Evening star., 1913-12-06
A Question of Honesty.

Are the District taxpayers of today
dodgers of an honest debt because they
protest against the confiscation of mil
lion dollars from their current and sorely
needed tax revenues to pay a decayed
and outiawed claim of the last century, for
the existence of which they are rot at
all responsible and from which they
have derived 10 benefit? Is Cucle sam
honest to rob the Districts purse today of
money which he ought to have collected
If at all thiFty-tivc years aso. and which
he then apparently forgave. the Dis
trict's purse being then and now and at
all times in his exclusive possession and
control?
Ry the act Of 1874 the nation under
took To contribute in a proportion after
ward to he determined tn pay the 3.5l
bonds representing the District debt. In
the transition period prior to 1878. when
this percentage of contribution was deti-
nitcly determined, interest on these bonds
was paid partly from local taxes, but
mainly bN advances from the Treasury
wltha statutory requirement of reimburse
meut. I'm lS1s the half-and-half basis
OF contribution III respect To this debt
was established by law and by the prac-
tce and custom under the law.
If Uncle sam. in merging. offsetting
and settling all pre-existng equities.
IN the legislation nf 1873 had required
the local taxpayers of that day To re-
imburse him for what he had expended
more than his half contribution on the
bond interest prior TO 1873, he would
have been within his rights. But he
did not. Is not this equity merged.
offset and settled in the compromise
settlement of 1878? Uncle Sam has
treated this claim as offset, settled OF
forgiven every year for thrty-iive years.
by the action and inaction of his
agents. Congress and the Secretary of
the Treasury. Can he now declare
every Congress and every Secretary OF
the Treasury since 1878 negligent and
recreant. and impose the penalty of the
fault at his successive agents on the
District taxpayers Of 1892 Uncle Sam
has acted for thirty-five years as If
the debt were settled or forgiven Is
he not barred by the spirit of the
statute of limitations and eauitably
estopped from now claiming otherwise?
III is alleged in the House District
committees report, in the words OF Ac-
countant Mayes that the Secretary OF
the Treasury, the nations agent. ad-
vanced this million dollars from the
Treasury in violation of the law lie
was authorized to make these ad-
vances only if the District revenues
after the payment of specified munich
pal expenses proved insufficient TO pay
the interest According to accountant
Mayes when the Secretary of the
Treasury advanced in installments this
interest money there were in his hands
funds Of the District amounting TO
hundreds of thousands of dollars, over
and above the specified expenses first
10 be met, from which under the law
this interest should be paid. Will not
Congress look into this claim that fail
ure to pay the interest from these Dis
trict funds and actual payment by ad
yances from the Treasury were unlaw
fula
u the nation through its Secretary of
Treasury unlawfulIy benefited District
Taxpayers of the seventies by not col
lectIng this interest from them, is not the
nation responsible? Why should We Of
today be punished for the laW-yiolations
OF the nations agent" If the advances
were not lawfully made under the statute.
why should We thirty-five years later be
required to reimburse in accordance with
the terms Of Tho statuter Should not the
nation recover from itself if its loss is
caused by its own agents misdeeds?
The District taxpayers of today say
that if this debt of the taxpayers of three
Years in the seventies OF the last century
had been collected in cash in 1878, it would
reasonably and equitably and naturally
ave been collected on the haIf-and- half
basis then adopted. II is now proposed
that today's taxpayers shall pay the
whole OF this advance of the last century
or twice what would have been naturally
eXacted from those who really owed it,
But the District taxpayers of 1913 do
not think it Is their honest debt either
wholly or in part. and they call upon
their legislators and constitutional pro-
tectors on Capitol Hill to examine care
fuily and deliberately into this outlawe ed
fesarrectcd claim. lest in their haste they
connive at observation-disclosures of the
Districts funds in tho hands of Uncle
Sam, trustee. III compelling its payment
Present experiences Of Mrs. Pankhurst