The Oskaloosa herald. (Oskaloosa, Mahaska County, Iowa) 1885-1919, 1913-03-20
The city,s Indebtedness

| The amount of warrants outstand-
ling at the present time Is reported
by the citl treasurer to me $28,S56.82.
The amount of bonded Indebtedness
of the city at the commencement oil
this administration was:
| Bonds ................ .$49,OO 0.OO
This represents the old bonds that
had been running for years, and the
total Indebtedness of the city includ.
ling the outstanding warrants and
Judgments, With the bonds, 1851 1889.
3S, at the commencement of this adj
ministration.
The net Indebtedness of the city
after deducting all cash on hand was
! $32 ,46S.S1. Since then we have built
the city hall in addition to many other
improvements and our Indebtedness
at the present time is as follows:
! Amount of old bonds left, 100000 90
being a reduction of 100000. -.
Amount of city hall bonds, which is
mot city debt in the true sense of
the word, s43, 10000.
Amount of outstanding warrants
| SIC, $685., less amount of all money
on hand of $27,943.96.
| The amount of outstanding war
rants, includes the $5,500.00 for the
new fire truck and apparatus that
goes with 1t.
The Saloons Gone-Levy Raised.
! have attempted to give you, gen.
tlemen, a full, true and correct &C.
count of the conditions of the city
finances of the City of Oskaloosa,
Iowa, and in my annual report one
year ago, outlined the situation and
made some predictions, one of which
was that the City of Oskaloosa, Iowa,
could and should be conducted for a
sum not exceeding $63,363.6S which,
after our levy as previously made,
would have been ample had it not
been for the fact that We lost the sa-
loon licenses the amount of $14,000.0O
and this we knew at that time, but
| 1t was too late to make the levy for
last year. The levy has been in.
creased just in proportion to the
amount lost. In other words: your
real valuation for assessment pur-
poses is $1,425,6lS.00 and your levy
has been increased 10 mills which,
lif everyone paid their taxes, would
produce the sum of $14,256.00. To
this may be added the city hall tax Of
/ mills and you will know exactly
why your taxes have increased.
AS the mayor stated to you one
year ago, it is the business of the
people whether or not they have sa-
looms and it Is not for the council and
the mayor to say; but all we can do
is to meet the emergency and this
we have done by increasing the levy
and you will find the increase in the
levy will tally precisely with the loss
of this license. The majority rules;
and if the people do not want saloons,
that is their business and they have
"a right to raise the tax in any man
Iner in which they see fit
Facts and Figures.
1t is my duty to give you the facts
and figures and that Is what | am do
ing. | have tried very hard to get
the receipts from the mayors office
in previous years and have gone to a
great deal of trouble, but am unable
to get them back of the administers
tion of Mayor Bacon in anything like
definite way. went back to the
administration of B. V. Sewers which
ended on the first Monday in April,
1899, and attempted to get the re-
ceipts and expenditures in the may
or's office, but am unable to find any
thing that will throw any light on the
subject. Therefore, | concluded to
make a comparison only with the pre-
vious administration, as | did one
year ago, and asking the public to
keep in mind that there was about
$13, 100000 expended by Bacon's ad-
ministration on sewers which increas-
ed very much the expenditures of the
city, but which was money well spent.
If there is anything further that the
council desires to know, the mayor
will be pleased to furnish it, as he
knows the City Treasurer and the
City Clerk will join him in an effort
to obtain any information that may be
of benefit to this council or to the
public.
The amount of funds as coming
from the mayors Office is all the
money that he has received from the
city funds up to the present time.
And while this year the returns from
the fines are not so much as last year,
| it is gratifying to now that the fall
ing off in receipts represents that
much more good conduct.
Yours truly,
S. V. Reynolds, Mayor.
GOOD PROOF OF HIS SKILL.