The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-01-09

Also. in this connection, 1 suggest your
exempting all State, county and municipal
bonds from taxation. AS the law now
stands. all public property is exempt
from taxation and these bonds being the
public property of the public corporations
of Indiana, il would seem appropriate that
such obligations should not be taxed.
make this as suggestion rather than rec
concentration. L do. however, desire to
-emphaticalIy approve the policy OF con-
stantly and as rapidly as possible, paying
off the public obligations. and as far as
tons by any of the public corporations of
Indiana. Perhaps there Is no puplc evil
to-day fraught with so great injury 10 tne
public interests as the ready issuance OF
State. county of municipal bonds. we
should be a debt-paying, and not ceot-
creating State. We should set our races
against the issuance of additional bonded
the State, ought not to mortgage tnelr
future. | believe the people of this com
monwealth most heartily approve OF the
constitutional restrictions against increas-
ing the public debt. The combined school
and civil debts of all public corporations
should not exceed the per cent limitation
fixed by the Constitution.
Fire LOSSES and Insurance.
One of the utilities most intimately as
sociated with our citizenship Is that OF
insurance l am pleased to say TO you
that the stigma of Indiana's being the
home of wildcat insurance has been SUBJ
stantially removed The assessment law
of 1855 should be repealed and statutes plain
and direct enacted that will prevent lie
insurance by shares or bearing the faint OF
graveyard" insurance. Assessment insur-
ance, other than fraternal, has been the
source of inestimable loss. deception and
come, If it has not already arrived, Tor
the State to add greater safeguards.
recommend the enactment of a fire mar
shall law, modelled after that of the State OF
Massachusetts,. The fire loss Is directly re-
sponsible for excessive premiums. There is
just cause for complaint because of high
schedules, but with daily connagration
loss of 100000 IL can be readily seen that
rates to maintain solvent indemnity must
be on a parity. A comparison of the f1re
insurance reports of Indiana and other
of losses that has severely tried the sta
bility Of many of the standard companies,
and driven into liquidation or reinsurance
a number of reputable and conservatively
managed organizations. In States where
fire marshal laws have been enacted bet
ter conditions prevail and when these laws
are general fire losses can but be less and
premiums thereby lowered. fire marshal
statute, properly enforced, will decrease
the loss ratio i'm fire insurance. To require
by law that property shall be kept in an
insurable condition, to officially investigate
and control building construction, TO pur-
sue and punish incendiarsm, to investigate
causes and careessness. are the general
remedies sought to be applied in the flre
revenue accruing to the State from fnsur-
ance fees and taxes last year was $Z79. SS5. "a,
laws of reciprocal benefit shall be passed,
especially when the effect Will cheapen
The law in relation to the special-charter
companies should be amended 10 require
State supervision and examination. III
should be a penal offense to solicit insur-
ance for an unauthorized company. the
evil of placing irresponsible insurance by
no State
statute, out congressional legislation bear
ing on frauds will, it is hoped, soon de-
prive these worthless corporations of the
use of the mails. L suggest the laws be so
strengthened as to prevent the debenture,
so-called cooperative investment, mining.
oil and kindred alluring concerns that can
not comply with arbitrary standard OF
statutory requirement, from imposing upon
the public. In these times of universal
prosperity there is multiplication OF
worthless combinations preying upon the
credulity and confidence of the people. and.
while vigilance and heroic action has III
large measure prevented their invasion OF
Indiana, 1t Is only by explicit statutes ano
severe penalties that the future can cer-
tainly be closed against their open depreda-
tons.
l also recommend that the statute be
broadened as to the class of securities for
eign insurance companies shall possess In
order to be admitted to Indiana. 1t should
be amended so as to include municipal and
county bonds of other States. Perfectly
solvent and reputable fire companies have
withdrawn during the past two years, be-
cause they could not prohtably purchase
and retain the statutory securities now re.
quired. The security to our people would
be as standard, while the facilities for fire
indemnity would be increased
GOVERNOR Residence.
| To the last General Assembly was sub
mitted a bill providing for residence fol
| the Governor. At my request the same was
| withdrawn. My. experience In securing
l<.ax
| unsatisfactory, and 1 am firm in the belief
| that residence should be provided fol
| the chief executive of the State, and one In
keeping with the dignity of the ONCE: -,
| provide for the purchase or erection and
| furnishing OF residence to be occupied by
| the chief executive of the State. The heads
| OF all the States institutions, educationa
| excepted, are provided with residence
| maintenance for family and attendants
| while the Governor must provide all these
| from his salary and allowance for rent
Many of the States make suitable provision
| for their Governors in the way of house
| and furnishings, and this State should hav,
an official residence for its Governor, wher'
| it's citizens may, at any time. find the chic
1 executive.
Louisiana Purchase Exposition.
On the 21st day of February. 1901,
| communicated to the Sixty-second Genera
| Assembly a special message conveying tn,
| information that the Congress of th'
| United States had appropriated the sum o.
| 100000 as a means of promoting the pro
| posed Louisiana Purchase Exposition to b'
| held in the city of st. Louis in 1904. The
| original intention was to have the exposi
| ton held during the year 1903. but, afte
much elaboration, an arrangement wa.
| agreed to by the management, with thu
| consent of Congress, which postponed thu
| opening one year. At the time my specia
message was communicated to the Legis
| lature other measures were pending look
ing to appropriations for the Internationa
| Exposition at Charleston, s. c., and TIL
| Pan-American Exposition at Buffalo, and
| owing to these unusual conditions, the Gen
| eral Assembly deemed IL expedient to de
cline to take favorable action with refer
| ence to either of the three enterprises thel
appealing for recognition. Existing condi
one great exposition in prospect and tina
| is the worlds fair to be held in st. Loui
| next year. There is abundant assuranc
| that it will be one of the greatest achieve
| ments of its kind ever undertaken in thi
| country elsewhere. Primarily it is de
| signed to commemorate the purchase b
| the United States of what was original
| known as Louisiana Territory''-a terri
tory so vast that IL is now teeming EN-
pire of itself, enjoying all the wondrous ad
| vantages vouchSafed by a republican forr
| of government. The mere fact that the Ma
| tional Congress has voted to expend man
millions in aid of the enterprise Is assur
ance that it is worthy of full faith an
| confidence. The State of Missouri and tn
city of st. Louis have guaranteed man
more millions. and there is doubt bu
that the exposition will surpass any tina
have preceded IL, either in this country O
| Europe. The director of works estimate
that the great fair will have cost $780, Ot
before the opening day, and the total exper