ECONOMIC SURVEYS OF COUNTY HIGHWAY IMPROVEMENT. 71 
rienced the benefit of the roads for 10 years at a low financial outlay, 
represented by payments of interest, and then when the great con- 
trast between the old conditions and the new will have passed out of 
their minds they will suddenly be called upon to assume an in- 
creased financial burden in order to provide funds for the retirement 
of the principal. 
The actual tax rate levied for interest on bonds in 1914 in Beat 1, 
which includes Meridian, was 1.5 mills and in Beat 5, 2.9 mills. In 
1915 these rates had increased to 1.8 mills for Beat 1 and 3.4 mills for 
Beat 5, based upon the 1915 valuation of $12,874,856 in Beat 1 and 
$864,010 in Beat 5. If the bonds had been issued so as to have the 
payments begin the sixth year and continue to the twenty-fifth year, 
inclusive, the rate necessary to meet both imterest and principal of 
$450,000 in Beat 1 would have been 2.53 mills, based on the 1915 
valuation, or 0.88 mill more than the average of the rates actually 
levied for those two years. In Beat 5 the rate necessary to retire 
the bond issue on the same terms would average 4.28 mills, or 1.18 
mills higher than the rate actually levied in 1915. Thus it appears 
that with tax rates almost as great as would be necessary under the 
5-25 year plan the county is only succeeding in meeting interest 
_ charges. , 
It would be well if counties could so arrange their financial meas- 
ures and so time the meeting of their obligations as to make the bur- 
den comparatively light at the very outset, thus giving the people a 
chance to develop their resources through the improvement of the 
roads. ‘Todo this the cost’ burden should be distributed so equitably 
over a period of years that it will avoid the two extremes of excessive 
tax levies on the one hand to pay off the debt too quickly, and the 
extension on the other hand of the debt beyond the life of the utility 
in order to obtain a low tax rate. An examination of the bond 
issue indicates that if the county had adopted the 5-25 year deferred 
serial method the total payments would be $65,357 less than they 
will be under the method actually adopted, if no sinking fund is 
established. As against this large difference it should be stated that 
the taxpayers are having the use of the money which they would 
have paid out if they had elected to retire the bonds more expedi- 
tiously. It is therefore a question as to whether this convenience is 
worth the price. 
Taxation in the county does not differ materially from the rates in 
other localities, as in 1911 the total for all purposes, mcluding the 
State tax, was 15.4 mills on the dollar. . In addition to this property 
tax there is a commutation tax of $2 for road purposes and a poll tax 
of $2 for schools. In 1915 the average levy was 16.6 mills, of which 
the road-bonds tax comprised an average of about 1.6 mills and pro- 
duced about 9.4 per cent of the revenue; the tax for maintenance 
