ties, in which nearly nine-tenths of all our taxes are now expended; and that if the members of the legislature were paid nothing for their services and expenses, the difference in taxation would be scarcely perceptible, it being only 1-33rd part of the whole tax On the other hand the committee believe that such a reduction in pay as would prevent poor men from being members of the legislature, would be a public calamity, without any reasonable object.

And, as for biennial sessions, the committee are of the opinion that more evil than good must necessarily result from such an amendment of the constitution. There would, in that event, be double or nearly double the business to do at each session as there is now, and therefore longer sessions would be required, and all the benefits of annual sessions would be lost without a probability of reducing taxation a hundredth part-leaving by this unwise arrangement, the executive and judicial departments for two years without supervision or control-placing it out of the power of the people to organize new townships and counties, and adopt such other measures as are demanded by the ever changing wants of a new state. Removing from the people that knowledge of our state affairs which is kept up by means of annual sessions, and carried home to every portion of the state, and to every citizen by messages and documents, and newspapers, and finally by the return to their homes, of a hundred living epistles, of all that they have seen and heard and learned at the capitol, and better able to direct the energies of their respective portions of this new republic, by a knowledge of parliamentary law, and better qualified to fill with honor and usefulness other stations, which it is the glory of our institutions to leave open to all.

The committee cannot recommend a constitutional amendment, and therefore report back the petition without any resolution, and ask to be discharged from its further consideration.

J. GOODWIN, Ch'n.

No. 13.

1847.

Report of Committee of Ways and Means on so much of the Governor's Message as relates to the Internal Improvement Debt of the State.

The committee of Ways and Means, to whom was referred so much of the annual message of the Governor, as urged upon the consideration of the legislature, the duty of providing for the "speedy adjustment and ultimate payment of the internal improvement debt" of the State, being deeply impressed with the truth and force of the remarks of the Executive, that this indebtedness had for years embarrassed the treasury, retarded immigration, and discouraged the enterprize of Michigan, gave the subject their early attention, and made it a matter of their most serious and anxious deliberations. The committee found that the balance of our internal improvement debt, after deducting the amounts due from the Central and Southern Railroad Companies, as stated in the message, and in the report of the Auditor General, amounted to $1,987,140 77, including interest to January, 1847; on which the annual interest would amount to about $120,000; but if the internal improvement lands and other assets properly applicable to that purpose, were left to absorb about $400,000 of the above indebtedness, the annual interest would then be reduced to about $90,000 or $95,000. If the State is ever to make an effort to extinguish this indebtedness, which hangs like an incubus upon all our prospects, it is certainly indispensable that the debt should be kept from accumulating, by providing at least for the payment of the annually accruing interest. Although your committee believe with the Executive, that in addition to the punctual payment of interest, provision should be made also for the gradual discharge of the principal,

yet in the present infant condition of the State, the utmost that your committee could venture to recommend, or hope to see accomplished, would be such an increase of the State tax, as would meet the annual interest on our internal improvement debt, leaving the creation of any surplus for the extinguishment of the principal, to the gradual increase in amount, that would naturally be realized from the same rate of taxation, by our increase in population and wealth. The State tax of two or two and a half mills on the dollar, which is all that has been assessed for the last five years for State purposes, having been found sufficient, not only for the current expenses of the government, including the payment of interest on our general fund and penitentiary bonds, but also, for the accumulation of a surplus in the shape of lands bid off to the State, and returned delinquent for unpaid taxes, amounting to about $150,000, over and above what is due to the counties, on account of lands so returned; your committee were inclined to believe that a tax of two mills would hereafter be sufficient for such purposes, especially as the interest on the amount due the school fund, which is now about $6,500 a year, as well as the annual interest due to the university of about $4,000, and which latter was heretofore paid from the proceeds of our public works, will be more than met by the specific State tax on the Central and Southern Railroad companies. This tax amounts at present to $12,500 a year, and for some years to come at least, will no doubt be increased by the further investments of capital to be made by those companies, faster than the indebtedness to the school and university funds will be increased by new sales, or payments of principal due on former sales of lands belonging to these funds.

Our present aggregate valuation of taxable property in the state, being about thirty millions of dollars, it will require a tax of three mills on the dollar to raise the lowest amount that would be equisite to prevent a constant annual increase of our internal improvement debt. Besides, as it will take from one to three or four years to realize the full proceeds of any state tax, which the present legislature may see fit to authorize, our indebtedness must necessarily continue to increase somewhat for a year or two, until the increased or additional state tax can become available to the state

treasury. The interest, however, accruing on the taxes upon the lands returned delinquent from the several counties, will, it is supposed, counterbalance any temporary increase of our indebtedness. A tax of three mills on the dollar, yielding an annual revenue of about ninety thousand dollars, is certainly no small sum for the people of Michigan to raise at the present time for the payment of interest on their public debt; but when divided up amongst our sixty or seventy thousand voters and tax payers, it will be found after all to be but a trifling sum, averaging less than a dollar and a half a head, and a large proportion of this will be contributed by non-resident land holders. But even were it all collected from our resident population, what citizen would refuse to pay the interest on his own indebtedness, if such a comparatively insignificant sum was all that was required to enable him to do so? And who will say that it is right for the state to do in her collective capacity, that which would be so despicable and contemptible on the part of her citizens in their individual capacity? The faith and credit of the state is certainly about as important to each citizen and inhabitant as his own, and ought at least to be held as sacred.

Large as our State debt apparently or really is, as compared with our means, yet we have the consolation to know that in this respect we are no worse, but in fact much better off than many of our sister States. In the State of Ohio, in order to pay the interest on their canal or internal improvement debt, after applying all the net revenues of their public works, they have to raise by direct tax over three-quarters of a million of dollars annually. The population of that State being about five times that of Michigan at present, whilst their taxation for payment of interest on their public debt is rather more than eight times as much, the rate per head, or the average amount contributed by each tax payer, must be more than one-half larger than is necessary in this State. The State tax in that State for some years past was at the rate of seven mills on the dollar, of which five and a half was for payment of the interest on their debt. The aggregate valuation in that State for 1846 was about 150 millions of dollars, or about five times that of Michigan, showing their assessments heretofore to have probably been made upon a somewhat similar basis of valuation as has for some years