New Iberia enterprise and independent observer. (New Iberia, La.) 1902-1944, 1906-07-07
LOOKING AHEAD.

LOOKING AHEAD.
As a general principle, the per.
son who looks ahead is the one who
succeeds the best. SO it is with
the affairs of the parish and town.
These political subdivisions resem-
BILE the individual in that the ones
that provide for the future are
those that become the most desira.
bic places in the eyes of the
stranger.
As general principle also, is
it not well to go into debt, but in
the cases of municipalities, this
rule is somewhat reversed. 1t is
better for a city or parish to 90
deeply into debt than to be behind
the times. 1t is better TO pay in
terest on improvements than to be
without them. 1t is better to mort
gage the income for years in ad.
vance than to block the way to
progress by merely existing.
Some of the municipalities of
this State have already recognized
this fact. They are the ones that
are growing the most rapidly.
Also they will be the ones that will
recover from the burden of indebt-
edness the most quickly for the
reason that the very improvements
that the Indebtedness was created
for is drawing power that cannot
be resisted.
It is well enough to pay cash for
improvements, il the cash is at
hand, but all growing communities
find that to provide for the future,
the iSGome of the future must be
depended upon. In other words
to create for future use we must
calculate that future revenues will
provide the payments.
This is the principle of even the
general government 1t creates a
bonded Indebtedness for the very
purpose of allowing future gener-
atoms to pay for the forethought
of the present. Towns and par
ishes have this as an example. IL
the highest governing power of the
Union considered this wise pro-
vision, it necessarily follows that
1t would be wise method of pro-
cedure on smaller scale.
Other municipalities recognize
this to be the fact. They are in
future indebtedness every
day but they are making themselves
at the same time. Why
Is it not possible for Iberia Parish
o do the same' IL
Ii it were possible to- inear an
Indebtedness lasecch to pave /
very road 10 the parish, it is {
Ioubted that the future generation
'U0ld be able and willing to pay
he bondsf Would it not natural =
' follow that the advantage to the {
arish would be so great that the
alues would increase so largely 2
nat the burden would scarcely be u
,ltf y
With paved roads the Parish "
ould be paradise. Before the
onds for the payment of the costs
ecame due every acre bordering
pom those roads would be occupied n,
I'd held at or salable at prices in
far in advance of the present Q,
notation that the initial expense to
Guild seem insignificant. W
theory aud in practice we know St
lat the result would be RS stated, ii,
Il we hesitate. We are afraid to 10
ok ahead and for that reason we
'ogress slowly. The governing
'ards that create indebtedness G
ay be blamed by this generation ce
It they will be praised in the h,
xt. Vice versa, those which
Id back improvements may be -
aised by this generation only to pr
blamed in the future.
Nevertheless it should be the pr
ty of all bodies that have the c,
wer, to look far into the future :.
provide for it and even to bury
10 debt to create those advan- r
res that will operate for the well ITO
e Of the people now inhabiting wa
to inhabit their province. lip