Year: 1869




80


The Legislature Of Indiana, at the
recent special session, passed law
authorizing counties or townships to aid
in the construction of railways by taxa
ton. Tc5s @6


The main features of the law are lib
eral and excellent, and its pas sage will
mark an important era in the progress
of internal improvements in that State.


BY the provisions Of this law any ore
hundred citizens and freeholders of
county, or twenty five citizens of a civil
township, by their pc tition to the Coun-
ty Board of Commissioners. may have
an election ordered on the question of
aiding in the construction of any line Of
railway within the county, and if at such
election majority of the votes cast be in
favor of such aid, theCommissioners are
required to make the additional levy on
the tax duplicate for this special pur-
pose.


The question is not one left to the dis
cretion of the Commissioners, but on
the vote Of such majority the tax must
be ordered. The limit of amount is two
per cent. on any one order,on half only
of which, or one per cent, can be col
lected in any one year. Additional Or
ders may. however, be obtained in the
same manner, from time to time, SO that
the aid granted to any given enterprise
is limited only by the wishes of the
people.


An important guard is interposed to
to prevent unwise or injudicious expen-
ditures on works which will not be COM
pleted, by the provision that the aid
thus granted shall be paid while the
work progresses, and not in advance
one half, also, of the amount becoming
due and payable when the iron is placed
on the track, and the same is ready for
the cars. & a


The very great interest throughout
the country just now in the further ex
tension of the railway system is earn
estly shared by the people Of Indiana,
and there will be great activity in new
enterprises under the provisions of this
liberal enactment. m
The amounts which may be raised by
this system of taxation are very large
yielding, perhaps, on an average, for
all the counties in the State, not less
than seventy five thousand dollars each
annually, making grand total for the
State, on the supposition that each
county should avail itself of the privil-
ege, of nearly seven millions of dollars.
If twenty only of the ninety. two coun-
ties in the State enter into this system
of improvement, there will be raised
the sum Of one and half millions of
dollars.


It must be noticed further that the aid
thus afforded is by way of donation to
private corporations which may under
take the construction of the railroads


There is scarcely a locality in the
State, where a railway is desirable, that
the entire cost os survey, grubbing .gra-
/ ding and bridging the road, will not be
paid by these donations-so that the
question of new railways in Indiana is
| placed nearly on level with the repairs
and renewals of lines already cons true
! ted.


| The great interests in coal and iron in
the southwestern part of the State will
probably secure greater activity there
than in other localities; but a rapid in
crease of railway facilities in all parts
of the State will be Immediately project
ed, and in many cases will be success
fully completed.


The best feature of the plan is that it
does not authorize the creation of a debt.
1t is to be cash business. When reo-
pie, therefore, vote aid to railroad they
vote to tax themselves Immediately and
directly. This will serve to prevent
reckless expenditures.-Cin. Gaz.