WASHINGTON. 



763 



kane, 57,542; Stevens, 10,543; Thurston, 9,927; 

 Wahkiakum, 2,819; Walla Walla, 18,680; What- 

 com, 24,11(5; Whitman, 25,300; Yakima, 13,462. 



The population of Seattle is 80,671; in 1890 it 

 was 42,787. Tacoma has grown from 36,006 in 

 1890 to 37,714 in 1900. Spokane has 36,848 inhab- 

 itants. The population of incorporated places hav- 

 ing more than 2,000 and fewer than 25,000 is as 

 follows: Aberdeen, 3,747; Ballard, 4,568; Colfax, 

 2,121; Dayton, 2,216; Everett, 7,838; Fairhaven, 

 4,228; Hoquiam, 2,608; New Whatcom, 6,834; 

 North Yakima, 3,154; Olympia, 4,082; Port An- 

 geles, 2,321; Port Townsend, 3,443; Republic, 

 2,050; Roslyn, 2,786; Snohomish, 2,101 ; Vancou- 

 ver, 4,006; Walla Walla, 10,049. 



Finances. The following statements are taken 

 from the Governor's message at the beginning of 

 1901: 



" Four years ago the total State debt was $2,176,- 

 347.64. This, in spite of the fact that our State 

 Constitution, in the most explicit terms, forbids any 

 indebtedness in excess of $400,000. Of this total 

 debt, $1,777,916.03 was in the form of general fund 

 warrants. These, with the military fund warrants, 

 amounting to $96,429.61, called for 8 per cent, in- 

 terest, or a total of $150,000 in interest per annum, 

 approximately. Warrants w r ere two and a half 

 years in arrears, so that on each dollar used by the 

 State in the conduct of its business 20 per cent, 

 in interest was paid. During the past eight years 

 there has been paid, as interest on State indebted- 

 ness, mostly to brokers and dealers in warrants, 

 the enormous sum of $916,713.36. During the past 

 four years the total outstanding indebtedness has 

 been reduced from $2,176,347.64 in 1897 to $1,392,- 

 639.60 on Jan. 1, 1901, and of this latter amount 

 $730,000, in the permanent school fund, has, under 

 the law of 1899, been used by the State in the 

 payment of general fund warrants and the issu- 

 ance of 3i-per-cent. State bonds, which, in lieu 

 of cash expended for this purpose, are placed in 

 the permanent school fund. On general fund war- 

 rants thus redeemed, bearing interest at 8 per 

 cent., there has been a direct and positive saving 

 of 4 J per cent. ; and as the 3| per cent, accruing 

 upon these bonds is added to the permanent school 

 fund there has been a practical saving of all inter- 

 est charges upon nearly $750,000. Interest charges 

 have been still further reduced by a reduction of 

 the rate paid, from 8 to 5 per cent. Instead of 

 more than $2,000,000 of indebtedness, the greater 

 part bearing interest at 8 per cent., as was the 

 case four years ago, the following exhibit shows 

 the condition of the State debt on Jan. 1, 1901 : 

 General fund warrants, bearing 5 per cent, inter- 

 est, less cash on hand, $516,398.02; State bonds, 

 tearing 3i per cent, interest, $155,000; school 

 bonds, bearing 3i per cent, (interest covered into 

 treasury), $730,000; total, $1,401,398.02: less cash 

 in interest fund, $8,738,36; total debt, $1,392,- 

 659.66. 



" Among the causes leading to an improved con- 

 dition of the State's finances must be named the 

 enactment of the revenue law of 1897. This has 

 been found most efficient. The issuance of delin- 

 quent tax certificates, bearing 15 per cent, inter- 

 est, operates to induce prompt payment of taxes. 

 The Bedford law of 1899, calling for the invest- 

 ment of money in the permanent school fund in 

 outstanding general fund warrants, is also to be 

 credited with saving to the State large sums of 

 interest." 



The State levy as fixed this year is as follows: 

 For schools, 3* mills: general fund, 21 mills. The 

 military and interest fund levies are regulated by 

 statute and are each ^ of 1 mill. In 1899 the 

 levy was as follows: For schools. 3f mills; general 



fund, 2i mills. The general fund levy is consid- 

 erably less than last year, but the school fund 

 levy is more; the reason for this is that the levy 

 for schools is based on the number of school chil- 

 dren in the State. Last year there were 127,366, 

 while this year the number is 139,554. 



The Auditor's estimate of the receipts of the 

 general fund during the biennial term beginning 

 April 1, 1901, is $1,820,000, and of expenses, 

 $1,116,800. 



Education. The law requires a State tax, not 

 exceeding 4 mills, sufficient to produce $8 for each 

 child of school age; this is for the common schools. 

 Five institutions of higher learning are supported 

 by State appropriations: The University of Wash- 

 ington, at Seattle; the Washington Agricultural 

 College and School of Science, at Pullman; and 

 three State normal schools, one at Cheney, for the 

 eastern portion of the State; one at Ellensburg, 

 for .the central; and one at New Whatcom, for 

 the northwest. The ordinary expense of these in- 

 stitutions to the State is about as follows: Agri- 

 cultural College, $15,000; State University, $40,000; 

 normal schools, $45,000. 



Olympia is endeavoring to raise an endowment 

 of $15,000 for a university which certain capital- 

 ists have offered to found on condition of this fund 

 being given by citizens. It is to be called the 

 Olympic University. The formal offer to the 

 committee appointed by the Chamber of Commerce 

 describes the proposed institution, giving among 

 other details the following peculiar feature: "' Said 

 parties propose to the best of their ability to make 

 said Olympic University a national institution by 

 operating in connection with it a ' department of 

 travel,' which is an organized plan to combine the 

 advantages of travel and observation with the 

 usual text-book work, and by means of this organ- 

 ized plan they expect to bring students from all 

 parts of the country and to build and maintain 

 an institution at Olympia sufficient to accommo- 

 date them." 



The text-books for the public schools are se- 

 lected once in five years by the State Board of 

 Education. Those for the coming five years were 

 chosen in May. A large part of those adopted 

 are publications of a local house lately established, 

 and some were prepared by " local talent." Pro- 

 tests in regard to two of them have been made 

 by the superintendents of many of the schools. 

 One of them says: "We examined the geography 

 at the last board meeting and agreed it was wholly 

 unfit for use. Its maps are inaccurate and poorly 

 colored. It contains bad spelling and ungram- 

 matical sentences. The map of Washington is es- 

 pecially poor. The speller is full of errors, some 

 of which are typographical and some apparently 

 made through ignorance. No teacher will dare 

 give out a lesson before going over it in advance 

 and correcting mistakes. I should have preferred 

 to use no text-book at all rather than these." 



Militia. The National Guard consists of 1 full 

 regiment of infantry, made up of 3 battalions of 

 4 companies each, and in addition 2 companies of 

 infantry unattached, 1 battery without guns, 

 drilling as infantry, and 1 troop of cavalry. The 

 last Legislature appropriated $10.000 for the pur- 

 pose of bringing from the Philippine Islands the 

 remains of those Washington boys who died in 

 their country's service. The bodies of 22 volun- 

 teers were brought back to their home State, and 

 all but 9 were claimed by friends and taken to 

 their homes. These 9 were brought to the capital 

 city, where the Masonic fraternity of Olympia 

 gave a handsome tract of land for their interment. 

 Charities and Corrections. The maintenance 

 expenses of the State institutions for the three and 



