MINNESOTA. 



501 



1860 it was 34,823. As Governor Marshall 

 says, in Ms message to the Legislature, 

 dated January 7, 1869: "From estimates 

 based upon the returns of the school census, 

 and from the vote at the late election, it is 

 reliably ascertained that the population of 

 the State is about four hundred and forty-five 

 thousand." Her condition, however, appears 

 to be one of general prosperity, with still 

 brighter prospects for the future, especially in 

 regard to the development of her many and 

 ample resources. 



Concerning her finances, the Governor states 

 the principal transactions of the treasury 

 during the fiscal year, ending November 30, 

 1868, to have been : " The entire redemption 

 of the State bonds issued under the act of July, 

 1858 ; the addition of $500,000 to the educa- 

 tional funds; the collection of $102,823.02 

 from the General Government, on account of 

 war expenditures ; the negotiation of a loan 

 of $100,000, for the erection of State buildings, 

 and the expenditure of $127,000 for such pur- 

 poses, and the reduction of the State debt, 

 $25,000." 



The State receipts from all sources, in 1868, 

 were $836,990.02, and the disbursements 

 $762,315.90; leaving a balance in the treasury 

 of $74,234.12. The receipts comprise the 

 above-mentioned $102,823.02, collected from 

 the General Government, and the loan of $100,- 

 000 for State buildings, which are both ex- 

 traordinary items ; while the disbursements in- 

 clude $243,731.25, " invested for school fund," 

 and $114,981.92, "a State apportionment to 

 schools." 



The recognized funded debt of the State is 

 $300,000, made up by three loans of equal sums, 

 negotiated in 1862, for war purposes, and in 

 1867 and 1868, for building charitable institu- 

 tions. The contingent, or floating debt, is 

 $20,000, which the Governor states to be the 

 "smallest floating debt that has ever been at 

 the end of a fiscal year ; " adding that " the 

 funded debt is also smaller than it has ever 

 been since the war loan of 1862. The balance 

 in the revenue rand $23,892.35 is the largest 

 it has ever been before at the end of the year." 



Her accounts with the United States for war 

 expenditures have been nearly all settled, as 

 the said $102,823.02 collected in 1868, with 

 other sums received on the same account in 

 former years, leaves a balance of only $48,666.- 

 44 yet due to her on that account. Of this sum 

 he anticipates that $25,000 will probably be 

 collected, by furnishing explanations and vouch- 

 ers, and for the rest it is necessary " to await 

 farther legislation of Congress, applicable to all 

 the States having war claims." 



The estimated revenue of the State for 1869 

 is $367,642.35, and the expenditure $286,- 

 867.89. The surplus, $80,784.46, "maybe ap- 

 plied to the erection of buildings for State in- 

 stitutions." 



The value of taxable property is set down, 

 in the assessment for 1868, at $75,000,000, 



which is $10,000,000 more than for 1867. 

 The present mode of assessment seems imper- 

 fect, or wrong, and the Governor ascribes the 

 defect in a great measure to " the unfaithful 

 execution of the law on the part of assessors." 

 One among the bad features of the system now 

 in operation is the possibility that " he who is 

 assessed has to pay double to cover the loss 

 that results from his neighbor's property es- 

 caping assessment." Governor Marshall urges 

 the adoption of effectual means " to secure a 

 just and full assessment of all kinds of prop- 

 erty, in order that the burdens of the govern- 

 ment may be equally distributed ; " and antici- 

 pates that by this means, in the rapidly- 

 increasing public wealth, the State tax " from 

 five mills on the dollar, as it now is, would in 

 one or two years be reduced to four." As the 

 tax imposed on the citizens for State purposes 

 constitutes a very small part of the burden 

 which they must bear under the name of taxa- 

 tion, seven-eighths of it belonging to " town, 

 city, and county taxes," the Governor recom- 

 mends " care in the passage of bills authorizing 

 local taxation." 



Upon the fact that special and private legis- 

 lation absorbs fully two-thirds of the business 

 transacted in the Senate and House of Kepre- 

 sentatives, while the State pays for all the 

 printing, Governor Marshall, pointing to the ex- 

 ample of other States, recommends a State tax 

 to be laid " on all private acts," which " would 

 either produce a handsome revenue, or impose 

 a wholesome restraint on special legislation." 



Concerning public instruction, the land 

 granted by the Federal Government to the 

 State, for school purposes, is estimated at 

 3,000,000 acres. A little above one-tenth of it 

 has been disposed of, including 76,810 acres sold 

 in 1868 for $464,840.61. The amount to be 

 received from the sale of the whole, making 

 allowance for inferior land in some parts, 

 is estimated at $16,000,000. This will con- 

 stitute the permanent school fund, and its 

 annual interest, the general school fund. The 

 Governor says that the last-named fund 

 " amounted, in 1868, to $115,794.38, and was 

 distributed to the several school districts, in 

 proportion to the number of children." 



The State of Minnesota takes commendable 

 care that her youth generally should receive 

 the benefits of education in the elements, as 

 well as in the higher branches of knowl- 

 edge, and her citizens appear individually 

 animated by the same spirit, with gratifying 

 results. The school statistics for 1868, taken 

 from the report of the Superintendent of Pub- 

 lic Instruction, and embodied in the Governor's 

 message, seem interesting enough to be here 

 subjoined, and are as follows : 



The whole number of school districts in the State 

 * ' 1868 was 2,353. Increase for the year, 146. The 

 number of districts which failed to report was 178, 

 so that the statistics are incomplete. 



The whole number of children in the State, by 

 the returns of 1868, were 129,103, an increase of 

 14,682 over 1867. The number attending school in 



