Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1841-1853, 1846-06-04
Foreign RondhoIders.

The n. Y. Journal of Commerce, of late date,
contains the following extract Of letter from an In
diana Bondhoder, dated
"LoNDoS, ID March, 1916.
"The Act of the Legislature of Indiana, gives me
much pain and though do not know how the COM
mtee here consider 1t, cannot but fear its success.
When 1t shall be fully known to the Indiana bond
holders, fear 1t will meet with great objections The
principle of getting rid Of the obligation of half the
interest for The uncertain produce of the canal is bad
and shows want of right feeling; and the condition
of forcing further subscription from those who have
already lost much by trusting Indiana, is most OBJ
JectIonabie This cannot be complied with in all
cases where the bonds in trust as is the case in
many instances This act will also do much harm to
the estimation of all American securities and greatly
retard any return Of confidence Ii is impossible for
people IN Europe to separate the conduct of State
from that Of the rest. Some people will make the
distinction, but the world at large will not. Indeed
they cannot; and if one State is to force her cred-
tors to accept compromise, it be feared thai
should difficulties arise in any Of the others, the
course would follow. proper feeling about the debt
and just sense of the obligation with any tolerable
management of the of Indiana would at no
distant time enable her to pay the whole for the annu
al charge, which at most, would not amount a dol
lar bead on her population. 1t may require few
Every few years to manage this, but if there was
the right spirit it would be done. 1t is true that In
diana has been sadly cheated by of her country
men and citizens, who negotiated the loans but Eu-
ropeans bought her bonds at full and high prices and
have great right to complain her proceedings now
al write you my feelings, but take no part
here the subject, until know what are the views
and wishes of the committee. 1t is not nv wish or
my habit to make difficulties. / regret very much
also that Indiana does not perceive how
great has been her folly in carrying the works of
the canal since lS4l, when she had nothing pay for
them but her deprecated paper issued in antic-
paf1p Of horr Rr ~ o1f,,or
she has to pay three times the of the work DONE
and has mortgaged her revenue for several years.
With these proceedings and the violent war speeches
in Congress- you cannot wonder that American stocks
not current here. On the latter point hope to
better feeling, and lately proposed altera-
ton in corn laws and commercial duties WILL hope,
tend to make your wild spirits more pacable."
How easy it is for these gentlemen 10 sit down in
their parlors in London, and coolly calculate and
speculate upon the imaginary resources to be imme-
diatey derived from States hardly reclaimed from "a
bowling wilderness" We should like to have few
of them set down here in the yet undlsurbed forests,
with no stock in trade but rifle and an axe, by
which to win subsistence, and then give their views
as to the great ease with which every man, woman
and child could, if they would, pay additional
of dollar head, for the sake Of redeemlng our
plighted faith,' and Fastening ga return of conf
dence PIN other words a return Of swindng spec
ulation in State stocks We imagine, that under
such circumstances, the matter would appear them
in very different aspect from what it now does The
of the writer il, his last paragraph very
gross. The revenues of the State have not been
pledged for the continuation of the Wabash and Erie
Canal Congress made specific grants of land in favor
of that work. and the State in continuing it, has only
complied with the imperative conditions imposed by
Congress The "depreciated paper was not ISSUED
in anticipation of revenue" but was based on the
canal lands. This unfortunate experiment,
but not so bad one that supposed by the writer.
In conclusion, have said before repeatedly, the
bOndhoders, if they are wise, will not reject the
compromise rendered to them under the law of last
winter. They Will not get any thing better.