Gentlemen of the Senate
and House of Representatives:
You have had conferred upon you, and you have accepted the
duty of caring for, guarding and promoting the interest of the State. This
duty, at all times responsible, is at present, much more than ordinarily so,
for the reason that the nation of which we are a part, is engaged in civil war,
most wantonly and wickedly thrust upon us by bad and designing men. I doubt not
you will address yourselves to the discharge of this duty calmly and earnestly,
seeking wisdom and strength from Him w o is King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
The Constitution requires that I shall communicate to you
the condition of the State, and recommend such matters as I may deem expedient,
and I now proceed to the performance of that duty.
REVENUE AND TAXATION.
The expenditures of the last two years for all State purposes
have been about $300,000 for each year. This includes both ordinary and
extraordinary expenditures — the amounts expended for the Insane Asylum, the
Penitentiary, the Blind Asylum at Vinton, the printing of the Revised Statutes,
and other extraordinary objects, as well as the amounts expended in carrying on
the ordinary operations of the State Government. The expenditure has not in any
case been permitted to exceed the appropriation, and is materially less both
for the penitentiary and insane asylum, and has in all cases that have come
under my observation, been carefully and economically made. In my judgment,
there is not another State in the Union in which the protection of Government
is extended to as large a population, so widely scattered, more economically
than in our own. But while this is true, it is equally true that our finances
are not in a healthy condition. The report of the Auditor of State discloses
the somewhat startling fact that of the State tax for 1860 and preceding years,
there was, at the date of his Report (the 4th day of November, 1861) delinquent
and unpaid the large sum of about $400,000 — a sum more than sufficient to
cover the entire expenses of our State Government for one year. This large
delinquency has occurred mainly within the last four years, and the same Report
shows there were at the same date warrants drawn on the treasury to the amount
of $103,645, which were unpaid for want of funds, most of which were drawing
interest at the rate of eight per cent. per annum.
From these facts the following conclusions are inevitable:
1st, That during the last four years there has been levied a State tax larger
by about $300,000 than the necessities of the State required. 2d, That this was
rendered necessary by the fact that only a portion of our people paid the tax
due the State. 3d, That the State has been compelled yearly to pay large sums
by way of interest on warrants, which need not have been paid had the taxes
been collected promptly, and the Treasury kept supplied with funds to meet all
demands upon it. 4th, That the State being compelled to purchase its supplies
with warrants has had to pay higher prices than if it had had the cash to pay.
5th, That the tax-paying portion of our people have thus been compelled to pay
not only their proper share of the public burthens, but also the share of those
who did not pay their taxes, increased by interest and high prices. These
things should not be so. They reflect discredit not only on those of our
citizens who seek to avoid their just share of those burdens which are imposed
upon all for the benefit of all, but also upon the laws which permit them to do
so with impunity. I, therefore, very earnestly recommend to your attention a
careful examination of our revenue laws for the purpose of ascertaining if they
can be made more effective in enforcing the prompt payment of taxes.
The leading features of a good revenue law, in my judgment,
are: 1st, The imposition of such penalty for the non-payment of taxes when due,
as will make it unmistakably the interest of every tax-payer to pay promptly.
2d, The assurance to the purchaser of property at a tax sale, of a valid title
at the expiration of a fixed time. There is, in my opinion, much
misapprehension in the minds of many persons on this subject. Some seem to
think they receive no value for the money paid by them as taxes, and that they
are, therefore, not culpable in avoiding payment if they can. Others, whilst
they admit there is some kind of doubtful obligation upon them to pay their
taxes, if convenient, yet insist that any stringency in the laws to compel
payment would be unjust and oppressive, and that no greater penalty should be
imposed for nonpayment than the interest allowed by law between citizens. These
are radical errors. Every citizen is protected by the State, in life, liberty,
and property, in all he has, and all he may acquire, and in all his honest
efforts for further acquisition; and in return, he is bound as a good citizen,
to render obedience to the laws; to pay promptly his share of the taxes
necessary for the support of government; and, in time of war, if need be, to
defend the government with his life. If he fails to perform either of these
duties of a good citizen, he is liable to punishment, and the amount added to
his taxes for failure of payment at the time fixed by law, is not the interest
due upon a debt, but a fine or penalty for the non-performance of a duty. Nor
can any one justly complain of this. Why should any one of our people claim
that he should enjoy all the benefits of civil government and be exempt from
its burthens; that he should have all these advantages at the expense his
neighbors?
It may be said that some are unable to pay their taxes.
This, it seems to me, is erroneous. The amount of tax each one has to pay is in
proportion to the property he has, the greater the tax the greater the amount
of property from which to raise means of payment. I am well convinced that
taxes are paid most promptly by our farmers, and by men of comparatively small
means, and that there are very few of us who do not spend yearly for articles
of luxury which do not promote either our health, our prosperity, or our
happiness, more than the sum required from us as taxes for the support of the
government that protects us. The subject of revenue and taxation assumes a
graver interest and importance at this time, for the reason that our State is
called upon, for the first time since its admission, to pay a direct tax for
the support of the General Government. We may expect to be called on to pay,
during the present year, a Federal tax of from $600,000 to $700,000. This is
rendered necessary by the heavy expenditures incurred by the General Government
in preparing to put down the Rebellion in certain States of the Union. A resort
to loans has been, and must continue to be, necessary to meet these expenses,
and prudence and sound economy require that the General Government shall not be
compelled to borrow money to pay the interest accruing upon its loans. The
interest upon loans made, and to be made, must be met by actual payment, and
not by incurring further indebtedness. The capitalists of the country have,
thus far, responded nobly to the calls made upon them by the Government, and
have given it assistance and support as necessary as that rendered by the
soldiers in the field. Six hundred thousand gallant men, 20,000 of whom are
from our own State, are in arms, giving their labor, their health, and their
lives, for the country; and now the call comes to us who are at home, and we
are asked to give a little of our substance to the same good cause.
I have caused to be prepared from documents in the office of
the Auditor of State a table, hereto appended, giving some interesting
information touching the taxes paid by our people. It will perhaps be a matter
of surprise to many that the taxes for the support of the State Government bear
so small a proportion to the entire amount of taxes paid. It appears from this
table that the whole amount of taxes for all purposes for 1861, was $1,700,000,
and that of this amount only $300,000 was expended from the State Treasury for
State purposes, while $1,400.000 were expended from the several County treasurers,
for County and other purposes. I regard this table as useful, for this, among
other reasons, viz: that the people have been led to believe that the great
bulk of our taxes was caused by the expenditures of the State Government under
appropriations made by the General Assembly, and they have been taught to look
to a reduction of State expenses as the means of relief from taxation. This
table shows clearly and conclusively that of every $5.66 paid by the people of
the State as taxes, but one dollar reaches the State Treasury, or is used for
State purposes, while the other $4.66 are retained in the counties and used for
county and other purposes. I would not desire our people to relax their vigilant
supervision of State expenses, but I am of opinion this information may lead
them to give as vigilant supervision to the expenditures of their respective
Counties, where equal vigilance is, in my judgment, equally needed. It is
evident from an inspection of the table, showing the amount of taxes paid and
the purposes for which paid, that if it be deemed desirable to decrease our
present expenditures by an amount equal or approximating to the amount of taxes
required by the General Government, much the greater amount of such reduction
must be made in the taxes levied for other than State purposes.
In some particulars the expenses of the State may be
materially less for the next than for the last two years. The appropriation of
$19,500, for the Revised Statutes, was temporary and will not be again
required. The amount appropriated for past indebtedness of the Penitentiary,
$38,500, has nearly paid that indebtedness, and but a nominal sum will be
needed for that purpose. The amount appropriated for the general support of the
prison has been so well managed that the amount thereof unexpended is deemed by
the Warden sufficient for the next two years, so that the amount of $35,000,
appropriated at the last regular session for that purpose need not be renewed
in whole or in part. Of the amount of $75,000 appropriated at the last session
for finishing and furnishing the Centre and East wing of the Insane Asylum,
about $18,000 remain unexpended, which balance, with $20,000 now asked for, is
deemed sufficient to complete the whole building. So that the appropriation
needed for construction account in that institution may be $55,000 less than at
the last session. The Blind Asylum at Vinton is now under cover, and not liable
to injury from the weather, and if you should deem it advisable not to make any
appropriation for its present completion, $10,000 may be deducted from the
amount of the appropriation of the present session as compared with that of the
set. There has been paid during the last two years to Agricultural Societies,
the sum of about $18,000. If you think it advisable to withhold any
appropriation for this purpose for the next two years, this sum may be saved.
The foregoing sums, amounting in the aggregate to $176,000, are the expenditures
for the objects named for two years, and if withheld will be a saving of $8,000
per annum from the amount of State taxes. This amount, I doubt not, may be
increased by a careful examination of our State expenditures and strict economy
to $100,000, and if a proportionate reduction of county and township expenses
can be made, the entire amount of the tax required by the General Government
can be raised without increasing our present taxation. I commend the matter to
your most earnest and careful examination.
In order to make the revenue of the State more certain, I
recommend that the County Treasurers be required by law to pay the State
Treasurer, at fixed times, certain proportions of the amount of revenue due to
the State, until the entire sum for each year is paid, whether the County
Treasurers have received the entire amount of State tax or not. At present the
State is wholly helpless as to its revenue. It has to depend wholly upon the
officers of Counties for its collection and transmission, and if the county
officers are inefficient, the State is remediless. Each county is now liable by
law to the State for the amount of State tax assessed in it, but this
liability, without any means of making it practicably effective, is useless. If
the Counties were require to pay the revenue due the State, whether collected
or not, the County Supervisors would be stimulated to require of the Treasurer
a strict performance of his duties; and if, in addition, you should so change
the present law as to give County Treasurers, in lieu of salary, a per centum
on the amount of money collected and disbursed, or provide for township
collectors to be paid in the same way, our taxes would, in my opinion, be more
punctually paid.
I also recommend that it be made the duty of the Board of Supervisors
of each County to employ a competent accountant once in each year to examine
the accounts of each County officer, and state an account between each officer
and his County, and between officer and officer, and also that County
Treasurers and all other persons who receive public moneys be prohibited, under
severe penalties, from using them in any way, or placing them with others to be
used for their private benefit.
The law of Congress imposing a direct tax for the support of
the General Government gives to any State the privilege of collecting the
amount of tax assessed upon its people, and allows such State to retain fifteen
per cent. of the amount, on condition the State shall assume the payment of the
balance of the tax. Thereupon arises the important question: What shall the
State do in the premises? It must be remembered that if the State assumes the
tax, the entire amount, less fifteen per cent., must be paid by the State,
whether the State collects the tax or not. Keeping this in recollection, let us
ascertain as near as may be our precise position. This State has expended for
the General Government about $450,000, and has been repaid the sum of $80,000.
The State has sold her bonds to the amount of about $200,000. The proceeds of
said sale, $184,000, and the $80,000, received from the General Government,
have been applied to paying the expenses incurred by the State, leaving unpaid
and due wholly, I believe, to our own peop1e, about $186,000, for which they
hold or can receive warrants drawn on the War and Defense Fund. If the amount
expended by the State, which is to be reimbursed by the General Government, be
$450,000, there is now due the State $370,000, and if the Federal tax should be
$650,000, and the State should assume it, there would be due the General
Government the sum of $182,500, being the entire amount of the tax, less the
amount now due the State, and the fifteen per cent. for assumption and
collection, which must be assessed upon and paid by our people.
But we must provide also for the payment of the amount due
our own citizens. This must be done by assessing the amount as a tax, and by
either actually collecting the money and paying it to the holders of the Warrants,
or by authorizing those holding warrants to surrender them to the Auditor, and receive
in lieu of them other warrants of the amount of five dollars each, which shall
be receivable in payment of the Federal tax. These warrants being of small
amounts, and being all receivable during the present year for taxes, would be
nearly or quite at par, and would be much more valuable to the holders than the
present ones. Should this course be deemed advisable, it will be necessary in
order to meet the demand made upon us by the Federal Government, to levy a tax
of about $368,500, of which $182,500 must be collected in money, and $186,000
may be paid in the warrants outstanding against the War and Defense Fund. Our
State debt will have been increased by $200,000, and we will not have any money
in our Treasury wherewith to meet further military expenses, should they be
necessary. It will be observed that the sums given are generally estimated.
Absolute precision could not in some cases he arrived at, but it will be found
the estimates approximate very nearly the truth. If this should not be deemed
advisable, we can present our claim against the General Government, receive the
amount due the State, pay the outstanding warrants in the hands of our people,
and either collect in money the Federal Tax and pay it to the General
Government, retaining the 15 per cent. for so doing, or allow the General
Government to collect the whole without interference on our part. In view of the
actual condition of our affairs and the want of promptitude with which our
taxes are paid, I am inclined to favor the plan first recommended. If I had
assurance that our taxes would be paid as they should be, I would much prefer
the second.
Intimately connected with the subject of taxation and
revenue, is the question as to the kind of money which shall be received for
taxes. Under our present laws, specie only is receivable for public dues. In
view of the recent suspension of specie payments by the General Government and
the Banks of the Eastern States, it becomes a question of great importance
whether we can collect our revenue in coin. I do not believe we can, and I
urgently recommend to you such change in our law as will allow the payment of
taxes with United States Treasury notes and the notes of the State Bank of
Iowa. It is true the United States Treasury notes are not payable in specie,
but it is the interest of all loyal states and of all loyal citizens to keep
them at par, and the receipt of them for taxes by the loyal States would tend
much to that end. The State Bank of Iowa is required by the law creating it, at
all times, to redeem its circulation in coin, and I believe it expects and is
fully prepared to meet that requisition. If, as it seems to me, we must and
should receive for revenue the United States Treasury notes not redeemable in
specie, I cannot see the wisdom or justice of refusing to receive the notes of
our own Banks, that are so redeemable, especially when by so doing, we make the
payment of taxes more easy to our people and more certain to the state, and at
the same time aid to some extent in keeping in circulation among us a currency,
which has, and in my judgment, deserves the confidence of the people.
MILITARY AFFAIRS.
The Report of the Adjutant General, herewith submitted,
shows the number and description of troops raised in this State for United
States service, to be Sixteen Regiments of Infantry, Four of Cavalry, Three
Batteries of Artillery, and one Independent Company of Cavalry for frontier
service. Of these the Fifteenth and Sixteenth Regiments of Infantry are not
fully organized. In addition, Col. Koch and Col. Rankin are engaged in raising
Regiments of Infantry, which if completed, will make the Seventeenth and
Eighteenth Regiments of that arm of the service.
It is a matter of gratification to me that our State has
thus promptly responded to the demands made upon it by the United States for
aid in this perilous crisis of our country’s history, and it is also a matter
of great pride to me that the troops of our State, whether tried in the
exhausting service of the camp, the march, or in the fiery ordeal of the battle-field,
have never been found wanting, but have by their cheerful endurance of
unaccustomed hardship and their indomitable valor, won for themselves and our
State a name which may well cause us to feel an honest pride in claiming in any
part of our broad land, that our homes are in Iowa.
At the Extra Session of 1861, what was supposed ample
provision was made, to furnish the necessary funds for raising, clothing and
equipping the Volunteers that might be required from this State, by authorizing
the issue and sale of our State bonds. Immediately after the close of that
session, the necessary steps were taken to put our bonds in market, but before
they could be offered in New York, the faith and credit of our State were most
wantonly and unjustly attacked by certain papers in that city, so that when,
under the law, the bonds were offered for sale, it was found entirely
impossible to effect sales at the prices fixed by the Board of Commissioners
appointed for that purpose, or which would not have been ruinous to the State.
No sales were therefore made in New York, and an appeal was made to our own
people to take the bonds and furnish the means necessary to meet the large
expenses consequent upon raising the troops called for from this State. The
Report of the Loan Agents herewith submitted will show you the amount of bonds
sold by them in the State, and the amount of money received therefor. It will
be seen that much the larger proportion of the bonds was taken by persons to
whom the State was indebted, and that but a small share was sold for cash. The
result was that the officers charged with the duty of raising troops as
required by the General Government, were much embarrassed for want of means,
being compelled to operate wholly upon credit, consequently to great
disadvantage. Whatever could be furnished by our people was promptly furnished
on the credit of the State, but without means it was impossible to procure
arms, clothing, and such other articles as our own people did not produce.
After providing clothing for the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Regiments, I found it utterly
impossible to provide for those subsequently raised, and although it was a
matter of much mortification to me, to be compelled to allow our troops to
leave our State un-uniformed and un-armed, yet I am induced to believe the
result has been as well for the troops and for the Government. The troops who
left our State without uniform, left at a season of the year when but little
clothing was needed for comfort, and they were provided with uniforms in Missouri
as speedily and more cheaply than I could have provided for them. The regiments
which have left the State more recently, have been furnished with good clothing
by the General Government before leaving. I have not purchased for the State
the arms contemplated by the law passed at the Extra Session, for the reason
that arms could be had only for money, and I had not the money wherewith to
pay. Some arms have been furnished by the General Government, but not
sufficient for the security of the State, and I recommend the subject to your
careful consideration.
On several occasions during the past season, when the Rebels
had or appeared likely to get, control in Northern Missouri, much uneasiness
existed along our Southern border lest they should attempt an invasion of our
State, which, for want of arms, our people were not properly prepared to
resist. Immediately after the close of the Extra Session of the General Assembly,
I appointed Col. John Edwards and Col. Cyrus Bussey my Aids, with large
discretionary powers, to act for the preservation of tranquillity in the
Southern border counties. I was well satisfied the peace of our State would be
more easily preserved by preventing invasion than by repelling it, and
therefore while I could not or order our State troops beyond our State line, I
instructed Colonels Edwards and Bussey, and through them the troops under their
command, that if at an time the loyal men of Northern Missouri were in peril
and called upon them for assistance, they had as full authority as I could give
them to lead their men into Missouri to the aid of the loyal men there, and my
promise upon their return that my power should be used to the utmost extent to
protect them, if called in question for so doing. Under these circumstances,
and in some cases at the instance of officers of the United States, Colonels
Edwards and Bussey and Col. Morledge of Page county, at different times led
bodies of Iowa troops into Missouri and kept them in service there until their
presence was no longer needed, and I am well assured their services were highly
valuable, not only in preserving the peace of our border and protecting our own
people, but in supporting and strengthening the Union men of Missouri. The
expenses incurred in these expeditions are, in my judgment, properly chargeable
to the General Government, and I am now seeking their reimbursement. Great
uneasiness also existed on our Western and Northern border lest the Indians in
Dacotah and Minnesota might be led by designing men to take advantage of the
troubled state of public affairs, and commit depredations on our people in that
region. The great distance of that part of the State from the place where my
other duties compel me to keep my head quarters, and the want of the means of
speedy communication therewith, either by railroad or telegraph, rendered it in
my judgment absolutely necessary that I should confer on suitable persons the
power to act for me promptly in case of emergency, as fully as if I were resent
to act in person.
I accordingly conferred such authority on Hon. Caleb
Baldwin, of Council Bluffs, and Hon. A. W. Hubbard, of Sioux City. Under this
authority bodies of mounted men were called into service at different times for
short periods, and I am happy to be able to state the tranquillity of that
portion of our State has been preserved. I cannot permit this occasion to pass
without thanking Messrs. Edwards, Bussey, Morledge, Baldwin and Hubbard, for
their efficient, and valuable services.
At my request the Secretary of War authorized the enlistment
of a company of Cavalry in the service of the United States, specially for the
protection of the northwestern border. This company has been recruited and
mustered in, and I hope will be sufficient for the protection of that portion
of our State.
Our troops in Missouri have suffered greatly from sickness.
To some extent this is perhaps attributable to the want of care and prudence
among the men themselves, to a change in their mode of life, to their eating
badly cooked food, and to the fatigue and exposure of hard labor and severe
marches, and to a much greater extent to the want of proper hospitals, proper
comforts for the sick, proper nurses, and sufficient medical aid. Doubtless
experience in camp life will convince our troops of the necessity of guarding
their health, adapt them to their new circumstances and wil1 make them better
cooks; and I ardently hope the time will soon come when those who have the
power so to do, will provide that the labor which has prostrated so many of
them, shall be done by the slaves of those who have forced this war upon the
country. Proper hospitals are now provided, and the women of our State,
following their womanly instinct to care for the suffering, have been and are
engaged in making and forwarding to our troops those delicacies an comforts not
provided by the regulations, but so necessary and cheering to the sick. I am
decidedly of the opinion that female nurses in our hospitals would render
invaluable service; and I earnestly recommend that provision be made for
securing such service for the benefit of our sick and wounded soldiers.
I am well convinced that the medical staff (a Surgeon and
Assistant Surgeon,) now allowed by law to each Regiment, is insufficient, and I
have been corresponding with the roper authorities for the purpose of effecting
a change in the law. recommend that power be given the Governor to a point an
additional Assistant Surgeon for each of our Regiments in service, to be paid
by the State in case Congress shall not by law make the necessary provision.
The law passed at the Extra Session for the organization of
the Militia, is in many respects defective, and has been in my judgment a
hindrance instead of an aid in raising troops for the service of the United
States. If the organization of the Militia is to be provided for by State law,
a more full and perfect system must be devised. But the Congress of the United
States has power “to provide for organizing, arming and disciplining the
Militia, * * * reserving to the States respectively the appointment of
officers, and the authority of training the Militia according to the discipline
prescribed by Congress.” It is probable that Congress will at the present
session, in view of the necessities of the country, provide a complete s stem
of military organization for all the States, to the extent of t e power thus
conferred. It may be well to await such action until near the close of your session,
and conform your action to such provision, if made.
SCHOOL AND UNIVERSITY
FUNDS.
The School and University funds require your careful and
earnest attention. A large portion of both these funds has been lent to
individuals in different parts of the State. Most of the loans were made before
the monetary crisis of 1857, and the securities taken for their repayment were,
in many cases, insufficient originally, and have become much less valuable
since, by reason of the general depreciation of the value of real estate; many
of the borrowers have ceased to pay the interest as it falls due, and the
results are a rapidly increasing debt with a greatly diminished security, and
an increased taxation u on our people to supply the deficiency in the school
fund caused by the non-payment of interest. More than this: under our
Constitution, all losses to the Permanent School and University Fund which
shall have been occasioned by the defalcation, mismanagement or fraud of the
agents or officers controlling and managing the same, become a permanent debt
against the State. Large losses to both these funds have already occurred, and
the amount is steadily increasing, for want of proper attention and proper
laws. The responsibility for these losses rests with the law-making power of
the State, and the responsibility for all further losses must rest there, until
by the enactment of proper laws, that responsibility is placed elsewhere. I
recommend that revision be made requiring the prompt closing up of all loans
which are insufficiently secured, or on which the interest has not been and
within a reasonable time, unless the borrowers shall entitle themselves to
further time by giving further securities, or payment of the interest due. I
also recommend that where loans are now sufficiently secured and the interest
paid, an extension of time be given the borrowers, if desired, under proper
limitations; that no new loans be made; and that sums of the principal of
either of said funds that may be paid, shall either be paid into the State Treasury
and used as other State funds, the State paying the interest thereon, or
invested for the support of the proper fund either in the stocks of the United
States or of this State.
The State University is now in successful operation,
although much embarrassed for want of means arising from the non-payment of
interest due on loans of its permanent fund. The enactment of laws requiring
the more prompt payment of interest, and for the safety and better investment
of the permanent fund as above suggested, will enable the Trustees and Faculty
to extend the usefulness of the Institution. I am decidedly of opinion that not
only the interest of the institution, but also the interest of the State
require that you should provide a Military Department of the University, and
should establish a Military Professorship therein. The sad experience of the
last few months, has shown us the necessity of military knowledge among our
people. By giving to the young men who may attend the University, military
instruction and training, we will not only greatly benefit them, but will also
have made provision for what our present experience shows may, at any moment,
become a necessity to our people. The Board of Education, at their recent
session, directed the Trustees of the University to make provision for a
Military Department therein as soon as the General Assembly should make the
necessary appropriations therefor, and I earnestly recommend the subject to
your favorable consideration.
THE PENITENTIARY.
The affairs of the Penitentiary have been well conducted
during the last two years. Its present faithful and efficient officers, although
laboring under many difficulties, have, by their careful and skillful management,
maintained excellent discipline; preserved, in remarkable degree, the health of
the convicts, and have so economized its expenses, that of the sum appropriated
at the last Regular Session for the general support of the Prison, there
remains unexpended, an amount so large that, in the opinion of the Warden, no
appropriation for that purpose will be needed at the present Session. These
officers, however, as well as those in charge of the Insane Asylum, the Asylums
for the Deaf and Dumb, and the Blind, and all others, who have been charged
with the duty of procuring for the State either labor, materials or merchandize
of any kind, for ordinary State purposes, have been continually embarrassed for
the want of money, and have been compelled to carry on their operations, and
make their purchases at great disadvantage, with warrants on the Treasury. Of
course, they have been compelled to pay higher prices in warrants than the
would have had to pay in cash. As soon as these warrants are delivered, they
are presented at the treasury, and endorsed unpaid for want of funds, and from
that time draw eight per cent. interest, so that the excess of price and
interest are so much clear loss to the State that might be saved if our taxes
were promptly paid. Neither States nor individuals can manage their affairs in
this manner without serious present embarrassment and great ultimate loss, and,
in my judgment, it is clearly your duty, as guardians of the public welfare, to
see to it that this state of affairs shall not continue. The reports of the
officers of the Penitentiary show the sums, which in their opinion, should be
appropriate by you, and the objects for which they are needed. Whilst I am
satisfied that all these objects are legitimate, and that the accomplishment of
them would add much to the safety and completeness of the Prison, I cannot, in
the present condition of our finances, recommend appropriations for all. The
completion of the third tier of cells, additional accommodations for the
hospital, additional shop-room, and a new cistern, are perhaps indispensable,
and should be provided for.
The suit pending for some years, between the Warden and the
contractors, for the labor of the convicts, has been decided, and in my
judgment, very unfavorably to the State. In view of this decision, it will be
necessary that considerable additions be made to the present shop-room in the
prison yard, unless it be determined to feed and clothe the convicts at the
expense of the State, and furnish their labor and shop-room for them
gratuitously. I recommend that a Special Committee be sent to examine what
further shops may be needed, and what steps can be taken to protect the
interests of the State in this particular. The present contract for convict
labor will expire on the 1st day of June, 1864. In order to have fair
competition for the re-letting of that labor at the expiration of the resent
contract, provision therefor should be made at the present session, and if
possible, such provision should be made by law as will prevent, under a new
contract, the heavy losses the State has sustained under the present one.
CHARITABLE
INSTITUTIONS.
The reports of the proper officers of the Deaf and Dumb and
Blind Asylums are herewith submitted. These institutions appeal so strongly to
our better feelings, and the necessities of those for whose benefit they are
intended, are so peculiar, and so urgent that I cannot withhold my
recommendation that the usual appropriations be made for their support. The appropriation
made at the last regular session for the new building For the Blind at Vinton,
has been expended in the manner required by law. The building is now enclosed,
and is not, as I understand, liable to injury by exposure to the weather, and I
submit whether it is not advisable, in our present financial condition, to
withhold the appropriation necessary to complete it until the next session of
the General Assembly. The failure to make this appropriation will not prevent
the proper care and instruction of the pupils, in the meantime, as they can be
well provided for in the building now occupied by them. You will learn, by the
Reports of the officers of the Insane Asylum, that that Institution, so long
and so much needed, has been, for some months, in successful operation. The
appropriation made at the last regular session, for finishing and furnishing
the centre and east wing of the building has proved to be more than sufficient
for that purpose, and there is a considerable balance unexpended. The number of
patients now in the institution, is nearly or quite sufficient to fill all the
finished portion of the building, and much inconvenience arises from the act
that patients of both sexes are confined in the same wing. This fact, with the
additional one that before the next session a large portion of the now
unfinished part of the building will, in all probability, be needed for the
reception of patients, induces me to recommend, as I earnestly do, that an
appropriation be now made, which with the unexpended balance of the last
appropriation, will be sufficient to finish and furnish the west wing. Every one who has witnessed the misery and
degradation, and knows the hopelessness of the cure of those poor unfortunates
when confined in the cells of our county jails, and has also witnessed their
comparative happiness and comfort, and knows the prospect for their restoration
in the Asylum, will insist that the most terrible diseases shall no longer be
treated as a crime, and that the State shall do her duty by providing and
caring for these, the most helpless and most unfortunate of her people. An
abundant and unfailing supply of water is absolutely essential to the
successful operation of an institution of this kind. A reliance for such supply
upon cisterns and common wells would be uncertain and unsafe, and as these were
the only resources heretofore provided, the Trustees and Commissioners, in
order to remove the difficulty, have undertaken the digging of an Artesian
well. The details of the work for this purpose thus far, will be found in the
reports, and I recommend that a sufficient appropriation be made to complete it
or to show its impracticability. I also
recommend that the law requiring the several counties of the State to pay for
the support of their own pauper insane, be so changed as to require such
payment to be made in advance. In this way only will such payment be prompt and
reliable, and the State be relieved practically from the burthen of supporting
the Institution. I cannot perceive the necessity for the two Boards of Trustees
and Commissioners. Either of the Boards can easily perform, in addition to its
present duties, the duties of the other board, and by the consolidation
possible conflicts of authority would be avoided, as well as considerable
expense.
RECLAMATION OF
FUGITIVES FROM JUSTICE.
The law in regard to the reclamation of fugitives from
justice is indefinite as to the amount of fees to be paid to agents of this
State, who bring back such fugitives, and as to whether it is the duty of the
Census Board to pay such expenses in all cases. It is desirable that the
uncertainty on these points should be removed.
AGRICULTURE.
Agriculture is, and for many years must continue, to be the
leading interest in our State; and any fair and legitimate aid that can be
given thereto will tend to promote the public good. With this object the State
has for some years paid considerable sums yearly to paid the Agricultural
Societies of the State and counties. Whether the benefits that have resulted
from this expenditure will justify its continuance during our present
difficulties and embarrassments, you must decide. This great interest of our
State may in my judgment be aided by legislation in a new direction. Hitherto
our great staples for export have been wheat, corn, cattle and hogs.
The prices paid for the transportation of these articles to
New York, form a large portion of their value at that point. Indeed, wheat and
corn will not bear transportation to that market during the season when the
navigation of the lakes is closed. Experience has, I think, conclusively shown
that our State is admirably adapted to sheep grazing, and the value of wool in
proportion to its bulk and weight it, is much greater, and the price of its
transportation to New York in proportion to its value, much less than that of
our present staples.
A great drawback upon the growing of wool is that large
numbers of sheep are annually killed by dogs. I therefore recommend that a tax
be levied on all dogs in the State, and that the proceeds of the tax be applied
to paying to owners of sheep killed by dogs, the value of the sheep thus killed.
I would go further than this — I would exempt from taxation for a period of
five years all sheep not exceeding fifty, owned by any resident of the State,
and would also exempt from taxation for the same time all capital invested in
the State in the manufacture of woolen goods.
I am well satisfied that the cultivation of flax can be
successfully and profitably introduced in our State. It is valuable not only
for the seed, but for the lint which under a new process, is converted into
what is called flax cotton. I am well assured that before the commencement of
the rebellion, a remunerative price could be paid in our State for the flax
straw, which has heretofore been an entire loss to the farmer, the fibre
separated from the wood, and the tow transported to Boston and manufactured
into Flax Cotton, which could fairly compete in price and usefulness with the
cotton of the Southern States. In order to stimulate our people to examine the
question carefully, and if possible, introduce among us a new and profitable
branch of industry, I recommend that all capital invested in the manufacture of
linseed oil or the conversion of flax straw into flax cotton, be exempted from
taxation for five years.
If our industry were more diversified, we would suffer less
from fluctuations of prices of particular articles, and if as necessity
requires and opportunity offers, we become manufacturers as well as producers,
we will increase our wealth and independence.
The Report of the Secretary of the Agricultural College
shows the action of the Board of Trustees since your last session. I would
gladly recommend liberal appropriations for the erection of the necessary
College and other buildings, if the condition of our finances would allow, but
I cannot now do so. The farm and buildings are in such condition that a failure
to make appropriations will not necessarily work any injury to them. The only
unfavorable result will be delay, and to that we must submit until our national
difficulties are removed. I heartily approve of the policy adopted by the
Trustees of reserving the lands donated by the State and by individuals, and
the bonds of Story county to endow the institution, trusting to the liberality
of the State and of individuals in more prosperous times for the erection of
the necessary buildings.
LAND GRANT.
The Report of the Register of the State Land Office shows
the condition of the various grants of land made by the Congress of the United
States to this State.
Very serious and embarrassing questions have arisen from the
conflicting interests and claims of some of the Land Grant Railroad Companies
and the Des Moines Navigation and Railroad Company. There have been much
vacillation and conflict of opinion and action among the heads of the Department
of the Interior in regard to the extent of the Des Moines River Land Grant.
That Grant has been held by one Secretary to extend only to the forks of the
River at Des Moines City; by another to extend to the sources of the River in
Minnesota, and by another to extend only to the north boundary of our State.
One or more of the Secretaries certified to the State as part of this Grant
large bodies of land lying above the forks of the River within the limits of
the State, and the State subsequently sold and conveyed many of these lands to
individuals. Afterwards the State contracted with the Des Moines Navigation and
Railroad Company to prosecute the work of improving the Des Moines River,
agreeing to convey to said Company the title of the State to portions of the
lands so certified to the State for that purpose, as rapidly as the work progressed.
Under this arrangement the title of the State to many of these lands was
conveyed to the Des Moines Navigation and Railroad Company. Subsequently by
settlement with the Des Moines Navigation and Railroad Company the State conveyed
to said Company the title of the State to the remainder of the lands which had
been certified to the State by the Secretary of the Interior, and at the same
time conveyed to the Keokuk, Ft. Des Moines & Minnesota Railroad Company
its title to all the lands of said grant which had not been certified to the
State by the Secretary of the Interior, except fifty thousand acres reserved
for certain purposes. The Des Moines Navigation & Rail Road Company have
conveyed to individuals large bodies of the lands thus conveyed to them. The
lines of three of the Land Grant Railroads, (the Dubuque & Sioux City, the
Cedar Rapids & Missouri, and the Mississippi & Missouri,) cross the Des
Moines River above its forks, and hence arises a conflict between these
companies, and the companies and their grantees, and the grantees of the State
who hold portions of those lands as part of the original Des Moines River
Grant. These Railroad Companies claim that the Des Moines River Grant never
really extended above the forks of the River at Des Moines, and that
consequently all conveyances made by the State of lands above that point, as
Des Moines River Grant Lands are invalid, and that by virtue of the Railroad
Land Grant they acquired a title to all such lands lying within the limits of
their respective grants.
The State having only conveyed what title it had to these
lands may not be legally liable to make good any loss that may result to others
from a failure of that title, but certainly is morally bound, at the least, to
do what may be reasonably an fairly done to protect the rights and interests of
those threatened with such loss. When the State granted to the Railroad
Companies the lands granted to the State by Congress for Railroad purposes, it
was not contemplated by the parties, certainly it was not contemplated by the
State, that it was granting to these Companies lands previously conveyed by the
State to others, and if since the making of these grants the Companies who are
to receive the benefit of them have discovered that by strict legal
construction they are entitled to more than was contemplated, either by
themselves or by the State, and are disposed to enforce strictly these legal
rights, to the injury of innocent purchasers from the State; the State may, and
think should, hold these Companies in all things to a strict compliance with
the terms of the grants made to them. If these companies are now in default, and
ask the indulgence and clemency of the State, it seems to me the State may very
properly, before extending such indulgence and clemency, enquire and know what
indulgence and clemency these Companies will extend to the unfortunate holders
of these lands, and make for the one with the other such terms and conditions
as may be equitable and just to all.
In selecting the lands for the five hundred thousand acre
grant, so called, by some mistake the agents of the State selected and the
officers of the General Government certified to the State several thousand
acres more than were covered by the terms of the grant. This mistake being
discovered, application was made to my immediate predecessor by the
Commissioner of the United States General and Office to reconvey to the United
States this excess of land. Upon examination it was found that part of the land
had been already sold and conveyed by the State, so that all could not be
reconveyed. Under these circumstances it was agreed between Governor Lowe and
the Commissioner of the General Land Office, that the unsold portion of this excess
of land should be reconveyed, and that the United States should retain of the
five per cent. and coming to this State enough to pay for such of said lands as
could not be reconveyed by reason of their sale at the rate of one dollar and
twenty-five cents per acre. Unfortunately, at the time this agreement was made,
the then unsold portion of the lands was not withdrawn from market, and since
then still other portions have been sold. Governor Lowe, by letter,
relinquished the title of the State in these lands, but quite recently the
Commissioner of the General Land Office has applied to me for a formal deed of
conveyance. I at once caused the remaining unsold portion of the lands to be
withdrawn from market, and would at once have reconveyed them, but have serious
doubt whether the Executive can without your authority divest the State of
title to land which has been once vested in the State, whether by mistake or
otherwise.
I recommend that authority be conferred to settle and adjust
this matter on the terms proposed by Governor Lowe, and also to reconvey to the
United States any portion of said excess of lands yet remaining unsold.
The swamp land grant is being slowly adjusted with the
General Land Office at Washington City. By the terms of the law making this
grant, this State will be entitled to receive from the United States in lieu of
swamp lands that had been entered with land warrants, land scrip entitling the
State to locate a “quantity of like amount upon any of the public lands subject
to entry at one dollar and a quarter per acre or less.”
The Commissioner of the United States General Land Office
has so construed this law as to require the State to select the lands to which
it may be entitled thereunder, from the lands of the United States, subject to
entry, at one dollar and a quarter an acre, lying within this State. The law
will not, in my opinion, bear this construction, and I am endeavoring to have
it set aside, so as to allow the selection of the lands to which the State may
be entitled to be made in this State or in any other State or Territory where
public lands may be found subject to entry, at one dollar and a quarter per
acre.
It will be necessary that an agent or agents be appointed to
make these selections, and you should make some provision for such appointment.
The lands thus to be selected will, by the laws of this
State, belong to the Counties within which the lands in lieu
of which they may be selected were originally located. The United States,
however, recognize only the State as the recipient of the grant, and will
probably recognize only the agent or agents of the State in making these
selections, but as the benefits of the selections enure to the Counties, it
would be just and proper that the Counties should bear or refund to the State
the expense of the agency.
I have thus endeavored to place before you the condition of
the State, so far, as in my judgment, your action is needed for its
improvement. Your wisdom will doubtless discover some, perhaps many,
particulars in which legislation will be necessary, that have been overlooked
by me.
The year which has just closed, has brought to our people a
new experience, new trials, new responsibilities, and new duties. Let us
continue to meet them as we have thus far met them, with neither an overweening
confidence in, and reliance upon, our own strength, nor an unmanly and craven
fear for ourselves, or of the hardships we may endure before we win by
deserving success, but With patience, calmness, unflinching courage, and an
abiding faith in God.
SAMUEL J. KIRKWOOD.
SOURCES: Henry Warren Lathrop, The Life and
Times of Samuel J. Kirkwood, Iowa's War Governor, p. 182-92; Iowa House of
Representatives, Journal of the House of
the Ninth General Assembly of the State of Iowa, p. 11-29; Benjamin F.
Shambaugh, The Messages and Proclamations
of the Governors of Iowa, Volume 2, p. 264-95
