The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1907-03-09
LOAN MONEY
IN TREASURY
Amount Exaggerated
by Rumor---Depos-
itory Question.

As censorious statements have been
in circulation to the effect that large
amount of the Territorial loan fund
is lying idle in the treasury, draw
ing interest all the while and doing
the Territory no good in return, an
Advertiser reporter yesterday asked
Treasurer A. J. Campbell for exact IN
formation on the subject. From casual
recollection of the Auditor s latest
monthly report on the condition of
the treasury, the reporter already knew
that the sum of 100000 heard men
toned as idle loan money was grossly
exaggerated.
''Here is the amount of loan fund
cash in hand at closing time yester-
day." Mr.. Campbell said, pointing to
a treasury statement he was actually
looking over when the reporter en-
tered.
The loan fund cash at closing time
March was seen to be 1894, l20.oo.
A month before, or February 6, it
was 1925, $40, showing that $3l, o19.5o
of loan money has been put to use
the past month.
On January l the loan fund bal
ance was $44S,709. Therefore, in the
two months and one week elapsed this
year the sum of s54 $3.50 loan money
has been expended.
As bearing on the subject of idle
public money, to be dealt with fur
Their along, it may be mentioned that
at the close of the treasury on March
the current revenue cash balance was
1924 .O03 80, which added to loan cash
makes $61S, 124.40 of idle public money
altogether, or nearly 100000 less than
has been enormously reported as loan
funds alone locked up.
So much for the wild flights of COM
mon rumor.
Contracts are in existence the
Treasurer said, for all the loan money
in hand except 100000, approximately.
Against this amount the present Legis-
lature may make appropriations.
GIVE can not expended the money
any faster than the public works are
completed for which it is appropri-
ated.
cit is practically impossible to ne
gotiate Territorial loan without the
result of having in hand at times con-
siderably more cash than can be ex-
pended all at once.
eve put in as many conditions
regarding delivery of the bonds as
we can For instance, in this last
sale of $4,000 of bonds, we succeed
ed in STIMULATING for the delivery OF
two lots of 100000 each at intervals,
with the balance afterward on de-
mand of the purchaser. The buyer al
ways has the option of demanding the
bonds at his pleasure. When we go
into the bond market we have to make
sale, otherwise contracts under the
loan act can not be made. If the Su-
perintendent of Public Works makes
a contract for 100000, we must have
that amount of bonds sold.
t'It is always hard to get condi-
tions in bonds to suit the convenience
of the seller, but we have thus far
managed to get some little restrictions
in.
$50 you see how it is that, before
a loan is exhausted, we must have
some of the money lying in the treas
ury.
"A complaint has been heard that
this idle money is earning no interest,
while interest upon it has to be paid
by the Territory This is something
for which the Government is not to
blame.
cat last session l had bill in
troduced providing for the deposit of
Government money in a bank that
would hold either Federal or Terri
torial bonds as security. The local
banks do not usually carry such bonds,
but probably Government deposits
would be an inducement for them to
buy our bonds.
"The Senate cut out the provision
for per cent. interest on Government
deposits and passed the bill at that.
The bill came down to the House, where
it was lost sight of until finally it
came up the last day of the session.
Then members Immediately took issue
with the proposition that there was
no interest and they killed the bill.
cit have not put in a Government
depository bill this session, but prob
ably such a measure will be intro
dueed.''
A