The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1919-01-31
|BLACKFO0T CITY COUNCIL AND CITIZENS
MEET and CONSIDER UTYS PROBLEMS
Warrant Indebtedness of Past Few Years Such as
Demands Some Unusual Action to Get City
on Sound Footing Immediately
NO DEFINITE DECISION REACHED

At the special meeting of the cit!
council Tuesday evening for hearing
! protests against the occupation tax
a few business men attended ant
spoke on the subject.
Mayor Stevens stated that tn,
warrant Indebtedness which has beer
accumulating for a number of year!
had reached such a climax that i
would be necessary to resort to some
unusual means. The warrant in
debtedness had grown to $4,000
and it takes fourteen months from
the time a warrant is issued unit
it can be redeemed in it's turn, anC
investors in warrants do not care tt
tie up their money in them wher
they stand so long. The fire depart
ment fund was exhaused and it was
proposed to raise funds by donation
among the business houses to keeI
up the fire protection, but this idea
turned into proposal to levy an oc-
cupation tax, and the council wanted
the advice of the citizens who had a
choice in the matter. DR.. Patrie, the
county physician, was present and
on being asked if he had something
to present relative to his work first
said that
Public do not Agree
as to what should be done about in
fluenza quarantine, and that SO long
as public sentiment runs counter to
the quarantine 1t is hard to enforce
1t, and since the ban had been lifted
from everything out the dances, and
since good many of the young peo-
pie 60 to other towns up and down
the line where dancing is permitted,
he proposed that the ban be lifted
entirely.
When asked IL the board of health
cannot enforce it's rules, DR.. patrie
said that II cases were put to a jury
and the jury was against the quaran-
tine or the ban, the jury would find
q way to carry out its wishes, even
If a good case were presented.
Ernest Pearson, who is on the
school board, said they had left the
ban on dancing for thirty days be-
cause 1t had been shown that dances
seemed to have been responsible for
the spread of the disease, and the
board wanted to test 1t, and had
asked the pupils to obstain from
dancing for that period. DR.. Patrie
said the ban applied to roping of
every alternate row Of seats in the
picture shows. as preventative OF
people coughing at those in front Of
them, and 1t might as we'll be lifted.
II people have not the good manners
not to impose their breath and their
coughs and sneezes in peoples faces
It doesn't do much good to take It
out on the picture show man. II
there comes q new wave of influenza
the doctor said. the lid ought to be
clapped on tight for definite period.
A good many people had been in
fiuenced by. the army test Of flu germs
being thrown. into the faces OF SOL
diers, none Of whom had taken the
disease, but there were hardy men
with high vitality and resistance due
to the rigid training and out door
life Of the army, and the same test
tried on the average civilian might
have resulted very differently. The
doctor said the councils Jurisdiction
was subject to the county board of
health, but he would like an express
sion from the council; vote showed
three In favor Of lifting the ban, two
opposed and two not voting because
they were on the school board and
had voted to sustain the ban thirty
days as stated.
The City Finances
w. B. Royse, manager of the
Boise Payette Lumber company,
asked for information regarding the
finances, and Councilmen Beakley
and Davis responded. The bonded
indebtedness is $106,750 and the
legal limitation under our present
assessed valuation Of $2,003.000 is
100000. we have been levying q
tax Of fifteen mills or less each year.
and for 1913 1t was fifteen mills.
That raises about $4,000 and 1t is
payable in January and July. The
1918 tax must be applied on interest
and bonds and warrants already is
sued and II the July collections were
H A8uu uOW IL WOuAu ACoVO NA0 Why
still owing about $4,000 on out
standing warrants and without funds
for current expenses. People doing
work or furnishing goods and SER
vice for the city do not care to take
the warrants and hold them fourteen
months for redepmtion, and 1t is not
an inviting Investment for bank or
a capitalist to carry them because the
money will bring greater returns If
put in other things. The council has
jealously guarded the credit Of the
city so that its warrants have sold
at par, but under these conditions.
IL they still hold up to par It will be
by the indulgence Of somebody that
is willing to do the city the favor.
The First National bank is the cust0-
dian OF the money, or rather the
deficit represented by the warrants,
and they are carrying all Of them ex-
copting those issued for the purchase
OF the fire engine last summer. The
warrants bear Z per cent interest. 4