UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. (GEORGIA.) 



711 



tion, John C. Hart was elected Attorney-General 

 for the full term of two years. The Legislature 

 in the autumn of 1902 abolished the office of Spe- 

 cial Attorney for the Western and Atlantic Rail- 

 way, which, up to that time, had been held by 

 Edward T. Brown. Mr. Justice Henry T. Lewis 

 resigned from the Supreme Court bench in 1902, 

 and Judge John S. Candler, who was presiding 

 officer of the Stone Mountain Judicial Circuit, 

 was elected to succeed him. Prof. Merritt was 

 elected to succeed W. R. Glenn as State School 

 Commissioner. 



The term of the State officers elected by the 



eople is two years. They are elected the first 



londay in October of even-numbered years. The 



Legislature is elected for two years, and, until 



1903, met annually on the fourth Wednesday in 



October for a session of fifty days. In the autumn 



of 1902 a law was passed changing the time of 



sessions to the fourth Wednesday in June, and 



the new Legislature will have 3 sessions, the last 



2 occurring in June, 1903, and in June, 1904. 



Finances. The balance in the treasury Oct. 

 1, 1901, was $730,722.10, while the receipts for 

 the fiscal year from Oct. 1, 1901, to Sept. 30, 

 1902, were $3,886,163.21. The disbursements for 

 the year amounted to $4,105,705.10, leaving a bal- 

 ance in the treasury Oct. 1, 1902, of $511,180.21. 

 The Governor was authorized to borrow $200,000 

 during the year to cover casual deficiencies, but 

 it was only necessary to secure $150,000. The 

 money ivas borrowed in New York at 3 per cent. 



The bonded debt of the State on Jan. 1, 1903, 

 amounted to $7,631,500. On that date $100,000 

 of bonds was retired. The law requires that 

 this amount of bonds shall be retired the first of 

 every year, and $100,000 is raised by special tax 

 levy for this specific purpose. The yearly interest 

 charge against the State is $325,800. For years 

 there has been in the treasury an amount, which, 

 on Jan. 1, 1903, was $122,073.65, arising from the 

 sale of public property, which, according to a de- 

 cision of the Supreme Court of the State, may now 

 be used to pay interest on the bonded debt. The 

 Legislature in December, 1902, took the necessary 

 steps authorizing the Treasurer to use this fund 

 in the manner named. 



The State owns the Western and Atlantic Rail- 

 md, which runs from Atlanta to Chattanooga, 

 Tenn., 137 miles, and is estimated to be worth 

 ibout $12,000,000. This property was leased for 

 twenty-five years by the Nashville, Chattanooga 

 ind St. Louis Railroad. As rental for the road 

 State receives yearly $420,012. The State 

 also owns 186 shares of stock of the Georgia Rail- 

 way and Banking Company, valued at $20,700, 

 and 440 shares of stock of the Southern and Atlan- 

 tic Telegraph Company, indorsed by the Western 

 Union Telegraph Company, valued at $10,000. 



Valuations. The value of all the taxable 

 property in Georgia for 1902 was $467,310,646, 

 which was an increase over 1901 of $10,755,749. 

 The increase in railroad property amounted to 

 $3,657,676. To the assessed value of corporate 

 property returned to the Comptroller-General for 

 taxes ($56,893,466) should be added the estimated 

 value of that portion of this class of property 

 which by law is exempt from an ad valorem tax, 

 which, at a conservative estimate of the Comp- 

 troller-General, is worth about $22,000,000. The 

 increase in assessments for 1902 was not as large 

 as in the previous year. 



In 1902 the negroes of Georgia returned $15,188,- 

 069 of property for taxation. This was a decrease 

 of $441,742 compared with the same returns for 

 the previous year. In 1901, however, there was 

 a large increase in tax returns on property owned 



by negroes in the State. In 1902 the value of 

 manufactures amounted to $23,494,371, which 

 was an increase over 1901 of $4,499,407. The 

 value of merchandise was $24,104,341, an increase 

 of $224,487 over 1901. There was also an increase 

 of $477,045 in iron works, while the increase in 

 shipping and tonnage was $203,909. 



In the autumn of 1902 the Legislature passed a 

 law making the franchises of all public utility cor- 

 porations subject to taxation at the same rate as 

 other property owned by those concerns. 



Railroads. In 1902 there were 6,035.32 miles 

 of railroad in Georgia, against 5,816.80 miles in 

 1901. The gross earnings of the roads for the 

 year ending June 30, 1902, were $24,952,768.87, an 

 increase of $1,706,543.35 over 1901. The operating 

 expenses for the same period were $17,638,014.23, 

 and the net earnings were $7,314,754.64. In 1901 

 the net earnings of Georgia railroads were $6,862,- 

 573.19. 



Insurance. From the reports of the insurance 

 companies licensed to do business in Georgia, it 

 appears that the fire companies received in pre- 

 miums in 1902 $3,002,651.29, and paid losses 

 amounting to $1,379,395.60; life companies re- 

 ceived $4,251,762.08, and paid losses amounting to 

 $1,639,984.28; assessment life companies received 

 in premiums or assessments $275,370.23, and paid 

 on losses $54,275.95; and miscellaneous compa- 

 nies received in premiums $355,940.37, and paid 

 losses amounting to $183,792.66. These receipts 

 represent gross premiums. The business, as a 

 Avhole, showed an increase over the business of 

 1901 of about 12 per cent. The State's revenue 

 from the business done in 1902 amounts to $107,- 

 954.76, against $95,648 in 1901. 



Appropriations. For 1902 the appropriations 

 were as follow: Academy for the Blind, $20,- 

 000; College for Negro Youth, at Savannah, 

 $8,000; contingent fund, $10,075.36; contingent 

 fund for Supreme Court, $1,280.55; State Insane 

 Asylum, $290,000; expense fund for trustees of 

 the asylum, $2,152.73; geological fund, $7,300; 

 printing fund for Geological Department, $982.59 ; 

 Georgia Normal and Industrial School, $22,900; 

 horticultural fund, $4,927; insurance on public 

 buildings, $25,903.91; North Georgia Agricultu- 

 ral and Mechanical College, $10,009.75; prison 

 fund, $120,081.60; public printing fund, $26,551.- 

 46; public building fund, $17,847.80; publishing 

 Supreme Court reports, $5,475.32; reprinting Su- 

 preme Court reports, $9,954.15; School for the 

 Deaf, $25,000; public school fund, $1,574,172.02; 

 Georgia School of Technology, $40,000; Soldiers' 

 Home fund, $15,000; for new building for the home, 

 $19,500; special incidental appropriations, $1,410.- 

 87; State Normal School, $21,300; State Univer- 

 sity, $8,000; expense fund for trustees of the uni- 

 versity, $478.64; disabled soldiers' pensions, $189,- 

 035 ; indigent soldiers' pensions, $362,340 ; indigent 

 widows' pensions, $78,180; widows' pensions, 

 $193,260. In addition to the regular appropria- 

 tions, $84,952.81 was expended on new buildings 

 for the State Insane Asylum at Milledgeville; 

 $26,000 was set aside for 'buildings for the State 

 University at Athens; the civil government cost 

 $129,898.61; $500 was spent on an exhibit of 

 Georgia minerals for the Charleston Exposition, 

 and the legislative pay-rolls amounted to $70,626. 



Banks. The year 1902 was prosperous with the 

 banks in Georgia. In the twelve months 23 new 

 State banks were chartered. The aggregate paid- 

 in capital of State banks for the year was $9,712,- 

 787. In the past few years many small banking 

 concerns have been established in the more pros- 

 perous agricultural districts, and all are reported 

 as in excellent condition. Data prepared and on 



