The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1904-08-28

per cent. ..............$ 2,550.00
Note, j. A. saunders, 5 per
cent. .................. 100000
Note, f. d. Aren dell, per
cent. ................ 100000
Note. II. G.. Rosenthal. per
cent 5000. 90
| l city warrants, 6 per cent. 2,194.41
n. c. A per cent State
bonds ............ 1,575.OO
| 3 city of Raleigh 6 per cent. 3,09750
Cash .......... 24,7S7O9
Total securities. $25, 1851
Total $50 24.00
All the notes are secured by first
mortgage upon improved real estate
| in the city of Raleigh, the title to
which has been passed upon by the
| city attorney.
Upon the cash on hand the city re-
ceives four per cent. annual interest
| upon the average amount. Your COM
mittee think it would be better if the
| commissioner would make more effort
| to loan out the money at the legal
rate >of six per cent. interest instead
| of keeping it on deposit at the savings
| bank rate of four per cent, particu-
arly as the nearest bond issue does
not mature until July /. 1907, before
which time all of the present mort
cages owned by the sinking fund fall
due. The commissioner has again
| been instructed to advertise for bonds
and very probably your committee
| will invest some of the cash on hand
| in the six per cent. bonds of 1907,
provided they can be purchased ad
| vantageouSly.
The various bond issues secured by
the sinking fund are as follows:
| Funded debt bonds, 6 per
cent, due July /, 1907..$ 41,30O.00
Consolidated debt bonds.
per cent, due July 1. 1919 67,50O.00
Street improvement bonds,
| 5 per cent, due July l,
1929 100000
Public Improvement bonds
5 per cent, due July /,
1929 100000
Street and public improve
ment bonds, 5 per cent,
| due October /, 1927.... 100000
Street and public improve
ment bonds, 4 per cent,
due July /, 1929. ....... 100, 10000
A total of. $42S, 10000
(There is also outstanding of the
debt of the city $3.50 of current ex-
pense bonds due May l. 1908, and
! $15,96S.G4 of outstanding warrants,
which are not to be paid out of the
Rsnking fund but are to be paid out of
the general fund: these items, how
ever, must be considered in stating
the total debt of the city,
According to the recognized actu-
ary's tables, to pay annual interest
upon and mature these several bond
issues (the $41,300 of July 1, 1907,
and $4,000 out of the SCI, CT July
| 1, 1919, being met by the $50,224 of
the sinking funF it will require the
1 L., Ill at Of
S3S.65. Upon the basis of the tax
valuations of 1903. a levy of thirty
cents (30c.) on the property $6,S82,671
valuation of real and personal prop
erty) and ninety cents (9OcD on the
poll G,537 taxable polls) would raise
| 22,031.31 for this fund. We believe
these receipts will be swelled by the
unlisted and additional listed 50 that
| it will slightly exceed the required
amount instead of falling under it by
reason of losses from sales of land for
taxes, insolvent polls, etc.
OF these bond issues Sal, 800 bear
ing six per cent. interest falls due
July /, 1907, ana it will be seen that
they will be amply provided fer at
maturity. During the past year your
committee purchased three thousand
dollars worth of these bonds at an
aggrc gate price of $3,097.50, which is
an average price of 103 Il for each
bond, but the net cost to the city was
further reduced by the fact that the
accrued interest to the date of the
purchase amounted to one and one
half per cent, so that the net cost to
the city was 101A for the bonds pur-
chased This purchase now leaves
outstanding $4,000 of these six per
cent bonds of 1907. We recommend
that the board approve the action of
the committee in directing the COM
missioner of the sinking fund to cam
eel and burn these three bonds and
also in directing the commissioner to
charge off, or deduct from, his ac-
counts the $3.50 premium paid on
| these bonds.
The eleven city warrants, aggre-
| eating $S,194.41 are relics of prior
administration when the sinking fund.-
| through a mistaken idea of municipal
| financiering, was allowed to invest in
city interest bearing warrants in
order to pay off the city bond issues.
| When that course was stopped and
the sinking fund properly adjusted,
one warrant of $1,667.75 was not pro-
vided for and your committee have
had the old warrant and its accrued
/ interest put into eleven warrants.
bearing interest, of two hundred dol
lars each, which the commissioner
will collect one each month"; and next
the account.
Some General Matters.
! Your committee desire to call the
attention of the board to the follow
! ing recommendations of the Finance
committee of 1901-1902. which will
be found in the city report for 1902.
Your committee desire to call to
the boards attention the matter of the
management of the financial affairs of
! the city, which. under the charter and
ordinances is trusted, first. to the
Finance Committee, and then to the
| board.
ut has been suggested to the COM
mittee that it might be we'll to have
! the charter amended SO as to abolish
the Finance Committee and substitute
for it an independent Board of Audit
and Finance, whose duties will be
practically the same as those of the