Year: 1871

The reader will perceive that the General
Fund is the one to look to upon the question of
extravaganza. If the Governor friends would
have the people believe in his profession, let
him defend the increase of the General Fund
From this source comes the money required to
pay the per diem and mileage of the members of
the Legislature, the salaries of officers, support
of State Prison, the pay of the hordes of clerks
the relief bills, and in fact all the expenses of the
Government, except those especially provided
for in the other funds Enumerated in the
above tabular statement. Why did they reduce
the tax for tie Soldiers Bounty Interest and
Sinking Fund from twelve cents to two cents
Let this question be answered. Why was the
law of 1857 violated? By this act the whole
debt of the State funded. It was the fa-
nous act which was submitted to the vote of the
people, by which the question whether they
would ''pay the debt " or ''repudiate the debt -
was settled. The Supreme Court had held be-
fore that time that the debt had been unconsti-
tutionally created. This law provided that
tax of thirty cents upon each 500 of the assess
ed value of all the real and personal property of
the State should be levied and collected annual
ly "until the bonds are paid " for the purpose of
paying the annual interest and eXtinguishing the
principal in twenty years. The faith of the State
of California was pledged in terms by the sixth
section of the act to the fulfllment of the pro-
visions of the act A wiful refusal or neglect



levy collect the tax was declared misde-
meanor, punishable by fine and Imprisonment.
The amount of this debt, which was originally
nearly four millions, now remaining due is prob
ably about two and onehalf millions.


Controller Watt, in his report to the last Leg
islature, not dreaming that any would ever
dare violate the act of 1857 said, ''at the pres
ent rate of redemption | think that the greater
portion of the funded debt will be paid off by
1874" He recommended the egisature-upon
the basis of his estimates to what would be
trequired-that the whole tax should be one hun
dred cents, and that the General Fund should
not be increased beyond twenty five and a.half
cents. Instead of this, the larcenies above men
toned were committed upon sacredly pledged
funds for the purpose of practicing grand de-
ception upon the people OF course the law of
| 1857 could not bind the conscience of man
who dsregarded the binding force of the 9th
section of the 4th article of the Constitution.
SO with the act of 1864, " Ora anting bounties to
the volunteers of this State enlisted in the SER


vice of the United States" A tax of twelve


cents to pay the bonds issued under this act was
provided and pledged to be levied and collected


until their final payment Under these special


taxes the State debts funded by these acts have


been materially reduced. Haight is now claim


ing for himself credit for reducing the State
debt, when, in fact the reduction has been


caused by simply executing the provisions of
laws, enacted under his predecessors. Instead
of continuing to execute these laws, AS it was
bound to do by every consideration of honor
| and good faith, the Democratic party, at the
first session that it obtained full power, repuda-
ted these obligations, which will have to be as


sumed at some future day, and now have the in
eliabe impudence to claim merit for the act of


robbing the creditors of the State for the pur-


pose of filing up the " General Fund, !" out of
which to meet the extra demands caused by ex-
travagance and corruption.