The Savannah morning news., 1903-03-13
FOUND FOR CITIES
SUPREME COURT HOLDS THEY CAN
ISSUE BONDS.
THE UNEARNED INTEREST
CANNOT BE Considered PART Of
THE BONDED DEBT.

| Decision Was Favorable to Column
bus and CaIhoun-Those PIaces
Can Now Issue Their BOnds-Other
Cities Desiring to Make Bond Is
sues May Proceed, Provided the
| Seven Per Cent. Ratio Is Not Ex-
ceeded-Plans for Georgia Ex-
hibit at st. Louis.
| Atlanta, Ga, March 1.-THE Su-
preme Court rendered decisions to-day
in the cases of Epping vs. the Mayor
and Council of Columbus and Rolf
against the Mayor and Council of CAL
| houn that will set at rest all fears
about county and municipal bond is
| sues.
The court holds in these cases that
| the unearned interest cannot be con-
sidered as a part of the bonded debt
in arriving at the constitutional limit
of such bond issues or in any sense.
Columbus proposed to issue $3.50, 900
of bonds for the purpose of building
a water works system and Calhoun
| proposed to issue $4,000 of bonds for
school purposes. There were other
| points, but the main poin t raised
against the valuation of these bonds
in both cases was that. with all OF
the interest that would have to be paid
on them taken into consideration as a
| part of the debt, it would run the
| bonded debt of those municipalities
considerably over the per cent of
taxable property limit fixed by the
constitution.
In holding that the unearned inter-
est could not be considered in arriv-
! ing at this limit, the court stated that
the popular Interpretation of the term
bonded debt" is the one that should
be taken, since a constitution is an
instrument fixed by the people. A debt
~ an individual, corporation, a
state or municipality, the court says,
is the principal and the accrued in
terest on given date. Unearned in
| terest is Tot in such a sense part
| of the debt.
The Supreme Court thus affirms the
| decisions of the Superior Courts which
passed orders validating the bonds is
sued by Columbus and Calhoun and
those bonds can now be placed on the
1 market.
Atlanta and other places which were
contemplating issuing bonds can pro-
coed with their plans for so doing so
long as the principal and due and un-
paid interest on such bonds does not
| exceed the per cent. limit.
For n Georgia Exhibit.
i Interest of members of the Legisa-
| ture Is being attracted to a resolution
| introduced at the last session, but
| which did not pass, permitting the
| Commissioner of Agriculture to use
| $4,000 of the agricultural fund for the
| purpose of making an agricultural ex-
tf h.
1904. Many members have agreed to
| support the resolution when it comes
| up this summer.
| A plan has been suggested to enlist
the interest of cotton mill men, rail-
roads, lumber mills and other large in
| dutries to get them to make attractive
exhibits at that time, and by a combi-
| nation of forces 1t is thought Georgia
| can thus make an excellent showing.
| Many members of the Legislature have
recently expressed a willingness to do
| all they can to secure the passage of
! this resolution.
For short Session.
| A movement is on foot among GER
! tain members of the Legislature to cut
| the coming summer session of that
| body to twenty days and have a ses-
| sion of thirty days in 1904, making a
total of only fifty days in ALL as would
| have been the case had not the session
| been changed from fall to summer.
! Representative G. l.. Davis of Mer-
riwether, who was here to-day and
Senator SHELTON, author of the sum-
| mer sessions bill, are working hard in
] behalf of short summer session. In
/ case the efforts OF those who desire a
| short session succeed, there will be
| saved to the state about sec, 900 in the
| per diems of members and other ex-
| penses incident to a session of fifty
| days Those members who have been
| here recently have expressed them
| selves strongly in favor of the short
| session idea.
Inman Opposes Bonds.
Alderman Hugh T. Inman, who is
| chairman of the Finance Commute OF
| Council, has announced himself as
/ strongly opposed to the proposed bond
| issue of $780, 900 by Atlanta, and says
| he will fight it. This means that the
| issue will have a hard struggle If 1t
| gets through at all.
Executions Against Railroads.
Controller General VIM A. Wright
| to-day issued executions against the
| Darien and Western, the Stillmore Air
| Line and the Millen and Southwestern
railroads for taxes due the state and
| the counties through which they run.
| These taxes should have been paid
| last December. The executions will
be forwarded to the sheriffs of the
counties in which the roads are To-
| Gated.
Church Row Ended.
The troubles of the Jones Avenue
| Baptist Church were ended tonight,
when the church conference accepted
the resignation of the pastor. Rev. w.
| ]. Holtzclaw.
Lower Courts Confirmed.
Among the decisions handed down
by the Supreme Court to-day were the
following:
Anderson VS. state. thnvicted of man
slaughter before Judge Dart, Ware SUI
perior Court. Judgmgat affirmed.
Smith VS. state, before Judge Dart
Camden Superior Court. Judgment at
firmed.
Southern Railway Company VS. Cook,
damages, before Judge Bennett, Coffee
Snnerior Court Iudenenf affirmed