DELAWARE. 



247 



Assembly, $19,223.02 for special allowances 

 by the Legislature, and $75,000 for redemption 

 of State bonds. From the total receipts of the 

 school fund the sum of $83,515.38 was distrib- 

 uted to the counties for school purposes as fol- 

 lows: Kent County, $23,456.52; New Castle 

 County, $31,692.99; and Sussex County, $28,- 

 365 87. On Jan. 1, 1890, the total bonded State 

 debt was $899,750 of which $290,000 became re- 

 deemable at the option of the State on and after 

 July 1. The State holds in its treasury securi- 

 ties available to meet this debt valued at $673,- 

 050. No ad valorem State tax is levied on prop- 

 erty, the revenue being derived from a tax on 

 railroads, licenses, etc. 



Education. Under its new president, and 

 with the aid derived from the United States for 

 the support of an agricultural experiment sta- 

 tion, the State College has entered upon a new 

 career of prosperity. There were 90 students 

 enrolled in March of this year, the entering class 

 numbering 44 and being the largest in the his- 

 tory of the institution. For the first time in 

 many years there is no deficit in the finances. 



Charities. At the State Insane Hospital on 

 April 30 there were 145 inmates under treatment 

 59 white males, 19 colored males, 50 white fe- 

 males, and 17 colored females. The grounds 

 ! and buildings, formerly used for the county asy- 

 ! mm of New Castle County, were purchased by 

 the State in 1889. 



Agriculture. The year 1890 was unfortu- 



i nate for the agricultural interests. The peach 



| crop, usually a very large source of revenue, was 



; a complete failure, and the yield of apples and 



pears was disappointing. The yield of wheat was 



| only about two thirds of the average, and the 



benefit of a good hay crop was destroyed by low 



prices. The yield of early potatoes was light, 



while the late crop was almost an entire failure. 



The crops of corn and oats were not equal to 



the average. 



Population. The official figures of the na- 

 tional census for this year are compared with 

 similar figures for 1880 in the following table : 



* Decrease. 



County Debts. The total debt of the three 

 counties of Delaware is $618,400, an increase 

 of 574,400 since 1880. Of this sum $545,400 is 

 a bonded debt and $73,000 a floating debt. The 

 county of New Castle bears five sixths of the total 

 debt. 



Poll-Tax Decision. On Jan. 24 the State 

 Supreme Court rendered a decision in the poll- 

 tax case that was argued before it in the preced- 

 ing June. The contention of the plaintiff was 

 that the provisions of the tax law of 1873, di- 

 recting the levy court to drop from the assess- 

 ment list the names of all delinquent poll-tax 

 payers, and not to restore them for a period of 

 twelve months thereafter, was unconstitutional 

 and void, for the reason that, in practice, it dis- 

 franchised for one year every delinquent. The 



decision of the court, only one judge dissenting, 

 was that the provisions were clearly constitu- 

 tional and valid. Chief-Justice Comegys, in his 

 opinion, says : 



If there was any other motive for adopting it than 

 to secure the better payment of taxes, it does not ap- 

 pear on the face of itj nor are we warranted in refer- 

 ring to it. Taxes being necessary to the support of 

 government, a State has the right to adopt any; meas- 

 ures, short of actual disfranchisement, to compel their 

 payment. ( If the operation of the legislation of 1873 

 was, proprio vigore, to disfranchise a voter by pre- 

 venting him from paying his taxes as others are 

 obliged to do, there would be force in the argument 

 of the plaintiff's counsel ; but as it does not so 

 act, and never at all except as a consequence of his 

 own neglect, which many others in like condition of 

 life do not suffer themselves to be guilty of, it can 

 not be charged to the law that he loses temporarily 

 the privilege of voting, but only to his own inatten- 

 tion to his opportunity to retain it. He has simply, 

 omitted a duty he owed to himself and to the public 

 if such persons can be supposed to be under any 

 obligation to the body politic and deserves all the 

 consequences resulting from his indifference to his in- 

 terest. Without it can be shown, which it was not, 

 and can not be (and that fact seemed to embarrass 

 the learned counsel in their elaborate argument), 

 that the legislation of 1873 disfranchises a voter in 

 spite of himself, or takes some advantage of him 

 against which he had no means of protecting himself, 

 it is too much to ask this court to void it as uncon- 

 stitutional, and a violation of the organic law of this 

 State. 



Political. A State Convention of the Pro- 

 hibition party met at Dover on May 9, and nomi- 

 nated the following ticket, to be presented to the 

 voters at the November election : For Governor, 

 William T. Kellum; for member of Congress, 

 Daniel M. Green. The usual resolutions in favor 

 of prohibition were adopted. 



On June 3 committees from the various farmer 

 organizations the Farmers' Institute and the 

 Pomona and other granges met at Dover for 

 the purpose of agreeing upon measures bene- 

 ficial to the farmers and of making their influ- 

 ence felt in the canvas. The conference resulted 

 in the adoption of the following : 



Resolved, That the following kinds of property 

 should be added to that now subject to taxation, to 

 wit : BondSj mortgages, stocks, and all other invest- 

 ments yielding revenue or profit, and by this enumer- 

 ation it is not meant or intended to exclude or exempt 

 other property which should be taxed, although not 

 herein mentioned. But all property upon which a 

 mortgage exists shall be relieved from taxation to the 

 amount of the mortgage. 



There shall be but one assessment for all kinds of 

 property and one uniform rule of levying taxes and 

 one collector for all kinds of taxes in the same hun- 

 dred or district. 



The allowances to the sheriffs for keeping prisoners 

 should in no case exceed 20 cents per day. 



Convicts should be made self-supporting and should 

 be put to work on the roads or public works. 



That the public roads should be repaired by letting 

 out to the lowest bidder. 



A more stringent law should be enacted to prevent 

 bribery at elections. 



That the legislative allowances of late years have 

 been unjust and extravagant, and should be greatly 

 reduced. 



Appropriations for military encampments and ex- 

 cursions should be abolished. 



The percentage allowed collectors should not ex- 

 ceed 5 per cent. 



That the committee of each county be and they are 



