fusionists and not
those levied by the Legislature of 1899
But let us accent the Senator's position
and hold the Democratic party response
Bile for Governor Russell's administration
While the platform of his party is claim
ing credit for that same administration,
and what do We find? We find from the
Auditors report that among the expen-
ditures were s103. 633.45 paid in the debts
contracted by John R. Smith and New