The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1913-06-30
NEW YORK PILES UP
BILLION DOLLAR DEBT

{ New York, June 26.-With the
statement of the comptroller that
New York owes upward Of $1,000, 000,-
600, Father Kn~ickerbocker easily
becomes the greatest municipal debt
or in the world. Indeed his indebted
ness is as great as the national debt.
Against this enormous Indebtedness
Father Knickerbocker has in his cof-
fers about 1902, 0OO, 900 which could be
used toward paying off the debt, and
much interest has been taken of late
in possible plans, by which if such a
step became necessary the remaining
billion could be taken care of. Among
the most ingenious is that Of bridge
tolls. What the city has put n tt
spans across the East river equals the
price paid by the United States for
all the land it has acquired by pur-
chase west of the Mississippi river.
In case of hard times or any unex-
pected demand for funds the city could
exact a toll from the million people
use these bridges every day. The
revenue from this source alone should
be sufficient to pay off the city's in
~debtedness. Another great asset IS
it's book value at present amounting
to nearly $500,000,O0O. Much of this is
in longitudinal parkways which total
276,000 feet in length or about fifty
three miles. This great stretch of
parkways f1anked by fine roadways
and walks If laid out along the Hud-
son would stretch from this city TO
000,0 900. So while New York's debt
may at first seem staggering Father
Knickerbocker is by no means on the
verge of bankruptcy. However, the
size of these figures is undoubtedly
largely responsible for the increasing
demand for economy in the operation
Of the city which promises to be an
important factor in the campaign next
fall.
Whether or not mere man shall be
deprived of his precious privilege of
smoking on the four rear seats of open
street cars is the question around
which a merry war is being waged.
The anti-smokers led by a DIR. Pease,
whose antipathy to the weed is so
keen that he is reported to have
left a banquet because a girl recited a
poem by James Whitcomb Riley in
which mention is made of smoke
wreaths, demand that all smoking in
or about any railroad, street car line,
or ferry house under the jurisdiction
of the public service commission be
prohibited by law. At the first hear
ing held before the commissioner most
of DR.. Pease's supporters were women,
but the opposition came entirely from
the sex which is permitted to smoke
in public. They used no arguments
to back them up in their opposition
but ridicule, and one of themahad the
hardihood to try to change the tenor
of the proceedings by asking that the
order be amended SO as to require the
railroad companies to provide more
smoking accommodations than they
do. Humor was added to the situa-
ton by one man who waved a bunch
of coupons, such as are given away
with cigarettes and cigars and pro-
tested that he was not allowed to
smoke at home or in his Office and
that the open cars were the only
available place left since he never
walked. Il represent the great cou-
pom collectors OF New York said he.
my dearest wish id to get a yacht.
For years n hayesbeen saving coupons
to get one. But IL i can't smoke at
home or in the subway or at the Of
flee, and liz yons now prevent me snok-
ing on the street cars, how can ever
get that yacht" Further hearings
will probably be held before the mat
ter lis ended.
That New York's s-kyscrapers may
have reached their limit i'm spite of
the fact that all sorts of wild guesses
are made as to their height twenty
Years from now. is indicated by the