Indianapolis Times, Indianapolis, Marion County, 23 December 1938 — Page 2

a

© Ultimate High Cost of City 0

Hall Blamed on Move | For Low Taxes. (Editorial, Page 10) By, RICHARD LEWIS Pressure, gf citizen groups for low

tax rates wasadvanced by City offi-

. cals today as a reason why the City ~ never created an adequate sinking

. fund to retire ifs City Hall bond

_ issues, which have had to be re-

_ funded to. meet maturtiy.

Theoretically, [officials say, the

long-term bonds were to be paid out

of a sinking fund

through the years,

the fund to have been invested at interest rates to compensate for the

Ao

. _ nicipal finance

~ dollars to build a

interest on the bonds. "But theory and practice in muover the ‘past 30 years have traveled different paths, ‘with the result that it will have ost taxpayers nearly two million be nay : Civ Hall, which when the last of

cost only $900,0

- the refunding bonds are paid in

1952. In order to meet increasing ex-

~ penditures and fo satisfy the de-

‘mands of taxpayers’ groups for low tax rates, Mayor Boetcher said, [the City had to credit its sinking fund balances to the budget of each succeeding year. ‘Burden Handed Down’

“The result,” he said, “was that

the burden was passed along to suc-

ceeding administrations. Instead ‘of putting a few cents on the tax rate to retire these borids, they kept their rates down and passed the balance to us. -#If the City Hall bond issue of

= 1909 had not been refunded this

year, it would have added 12 cents to the tax rate.” Chamber of Commerce officials said that responsibility “rests just as heavily with the City administrations of former years as with the

taxpayers’ groups.”

“The City officials were just as anxious to keep their tax rates down as the taxpayers’ organizations, ey said. “If the City had met its bligations on a pay-as-you-go basis, there would never have been any need to refund the two City Hall issues.” Mayor Boetcher, in commenting on

the situation, said that the City soon ||

would have to build a new police station to replace the present structure which was started in 1897. “When a new station ‘is built, which will have to be soon, it could

be paid for easily in five years by

simply adding one cent on to the

present tax rate,” he said.

‘Best in Long Run’

'“That would give us about $250,- | provided the|

000 in five years,

_ present police station lasts that

long. + “It is this kind of financing, by which the City pays off its obliga-

- tions as it goes along, that is best

in the long run. We would pay off $50,000 a year semiannually, and future City administrations would ‘not have to shoulder the entire burden for something we started.” . Harry Miesse, executive secretary

of the Indiana Taxpayers’ Associa-

“alone.”

Citizens

tion, asserted that “no one ever asked the City to keep the tax rate down at the expense of the sinking fund.”

" “The law provides for a sinking fund, and the City should have maintained it. I have always insisted that the sinking fund be kept up,” he said. ~ “The fact that it hasn't is indicative of waste in City government,

| which could have cut other expen-

ditures and let the sinking fund

Webster Silent

Dana Webster, president of the Taxpayers Protesters League, said he could not comment on the situation at this time as he was leaving the City. . Meanwhile, the City is faced with

Joseph Rautenberg Jr.

BLACKMAIL OF COSTER BARED

Eight Acquaintances ~ Swindler Face Arrest, Prosecutor Hints.

Federal authorities said today they expected momentarily to arrest persons who blackmailed “F. Donald Coster” before his suicide by threat-

McKesson & Robbins, Inc., as Philip Musica, convicted swindler. In the rambling, disjointed .and tortured “note” which Coster wro‘e before shooting himself to death at his Fairfield, Conn., home last Friday, the man. who kited the drug company’s assets by $21,000,000,

of Wall Street plunder and black. mail.” Gregory F. Noonan, Assistant u. S. Attorney General, confirmed the allusion to blackmail by disclosing that the Government had the names of at least eight persons who knew Coster when he was Musica and

,1. ‘profited by the acquaintance.”

| Asked if the Government expected to arrest any of the blackmailers, said to have bled Coster of as much as $150,000 a year, Assistant U. S. Attorney Irving Kaufman said “yes.” He indicated the arrests were expected today. Ben Simon, alleged go-between in munitions deals contemplated by Coster as recently as last May, was the only witness to appear today before the Federal Grand Jury which indicted the .dead president’s three brothers — .Arthur, George and Robert Musica—on charges in connection with the drug company (scandal. Simon, at. liberty on $4000 bail, was associated with Coster 20 years ago when the swindler was em-

iployed by the State Attorney Gen-

eral as a “stool pigeon” under the name of “William Johnson.” Simon said he knew Johnson was Musica and even told officers the proper pronunciation of the: name, which he said was “Moosica.” He worked for Coster, it was charged, at a $6000 salary which allegedly came out of funds diverted from McKesson & Robbins into Coster’s bogus “crude drug department.” Investigators conceded that Coster was right when he said in his suicide note, released yesterday, that he could have retired in 1928 with $3,000,000 in honest profits.

SNYDER CONVICTED, WISHES RUTH WELL

HOLLYWOOD, Dec. 23(U. P).— Col. Moe the Gimp stared through

a window, draped with steel bars instead of holly today and wished “the little lady,” Ruth Etting, whose new love affair resulted in his predicament, a Merry Christmas. A jury found The Gimp, known more formally as Martin Snyder, guilty of attempted murder. He

five more long-term bond issues to retire, the largest of which is a

| $640,000 flood prevention bond is-

sue put out in 1915, which matures “July 1, 1940. Two 1911 issues, totaling $310,000 for City Hospital and fire prevention, reach maturity June 1, 1941. Another Flood Control bond issue, of 1913, matures in 1943 for $150,000 and Flood Control bonds of 1916

totaling $68,000 will mature July 1, © 1940

: The last of the long term bonds will have been either paid off or

refunded serially by 1943, it is es- ‘ tima

WASHINGTON HOTEL TO BE REMODELED

; Operation of the Washington Ho-

tel will be taken over Jan. 15 by the

Benson Hotel Corp., which owns the Riley Hotel here. Purchase of the Washington Ho-

“tel furnishings, equipment and op-

W.B

erafing lease from the Alabama & Ohio Realty Co., owners of the hotel "building, was announced by E. 3enson, president and treasurer of the Benson Hotel Corp. . Extenstive remodeling of the Washington is to be started at once,

shot, but only slightly wounded Myrl Alderman, the new boy friend who . married Miss Etting during The Gimp’s trial. Judge Thomas L. Ambrose will sentence him Dec. 27 to from six months to 20 years in prison, unless Defense Attorney Jerry Giesler can obtain a new trial.

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of|

NEW YORK, Dec. 23 (U. P.). —|

ening’ to expose the president of]

charged that he was the. “victim,

Mrs. Marie Hadley

Leroy J. Keach

Donald S. Morris

Frank B. Ross

(Story, Page One) :

BOONVILLE SCHOOL BOND ISSUES SOLD

BOONVILLE, Ind. Dec. 23 (U. P.).—Bonds totaling $57,000 to help finance a $107,000 school improvement program in Boonville were

sold yesterday. The City Service Corp. of Indianapolis ‘purchased a $28,000 issue at a premium of $306 and the Bryan R. Slade Co. of Evansville bought

the remaining $29,000 at a premium of $307. Contracts- for the improvements

{will be let Dec. 24. The Federal

Government will furnish the remainder of the total cost.

KELLY OPENS CAMPAIGN CHICAGO, Dec. 23 (U. P)~— Mayor Kelly opened his campaign today for renomination in the Democratic mayoralty primary ' Feb. 28. He formally announced his candi-

dacy in a radio address last night.

WEST ELECTED

FUND PRESIDENT

Others Chosen Are Perry Lesh and Philip Adler; Frenzel Renamed.

Harold B. west. president of West Baking Co. and wellknown in the City as a civic and- welfare worker, today became president of the Indianapolis Community Fund. He was elected yesterday at a meeting of directors. He succeeds Thomas D. Sheerin who was president two years.

Other officers elected were Perry W. Lesh, president of the Lesh

Paper Co., first vice president; Philip |’

Adler Jr., manager of the American Silk Hosiery Mills, second vice president, and 0Otto N. Frenzel, renamed treasurer. Plan Drive They have been active in the Community Fund several years, My. West having served as second vice president this year, and Mr. Adler as chairman of the Fund budget

committee three years. Mr. West was co-chairman of the

JFund twice, and was general chair-

man of the drive three years ago. Before that, he was chairman of the special gifts division and had worked in other divisions of the campaign in previous years. Plans for next year’s drive are to be started early in January.

_ DICTATORS STUDIED LOS ANGELES, Dec. 23 (U.P.) — The University of California has opened a new “laboratory” course in the technique and ideology of modern dictators.

Honored

¥ arold B. West

ED WYNN AGREES ON TAX CLAIM PAYMENTS

WASHINGTON, Dec. 23. (J. PJ). —Ed Wynn, the comedian, agreed today to pay $174,166 in additional income taxes, while the Government agreed to drop a $145,977 income tax claim against his personal holding company, Airwynn, Inc. The Government had claimed Wynn personally owed $395,818 in income taxes for 1932-33-34, “Wynn contended the income was chargable against Alrwynn, Inc, and

other personal holding compénies. Wynn leased his services to Airwynn, Inc., which was merged in 1934 with Wynn commercial enterprises, Minnylee, Inc., and Keenan Productions Inc. The companies in turn paid him salaries.

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[BROTHER CONVICTS

YOUTH IN SPY CASE

| Takes, Stand Over Protests

Of Defense Counsel.

‘LOS ANGELES, Dec. 23 (U. Py— An aircraft worker, building warplanes for the United States, helped convict today his ‘kid brother” of trying. to sell defense secrets to Japan. He turned in the boy for stealing blueprints of a powerful new Navy Defense attorneys protested that he might incriminate himself by testifying. The judge waved’ them aside and Vee Dee Drummond, 31, told his story which resulted in the conviction of Karl Allen Drummond, a | Bandisome erect boy of 21.

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The Time Has Come, Old Santa Says ToDo A Heap Of Things gay Toys, PLO Trees, PLR Holly ‘Wreaths And All That Christmas Brings

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OMORROW marks the end of Christ.

mas shopping . . . and the full glory of the Christmas Spirit rests upon all of us . . . eager children have whispered their last demands to Old Santa ... Christmas carols ring out with new and deeper meaning as the keenly anticipated hour of Christmas Eve approaches.

Tomorrow your busy fingers will leap joy-

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