The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1903-03-05
IT'S A GREAT
MARES NEST
Citizen "FeenanceerS" Have
Sprung a "SockdaIOger"
CONCERNING CITY BONDS
Two Very Wooden Heads
Were Put Together.
OTHER HOT AIR STORIES
Books of the City Treasurer
the Best Evidence.

The ''feenanceers" Of the Citizens"
ticket have discovered a new mares nest
In the Mclean administration and the
committee on hot air is exploiting it
from the curbstone and from the sustain
ing shady sides of telegraph poles. The
mares nest is this and it is good one.
Somebody discovered that the Mclean adj
ministration sold the park bonds voted
TO the Dold Packing company on basis
of six per cent interest. Somebody else
discovered that Ffnlay Ross administra-
ton sold city bonds bearing four per cent
interest. These two ''feenanceers'' put
their heads together and started the
mares nest. They were very wooden
heads or they would not have started a
mares nest which could be so easily eX-
ploded.
To be a god 'feenanceer' one must I'M
derstand the difference between common
every day bonds and refunding bonds and
he must keep abreast of up-to-date fee
nanceering'' or he viii not understand the
relative market value of common bonds
and refunding bonds.
This mater of '-feenanceering' is a
very COiHDlltdltu dildAl, d. many ltdOtA =
will understand, and it is necessary TO
make It plain. Surprising for instance,
that Judge Milton or Citizen Jim Dorsey
or any other judge or citizen would go
TO Mr.. Sect Z. Whine and say: Mr..
Whine, l am a little shy on small change
this morning and would like to borrow
800. 900" Mr. Whine would say why
certainly, Judge, or Jim, how long do you
want-it forT'
Just for a few weeks the borrower
would say, until l close a small deal 1
have on hand
1t win cost you eight per cent" Mr..
Wine would say.
Why the borrower would reply, II
see you advertise it in the Eagle for 8
per cent"
VERY true Mr.. Whine would respond.
but that is long time money-fiye years
or more"
That is financiering Finlay Ross and
some OF his followers know it is.
The common bonds sold by the Mclean
administration We're intended for two
year bonds and accepted with that under
standing; and when they are refunded
they will sell on a rate of interest prob
ably 324 per cent.
Mr.. NcLean's administration has not
been as.much in the habit Of selling bonds
as former administrations. but il is safe
10 say that Ben viii make a better deal
when he sells refunding bonds-a thing
he has not yet done during his admins
tration. Mr.. Mclean believes more in
the city redeemns its refunded bonds
than in selling refundinE bonds and If
any 'feenanceer' viii so to the city
treaSurer's books he will see that Mayor
Mclean has bought back or redeemed
more than $4,000 of the city's outstand-
ing debt. George +. Harris city treas
mill h .cl,o- ord
if the citizens ticket ''feenanceers' want
TO have another dream" they can put
the figures in their pipes and smoke them
1t is pretty hard TO understand why any
person in Kansas-this Sreat school of
financial knowledge would be gulled by
anybody into the idea that because Fin
lay Ross sold refunding bonds Of twenty
years interest paying life at 4 per cent
Ben Mclean could sell two year common
bonds on the same interest paying basis.
The "feenanceers' do not know. evidently.
much about the lows Of finance. Ii ought
TO be explained to them and in doing so
the case of the park bonds viii be in
stanced. These bonds were not even
voted at a regular election-they were
voted at a special election. something
fnanciers are always a little nervous
about. Some irregularity in the election
might develop 10 invalidate the bonds
altogether. The notice for the election
might be Irregular or a hundred and one
things could be brought UP to jeopardizc
the value of the bonds and lose the pur-
chaser the entire sum. For this reason
bond purchasers always demand a suffi-
cient extra rate Of interest for the
chances they take. This and the short
life of the park bonds are what caused
the interest TO he six per cent and ii is a
wonder-considering the double reason
that more interest was not demanded
The act OF refunding municipal
debt cures ali previous defects in com
mon bond and puts their safety beyond
question or doubt. That Is the reason
Finlay Ross sold refunded bonds on
four per cent basis ana there is no good
reason why Wichita bonds would not sell
on a sS4 per cent basis now
Until a few weeks ago Citizen Dorsey
Citizen McNichol, Judge Milton. Judge
McCandless and many others did not be
leve Finlay Ross was q good Hnancier.
They fought him on that theory for three
successive campaigns. Now they are
quite sure that he is the finest tnancier
that ever came down the pike. Very wei.
They are directed 10 the city trcasureTs
books TO ascertain If he ever sold, during
his administrations. a public improve
ment bond on any basis less than six per
cent II he didn't then the gentlemen