MISSOURI. 



565 



equal to that of the State omitting the certifi- 

 cates to the school and seminary funds the 

 counties and the towns combined. But all 

 these debts are reduced. They represent a vast 

 amount of public property, of which the people 

 have the benefits. In many instances the 

 amounts contracted were vainly large, and the 

 mode of expending them profligate and dis- 

 honest. But the proposed objects were desir- 

 able, and the fruits in a majority of the cases 

 have proved of great benefit. Four fifths, per- 

 haps, of the counties and towns have court- 

 houses, bridges, poor-farms, and railroads, whose 

 construction was hastened or was wholly due 

 to these debts, which they would not now 

 part with for much larger amounts than they 

 have become responsible for in getting them. 

 The debt of St. Louis stands for improvements 

 and property which go far toward reconciling 

 the tax-payers to the burden. Among the 

 things the city has to show for its bonded in- 

 debtedness are hospitals, water-works, harbor 

 improvements, sewers, insane asylums, market- 

 places, jails, court-houses, the great bridge 

 over the Mississippi, parks, and squares, pos- 

 sessing a value which will be readily perceived 

 by even the most unreflecting. 



But the leading consideration in connection 

 with the subject of all these debts is, that, ex- 

 cepting that of St. Louis, they are being fast 

 liquidated, and that a vast amount of capital 

 will in the next few years thus be forced into 

 active channels. Taxation will grow light, and 

 the people will be left free to employ their in- 

 creased resources in all the improved avenues 

 of production. 



STATE CLAIMS. The claims of the State con- 

 sist of two kinds : First, war claims, or claims 

 arising out of the furnishing of troops and sup- 

 plies to the United States Government during 

 the late civil war ; and, second, claims arising un- 

 der the enabling act of Congress and the ordi- 

 nance of acceptance by the State, under which 

 the State was admitted into the Union. This 

 compact guaranteed to the State, in considera- 

 tion of certain conditions by it accepted, 5 per 

 cent of the net proceeds arising from the sale of 

 all public lands in the State of Missouri after 

 admission, etc. The amount due the State on 

 account of all sales made for cash has been 

 paid ; but as a large proportion of the public 

 domain in the State has been located with the 

 military land warrants of the Government, 

 issued in payment of services rendered by her 

 soldiers in various wars, such locations should 

 be regarded as sales for cash, and the State is 

 entitled to 5 per cent thereon. These loca- 

 tions cover about eight million acres, and the 

 five per cent of the proceeds of such sales 

 estimating the laud at the price of $1.25 per 

 acre amounts to $426,000. 



The war claims are of two classes: First, 

 those belonging to the State ; and, second, those 

 belonging to individuals, which the State is at- 

 tempting to collect. 



By an act of Congress of July, 1861, the 



United States Government promised to reim- 

 burse the different States for amounts expend- 

 ed by them, respectively, in the organization 

 equipment, and maintenance of troops while 

 acting under competent military authority and 

 in concert with the Federal troops. Under that 

 law, a settlement between the State and the 

 General Government was effected in 1866, by 

 which the State received the amount then 

 shown to have been expended by it up to that 

 date ; and it was on account of similar dis- 

 bursements, subsequently made by the State, 

 that a claim was preferred for the amount not 

 reimbursed by the Government. 



The other class of claims, or those belong- 

 ing to individuals, are those which were, by 

 authority of an act of the Legislature, ap- 

 proved March 19, 1874, audited by a commis- 

 sion created by said act, and on account of 

 which audit and allowance conditional certifi- 

 cates of State indebtedness were issued. These 

 claims have been presented to the Government 

 for payment ; but, so far, have been refused 

 consideration upon the ground that, even if 

 they are just, the present laws of Congress 

 only authorize their examination for settle- 

 ment after they shall have been paid by the 

 State, and that the issuance of conditional cer- 

 tificates of State indebtedness is not payment, 

 as contemplated by the law. 



TAXABLE PROPERTY. The total taxable 

 wealth in Missouri, exclusive of railroads, tele- 

 graphs, and bridges, returned for 1882, is $615,- 

 000,000, and of this amount $190,145,000 is 

 returned from St. Louis city. The total amount 

 of State taxes assessed for 1882 was $2,462,- 

 000, and of this $760,000 was assessed against 

 St. Louis city. It will be seen that nearly one 

 third the taxable property of the State is in 

 St. Louis, and that it pays nearly one third the 

 whole State revenue derived from property 

 tax. The collections from merchants and man- 

 ufacturers' tax-books in 1881 were $179,000, 

 of which sum $106,000 was collected from St. 

 Louis, and the ad valorem taxes and licenses 

 collected in 1880 were $200,000, of which St. 

 Louis paid $108,000. The whole amount of 

 revenue paid into the State Treasury from the 

 general property tax, merchants' and manu- 

 facturers' taxes, and licenses, was, therefore, 

 $2,841,000 ; and of this St. Louis paid $974,- 

 000, or more than one third. Next to St. Louis 

 in the amount of general property taxes paid 

 comes Jackson County, with $135,000; then 

 St. Louis County, $72,000; next Buchanan, 

 $53,000; next Saline, $36,400; next Noda- 

 way, $26,000 ; next Lafayette, $32,000. The 

 counties paying the smallest amounts are Ozark, 

 $644; Carter, $877; and Taney, $885. The coun- 

 ties that show the largest landed property, not 

 including town lots, are St. Louis, $15,854,000 ; 

 St. Louis city, $11,358,000; Jackson, $8,122,- 

 000; Nodaway, $5,244,000; Saline, $5,157,- 

 000; Lafayette, $4,884,000; Bates, $4,240,- 

 000. The counties showing the smallest amount 

 of landed property are Ozark, $131,000; Ta- 



