The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1904-08-25
BOND DEAL COMMENTS.
what the Kansas DaiIies Are Saying
About IT.

The Comanche County bond dea
which has been thoroughly aired in
the state Journal is attracting the at
tention it deserves throughout tbs
state
Herald:
Is this a Square Deal?
The members of the state school
fund commission have done another
startling thing They nave purchased
for the state school fund $123,0OO
worth of Comanche county bonos al
par. drawing 4 y per cent interest.
1t would be interesting to know why
Mr. Burrow, Mr.. Dayhon and Mr..
Coleman spent this enormous sum OF
the peoples money for such bonds
as these in view of the following in
disputable facts:
First these same Comanche coun-
" bonds were a drug on the market.
They were recently begging for a
buyer at less than par and then drew
s per cent interest They were offered
i've months ago to the school fund
commissioners at per cent. by a bond
Mrm- Later the commissioners bought
these bonds through A A. GODDARD, but
allowed Comanche county to refund
them, cutting the rate down to Y per
cent. The state lost over $50, 900 in
terest by this reduction. If the school
fund commissioners regarding CONAN
che bonds as a good investment why
didn't they take these bonds four
cent on exactly the same security?
Did they regard it of more importance
TO let Mr. GODDARD receive $4,000 from
Comanche county for refunding the
bonds than for the state to receive
$50. 900 in INTEREST,"
There are already in the state treas
ury, purchased by the schol fund COM
uissioners years ago, nearly $4,000
worth of Comanche county bonds
These bonds have been due most of
them since 1898. and Comanche county
has not been able to pay them. The
state school fund commissioners knew
fhis- Why did they spend $12S,000 for
additional bonds of a county that was
already in default of its bonded in
debtedness2 Would any banking house
or bond investor or any other man
have bought Comanche county bonds
under the circumstances?
Comanche county's total assessed val
uation was only 100000 returned by
the county assessors. While the valu-
alton remained at this figure the school
fund commissioners could not buy
1928. 900 worth of Comanche county
that a county's bonded Indebtedness
must not exceed Is per cent of its as
sessed valuation But Mr.. GODDARD who
IS a wise man, and slick bond agent,
and who wanted the SIS, 900 commission,
admits that he induced the state board
of equalization, which is presided over
by T. T. Kelly, to arbitrarily raise the
valuation of Coma nche county from
$500. 900 as returned by the assessors
to over 81. 600 600. This was in order to
legalize the $123,0OO worth of bonds.
Was this a good deal? Comanche is
one of the poorest counties in Kansas;
its population is only sixteen hundred
people. 1t already owed the state school
fund thousands of dollars. which it
could not ray. The commissioners say
they were anxious to invest the money.
Then why didn't they invest in other
bonds2 The very week these Comanche
county bonds were bought, Topeka is
in Chicago. These draw per cent in
terest. A Topeka bond is surely bet
ter than a Comanche county bond, be-
cause Topeka can pay her debts and
Comanche county can not. And 5 per
cent interest from a town that can pay
its debts is better than Az per cent
from a county that hasn't tried to pay
its debts for six or seven years. Even
the school fund commissioners ought to
be able to see that of course the To-
peka bonds would have been a straight
business deal, and there wouldn't have
been any $4,000 commission for Mr..
GODDARD. or any loss of $4,000 to the
state on interest sacrificed by a COM
mission which seems to think more of
Mr.. GODDARD than of its duty to the
state
The following is from the Daily Sa-
lima Union:
The School Bond Graft
The Topeka State Journals expos
by the Kansas school fund commission
should put every taxpayer in the state
on the alert. This method of grating
the taxpayers hard earned dollars has
been exposed so often that it is a Won
der that the legislature has not long
ago devised means to stop it. 1t en-
phasizes the necessity of an opposition
paper at Topeka to the administration
in control and it would we'll pay the
taxpayers of the state, no matter what
their political views may be, to put
their support to such a paper by pat
ronizing it with their subscription. We
may hold honest difference of opinion |
on tariff or free trade, hard or soft
money, Imperialism or anti-imperialiSm, /
or the many other national issues but
when it comes to state politics it is
strictly a matter of business. If dis |
honest men are elected, ard il is very
often that they 'are-although every |
party believes that the candidates they |
favor are the very models of purity-it !
is not expected that the papers that |
favored their election will readily ex-
pose them should they prove failures. |
For years and years every paper at |
Topeka has had yearningS for the |
state patronage and as the state has
been in the control of one party most |
Of the time, these papers have done /
their best to shield that party's fail |
angs-
The result is that there is no one to
expose that party'S misdoings until |
they become so repugnant that it's own |
friends can stand it no longer. Then /
we see an explosion as has been wit |
messed in the past year and internal /
commissions take place, the 'rascalS'' |
are exposed and great cry is raised |
for honest men, Then the party /
manipulators get together and steer the |
honest citizens to rise and put honest /