Vandalia Whig and Illinois intelligencer. [volume] (Vandalia, Ill.) 1832-183?, 1834-01-30
From the st. Clair Gazette.

! From the St. Sldlf GuLetlc'
Mr.. EDIToh: purpose to devote few
brief moments to the State Bank OF ILLINOIS
that was. Now, that is defunct, 1t Will mo-
be unseemly, nor contrary to precedent, t'I
publish its biography, Indeed, in these day9
of political man9uvre, biographies, not as ~
1.-THE olden time posthumous, now come oul
their subject being in full life and force
But / proceed to my subject. The statd
Bank commenced its career in the year 1871
as protested measure Of relief; it was urgef
and pressed upon the minds of the prudenl
as measure which would give great reieI
to those people of Illinois greatly in debit
and probably none more than those Will
most strenuously advocated its passage both
in and out of the Legislature. The bill crea-
ting it was, by the then Council of Revis-
lion, returned, as proposing an unconstltu-
tional law. Yet the Legislature passed the
bill by constitutional majority, and 1t be-
came law. Every facility was given In
| aid of this charming measure; all creators
who would not endorse on the back OF their
executions, that State paper OF the said bank
would be taken at par for their debts, were
subject to a stay ofthree years, and hence all
the stay laws found their origin.
The paper, as is matter oil nolorlety' sunk
dows in value, until its minimum value was
twenty-five cents to the dollar One would
suppose thai, thus depressed in value, NO
further relief Was necessary to bank debtors,
i but so thought not our Legislature, or at lesst
majority of them, for in the year 1870,
AUDITORS warrants were made receivable Tor
tbank debts: p. 81, Ac,s 1928. And by Acts
same session, p. 159, Bank debts were scaled,
that is. the paper reduced to its specie value,
and then OK scu,ion might be satisfied by
paving as many State paper dollars as the ex-
ecution called for. In 1927, when the paper
had risen in value to about 60 or 10 cents,
further relief became necessary, md law
passed authorizing Bank debtors, by note or
mortgage, who had made default IN paying
the annual instalments, 10 renew their notes
as though no default had been made, upon
paying the instalments up to the time OF ma,
king application 10 renew; and al; executions
upon The Bank debts were stayed Tor three
lmonths,-und further power given to re-
new any time after by paying up all install
mcnts that were in arrear. Bat, in 1893,
the Legislature finding the Bank debtors
would not pay their debts, began TO offer
premiums 10 them as an inducement to pay.
By dividing the debt into three annual pay
ments, which being paid, no interest should
be collected. This further relief stayed the
collection of all Bank debts from May, 1929
Ito September, 1929 But sufficient relief had
mot vet been afforded. So induigent was the
Legislature that in 1881, further"time was
given, until May, 1882, and if punctually
paid. interest to be RENTED; and any Banl,
l. f,u aut hnfprn
LIST Dec. 1881, of any one Of the three install
r ments, should be discharged from all interest
and six per cent of principal, and those who
paid up their entire debts in full, should be
discharged from all interest
! In 1888, another relief law was extended
to the Bank debtors, by which it is provided
that if they pay the debt BY the Isl OF Jan
1884, (Rev. Code, p. 5S4,) they shall be en-
titled TO a discount Of all interest, and ten
per cent. of principal, provided it does not
exceed twenty-five per cent?!
Thus ended the Legislative relief which
was granted for the debtor But with all
this they were not satisfied-and the crown
ing relief has been obtained at the last ST.
prcmc Court, at this present December term,
in the case Of VIM. Linn, against the State
Bank, on q writ Of error, in which case
the Court decided the Bank law uncons,i-
tuional, and that the debtors thereto were
not bound to pay the money borrowed OF
the Bank Aud here the Bank debtors find
an efieciual relief, which relief has been
sought, and will be sought by many land
the good people of this State who have had
this currency forced upon thcm--or have not
touched the ''unc!ean thing" will have IL
pay the debt which has been created by this
monstrous reliet system. ALPHA.
Talue Of blood Horses.--Mr. J. C. Ste
vens has sold his horse Medoc for S O,00C
to gentleman from Kentucky. No,
wishing TO part with so favorite an animal
he asked price that he thought but lit
tie risk upon that score. But he was mis-
taken: the gentleman paid him the mo-
ney, and walked off with the horse; and
ii is little singular, that within twelve
hours after he had an offer of the same
sum from gentleman from Virginia, who
came on TO purchase him, and thought him
cheap at that price. Double the sum OBJ.
"A