The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1913-04-01
IS STUDYING PROBLEMS
GOVERNOR LOOKING IN
TO QUESTIONS THAT WILL
CONFRONT LEGISLATURE.
HAS THEM UNDER AMUSEMENT

Refunding Half of Bonded Debt of
Georgia and Preservation of the
States Property at Chattanooga
Will Claim His Attention.
.-Governor-elect John
NJ. Slaton is engaged just now in
making deep and careful study of two
important state problems with which
he will have to deal almost immedi-
ately after he goes into the executive
office
/ One of these is the refunding of
more than half the bonded debt of
the state, while the other concerns
the future of the Western and Allan,
tic railroad, which is Georgia's most
valuable asset.
The situation concerning the West
ern and Atlantic railroad is growing
extremely interesting in view of the
passage by the Tennessee legislature
of the bill permitting the city of Chat
|
directly through the Western and
Atlantics terminals there for the
purpose of opening Broad street, one
of the principal commercial streets
of that city.
Of course, even under this bill,
the city of Chattanooga could not
condemn this property without prop
er compensation to the state for do
ing it, and the amount and nature OF
this compensation would have to be
determined by proper tribunal
Chattanooga rights in the matter
are upheld by practically all reason
able Georgans and the important
problem to Georgia is the securing
of proper compensation for rights
when Chattanooga comes to exc
else it..
An Important Problem.
This problem of the states termi-
nails in Chattanooga is almost equally
important with the problem of the
lease of the property when the pres
ent lease expires in 1919. 1t has been
estimated that the state can secure
for the lease of it's business property
located in the heart of Chattanooga
almost as much as it is getting now
for the lease of the entire railroad
line to the Nashville, Chattanooga
and St. Louis railroad company. The
amount of this annual payment 20
the state is $420,012. 1t is anticl-
pated that the railroad itself, inde-
pendent of the real estate in Chatta-
lnooga. will bring a much larger rent
al than is now being paid. In view
of the fact that the Western and At
lantic railroad on the mileage basis
is the most profitable piece OF rail-
road property in the state it would
not be surprising if the entire proper
tv. the Chattanooga real estate in
Guided. would bring the state under
the next lease an aggregate of some
thing like $1,OOO,000 a year.
1t was originally provided that one
half of the rental of the Western and
Atlantic railroad should go into the
school fund but under more recent
legislation the state school fund is
now paid entirely from the general
fund in the state treasury. If the
plan goes through according to the
present estimate Georgia will have
after 1920 from this property an in
come of fully half million dollars a
year more than it is getting now.
Refunding States Debt.
Much has already been said about
the refunding of a large proportion
of Georgia's bonded debt, arrange
ments for which must be made at the
coming session of the general. assem-
bly,. The total interest bearing debt
of the state is $6,730,702. OF this
amount S3,679,OOO natures in 1915,
Between now and the middle OF 1915
$15O.0O0 of this amount will be TAX
/
care of the remainder the legislature
will have to provide for an issue OF
refunding bonds. and it is tentatively
planned to have these mature at the
rate of 100000 each year.
The chief and most important
question to the state in connection
with this bond issue is the matter OF
interest to be paid on the loan. The
best Georgia has been able to do
heretofore has been BIZ per cent.
But with an easy money market at
the time it is sought to place the
bonds it is hoped and believed that
the issue can be made on the basis
of three per cent. This is the point
toward which it is believed the new
governor and the incoming legisa-
ture will work.
Itch! Itch! Itch! Scratch! Scratch!
AaT, Z he