The Clarksburg telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1874-1926, 1908-06-11
issue.
AND License
With License Money Cut off.
Writer Says Interest Can
Not Be Paid.
(By a citizelnrl..)'

notice our city council is arrang-
Ing to submit to the vote OF the peo-
pie a bond issued for $225, 900. See
ing that thus far there has been no
comment on the merit of the prop
osition either on the part of the city
papers or the. tax payers, ] deem 1t
quite proper to agitate q discussion,
which may bring forth some express
sions from our people on question.
which at this time Is of SO great con-
Germ to us all. s,
To be as brief In the matter as pos
sible, avoid details and state in the
first place this will approximately
give us an interest bearing debt of
s225, 900 or more, atefive percentum,
making the interest annually in the
neighhorhoodso $4,000. II every
one were acquainted with the sit1a-
ton and would think seriously. this
statement alone would be sufficient to
Justify the writer to close this article
abruptly. III
What does 1t mean for us to pay
this $4,000 year. and where are we
to get 1t? Itsmeans that when once
this burden is put upon US and we
have this interest. It I. Is practically
equivalent to burning that amount.
Crudely estimated 1t would pave a
section of Main STREET from the En-
pire building to the Water street
bridge every year. In q few It would
erect a city building as good as the
county jail.
Where Is it to come from? is the
question asked. From the. same
source which we have now to- raise
It and, perhaps we may not have
quite as good in the future.
The city at present is receiving an
amount almost double this from sa-
loon licenses. Thisssource of revenue
appears to be doomed to close In the
near future, and can we not sprofit by
the condition Of Fairmont. which Is
exactly the situation, In which we will
be when this debt Is made and license
is defeated? I say the situation will
be the same. Is 1t not starting on
exactly the same lines? Has not Mr..
Mills, the Prohibition organizer, al
ready announced that he, is. coming
here to organize the business men of
Clarksburg as he. did at Fairmont.
Mr.. Mills Is one of the most power
full lecturers in the country and uses
the most irresistible and convincing
argument to show that the business Of
the city will be improved, when once
this evil is thrown out. He gets a
hold OF the merchants and the people.
who have property to rent, and shows
them that the old idea is false of IL
cense helping the business of town.
The writer takes no sides in this
paper on the whiskey question further
than to say that If we are going to
decrease our sources of revenue, in
the name of common sense let US not
increase our debt, especially, to a
point of dishonor and bad credit. Let
us see little further about raising
money. Suppose we wanted to. raise
a sinking fund of $4,000 or more a
year to have and to hold and to be
used for some good and needful
purpose in the future instead of tell
ing 1t to go up in smoke. can any one
figure out how. we are going to do
this even now with all our opportu-
mites? Well, we will have to figure
some way after the debt is made and
remember that amount is gone in
stead of having any Improvements TO
show for 1t. The voucher will have
on 1t that green and most hated
word interest" like the $1,000 in
interest paid on small part of the
city debt at the last session of the
council.
Dangerous debt! VIII we ever
hear the last of it? Let US think
awhile. Buzzing in our ears come. the
obligations OF the Old Dominion,
which were incurred before the birth
of our state.
Fellow citizens, make all the pri-
vate debts you wish, but please do
not give US any public ones.