Glasgow weekly times. (Glasgow, Mo.) 1848-1861, 1849-01-04

or the State to the Bank, is deemed very
proper matter for your consideration, and
one for your decision
In the wisdom, prudence and patriotism
of the Bank, if we Judge the future by the
past, but little confidence can be reposed
This remark is made mainly in alluson 10
the mother Bank, most of the branches
having been better and more prof,ably
managed, and some Of them with an eve
more certainly directed to the interest of
the Stale.
On previous occasion the Bank claimed
the payment of a similar debt, but one lar.
ger in mountaineering six per cent per
annum interest. An act was passed au
,horzing the Governor to borrow $685..
600, in part TO be applied in the discharge
of the debt Bonds were issued under
this act, and made payable in ten years,
but redeemable in five, and were endorsed
by the Bank; and in a time of profound
peace, were sold under that endorsement,
bearing the exhorbtant rate of ten per
cent. per annum interest. The proceeds
as far as required, were applied to the pay
ment of the debt due the Bank Thus the
State paved off debt to her own Bank
about the equivalent of paying deb, to
herself bearing six per cent. interest, by
contracting another with citizens of other
States, bearing ten per cent. interest, and
this at the urgent demand of the Bank. On
the part Of the mother Bank it is believed
that an average of six per cent-the rate
of interest paid by the State-even on her
capital, has never yet been realized. 1t
was then not wise, prudent or patriotic,
to call upon the State to pay the debt bear
ing six per cent. interest, when the only
mode of doing it was to contract another
of equal amount bearing ten per cent
The Bank gained nothing by the opera.
ton, and the State lost four per cent. upon
the whole debt. The seminary and saline
funds have told even more distressing
tale as 10 the manner in which the Bank
has managed them; and the scan,y returns
made to the University and the common
schools in The shape Of dividends upon
these funds have deprived many children
of the education to which they were emit.
tied. But the Bank may have doubted the
solvency Of the State, and if so, very nat
urally felt an interest in retaining her
debt before the Treasury became bank.
rnpt. Her conduct in connexion with the
effort TO pay off the above bonds, at the
end of five years, when they became re-
deemable, by refusing TO indorse for the
State-another important part of the his
tory of this matter-would seem to
strengthen the above idea.
The refusal of the Banks TO indorse &C.
! ~ in In
the 9th of March ls45 authorizing an is
sue of bonds to bear an interest not to ex-
coed eight per cent. per annum, TO be ex-
changed for the above ten per cent. bonds
or TO be sold TO raise funds to redeem them.
During the progress of the war, and while
the money market was not in good con-
dilon, and when the government of the
United States was beginning to borrow
largely to defray the expenses of her ar
mics, the Executive prevailed on the hol-
ders of nearly all the ten per cent. bonds
redeemable in the year 1916, to exchange
them for eight per cent bonds, thus saving
an annual interest of two per cent; but
they agreed to exchange only on condition
that the Bank would indorse the eight per
cent. bonds just as she had Endorsed the
ten per cents five years before. In pursu.
ance of this arrangement, application was
made TO the Bank to indorse, but the Bank,
instead of endorsing at their first meeting
land not hesitating an nstan, to do what
she had done before, and to relieve herself
and the State from liability for two per
cent. on that large amount of money, over
100000 doilars-took time to examine,
consult, deliberate, and finally refuse to in
dorse for the State. Thus ended the nego-
tiaton-the State being disgraced by the
refusal of her own Banks TO inGorse her
bonds--and under that refusal compelled
still TO pay ten per cent. upon the debt OF
more than S250,000, instead of only eight
per cent.
PENITENTIARY.
1t bee anne my duty four years ago to We.
to bill appropriating $4,000 dollars for
Improvements about the penlentiary.--
This bill was probably passed in conse.
quence Of representations from the lessees
that they were compelled 10 have more
cells and more room. Soon after the veto
Of this BILL the inspectors of the penilen.
tiary gave the lessees contract for building
a block of cells. That block has now been
} in the course of construction nearly -four
years, but notwithstanding Representations
of its great and urgent necessity for imme
diate use, the building still remains incom
plete. This excites a strong presumption
that the building was more necessary &c
pay up the rent accruing to the State thar
, to confne the consic,s. Nearly elk years
of the present lease have expired and if i