San Antonio Daily Light

THE BOND PROPOSITION.

Discussed by a Citizen Taxpayer

Editor Daily Light:

Although a great deal has been said, to show the necessity of voting against the proposition to issue bonds for general expenses, there are still some points to be considered. There is first and foremost one thing the average taxpayer should rid himself of, and that is the idea, that the city is something distinct and separate with which the taxpayers has nothing to do, but growl at during taxpaying time. It is high time the taxpayer should bring himself to feel that he is a member of the firm called the City of San Antonio, and is very often not simply interested to the extent of the amount of taxes he pays. The argument chiefly used to trick the small taxpayer into voting for bonds is to figure for them, that financially the matter to them is trifling. They would like them to overlook, that if they look upon this city as their home, they are interested in the welfare of the community now and in the future, as their own well-being is indissolubly linked with the same, and all must stand or fall together.

Let the small taxpayer, so-called, ponder upon this for a moment and he will not fail to see where his interest lies. It is too true, that like the Grippe, a mania to live beyond one's means has pervaded civilized society, and to meet the extravagance borrowing is resorted to. But the large number of business failures have proved to the satisfaction of every thinking mind that borrowing, like taking physics, should only be resorted to in extreme cases.

Now let us make the application. Our city needed good streets, which could not be put down fast enough for its unusual growth, from the yearly tax receipts, without making them too onerous. This was an emergency, and extraordinary measures were in order. Cheerfully did the citizens take upon themselves a debt of over a million, and should another such emergency arrive they would again come to the front. But in the present case, even the advocates of the measure claim no such emergency. The administration party merely claim that had they more money they could do more work. That is certainly a proposition no one can deny, but is it a good reason to increase the bonded debt two hundred and fifty thousand.

Already the yearly interest together with the sinking fund amounts to about one hundred thousand dollars. Continue borrowing and as the amount of sinking fund and interest increases the annual amount left for current expenses decreases. Thus taxes must either be continually raised or borrowing must again be resorted to for improvements, and so on, until the end comes, which would not be very far off, and the city would be bankrupt. Then when the citizen walks the fine streets, admires the beauty of the city hall, sees the fire department in all its glory, and crosses those expensive bridges, with handsome patrolmen posing against the railings, will not his heart swell with pride when he remembers that he got all those costly things by repudiation. Men generally exact a strict account of what their employes do for them, why should the employes of a corporation, be exempt, and by employes I mean everyone drawing money for his services from the city treasury, from his Honor the Mayor down to the dog catchers, for I think that way the scale of wages run.

They should make their statement so that no controversy as to their meaning and import could arise. If by some oversight or misinformation or wrong conclusions too much was paid for an article or articles or improvements of one kind or another the statement should show it and the citizens then could judge, without hesitation, if they were such errors, as the average man, not being infallible, is apt to make.

Human nature has certainly changed if the citizens of this place will vote to increase the already large bonded debt, without knowing whether the large sum of money already expended have done the proportionate amount of good. When at the same time the income of the city has been immensely enlarged, not only by raising the rate of taxation, but by putting values on property that it real, would dishearten any honest investor and drive him from our gates, in spite of the most glowing accounts the most expert land agents could give of the resources and brilliant future of our city.

M.