Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1916-02-11
These facts are apparent:


The pny-Rs-you-Ro" net of 1870 is being
ignored md there lis n heavy ionting In
dnmuses which bear o per cent. Interest.
city nnnncicrIng IL n haphaEnrd jum-
bic, characterized by Inck Of cO-ordinn-
tion ana representing ineiiiciency Mt Its
maximum.
Provision must he made for adequate
revenue.
The imposition Of larger taxes small
real estate owners, on Philadelphin's two
story homes, would he IntolernbIe and
detrimental TO the best interests of the
The way out Ir through the levying of
special taxes. the incrensing of certain
fees, etc. A commission should he APP
pointed to consider them
While new sources of revenue nre be-
Ing tapped, wise statcsmnnship requires
the abolition of the 2J per cent tnx on
gas. tax which In exorbitant AS well
ms unjust.
There liz no reason why loans for per-
mnnent improvements should he held
up pending the solution Of the revenue
problem.
The Administration, with some justifca-
ton, hesitates to tackle the revenue problem.
New taxes are unpopular and the party re-
sponsible for them generally suffers But
the point has been reached when something
must be done This bogev of new taxes has
paralyzed our craftsmanship and threatens
now seriously to impede the progress of the
city, If not to hog-tie 1t for years to come.
There are thousands OF small house owners
| in the community, many of whose equities
| small at present and to whom the i'm
| position of new taxes on real estate would be
ruinous. They must be protected, not only
for their own sakes, but for the sake of the
city at large, of which they are the great
stabizing factor This must always be a
| city in which the man of moderate means
can own his own home at small cost of
! upkeep. 1t may well be understood from
the beginning that the integrity of the two
story home must not be attacked.
An increase in the yield from real estate
| is possible, nevertheless, through equalization
| of assessments.
The most feasible method of procedure, we
may suggest, Is the appointment of a COM
mission of experts to study the finances of
the city in their entirety and report back to
Councils a recommendation to the proper
course to be pursued. Such commission
could give hearings to all citizens interested
in any particular method being considered
and would be able after exhaustive inquiry
into all phases of the situation, to arrive at
a solution acceptable to the city.
1t is time to stop trifing with the situation
and to get to work.
If the bogey of unpopularity which stag
gers the authorities and has staggered them
for years were productive only OF un-
businesslke situation in reference to current
outlay, further neglect might possibly be
tolerated. The injury to the city. which is
really incalculable, is, however, of another
character.
The people of the whole State, realizing
that an ample capital investment was
needed at once to put Philadelphia on a
parity with competing cities, authorized the
borrowing of large sums for two specific
purposes, to wit:
1. The attainment of proper transit
2. The Improvement of the port.
on these two projects the future of the city
rests. The need for both Of them is imme-
diate The port must be ready when peace
again releases ocean fleets and the new
and inevitable battles for trade begin. Nor is
the distribution of our products over the
world more important than quick pas
senger distribution within the city itself
Yet the financial Bogey has so fright
ened lawmakers and others that they
hesitate to make use OF the authoriza-
tion granted by the State. One section, and
no other, of the Broad street subway Is in
process OF construction. The rest OF the
undertaking must wait a supply of funds
and port improvements are held up for the
same reason.
The Mayor is earnestly desirous of going
ahead without waste Of time. as he announced
yesterday.
We suggest to him the propriety of taking
the bun by the horns, of settling this tax
rate situation once and for all, of moving
ahead vigorously on the loan. Let him see
to it that whatever the lost opportunities OF
the past. there shall be no lost opportunities
now. Let him help to disillusion those clu-
zens who view with alarm" any proposal
to move forward. Two hundred years ago
England was said TO be on the verge OF
bankruptcy because she owed a few million
dollars. Today her debt is in billions Credit
is the lever that moves the world and we
scarcely comprehend yet the possibilities Of
it, the principles back OF IT, It's healing vir-
tues when rightly used.
Citizens must get Il into their heads that
they are not going 70 make this city the
great metropolis 1t ought 10 be without
spending money The way 10 make money
Is 10 spend II on permanent investments
They constitute the machinery OF prosperity
They must be got.
Controller Waltons report, instead Of caus-
ing a retreat, should make the city take the
bit IN its teeth II We must have more
revenues, let rs set them. And we need not
stand stll IN The meantime. The way 10 20
ahead Is % 50 shead.
re ely wants 'po-sensthlng'' Admin
islr4sn.