The Bemidji daily pioneer. [volume] (Bemidji, Minn.) 1904-1971, 1912-10-02
Those Virginia Bonds.

AA00S SA6AAAd 0OuUS.
When Governor Eberhart was in
Bemidji Saturday, he stated that he
and other members of the state in
vestment board were in favor of SELL
ing the Virginia bonds but that Aud
itor Iverson was opposed to it and
that Chief Justice Start, also mem
Der of the board. was not strongly in
favor of it. The board must stand
together before the bonds can be
sold, for one vote will kill the reso
luton.
Minnesota has several millions of
dollars loaned to the state of Vir-
ginia. This money was taken prin-
cipally from the schol fund which
at present has about $29,OOO,0O0 in
it. The people of Northern Mime
sofa want the investment board to
sell these bonds and re-invest the
money in public improvements in
Minnesota. In this way, the state
will receive four per cent on it's funds
where it receives three now and the
counties will get money at four per
cent where now they pay six. H..
From what the governor said, it
appears that the Virginia bonds at
present are not worth worth par ow-
ing to the present money market.
Consequently if they were sold now,
the state would lose something as
they were bought at par. Iverson is
said to urge this as his reason for
not selling at this time claiming
that by holding on little longer, the
bonds will probably bring par and
the state will save that margin.
On the other hand it is pointed
out, and the governor appears to ia
vor this point of view, that even if
the bonds are sold now at a slight
loss, the increase of one per cent
in the income from the money will
nearly make up for the loss land in
the second place, the state as whole
will be ahead for the people will be
saving two per cent on their bonded
Indebtedness.
An example of how this bond mat
ter works out was furnished by In
ternational Falls last spring. The
school district wished to sell $685.
900 of twenty year bonds to the
state. When the investment board
was approached, the International
people were told that there were
many applications ahead of them
and that the board did not have mon
ey for all. It was only by pointing
out that there were but $4,000
bonds ahead of the $125,000 and that
the district had an assessed valuation
of over 100000 that the 1nterna-
tional people were able to get their
loan. The difference in getting the
money from the state at four per cent
and from a loan company at six per
cent made a difference in the twenty
years of close to $4,000. A slight
matter!
A year ago Beltrami county sold
100000 of ditch bonds to outside
parties. The county pays for these
in fifteen payments and the bonds
run twenty years. The county pays
five and one half per cent on these
bonds. This year, the county was
able to get the ditch money from the
state at four per cent. Had it been
able to get the 100000 at four per
cent, it would have saved between
$4,000 and $4,000, or 81 for every
person in the county.
It is hard for people in the South
ern part of the state to realize the
Importance of this question to
Northern Minnesota. They do not
know that we have to spend as much
in five years for improvements as
they do in twenty or even thirty.
The north country is growing rapid
ly and must have schools, roads,
bridges and bitches faster than the
money comes in to pay for them. It
needs the aid of the state and must
have it.
The selling of the Virginia is not
question of politics It is ques-
ton of right and justice. Ev-