The Sumter banner. [volume] (Sumterville, S.C.) 1846-1855, 1850-08-21

Il i.oN"'' ' ~ empowered 10 receive the
said bonds er:contracts, md make all such
arrangements, MS, in his Judgment, may be
deemed cWedient for procuring the said
money" A power Of attorney was thus
elVoh TO the Governor to, bind the. Sta,c,
ny bond or contract, in any form which he
Should consider most cffcctual, fer procur.
ing the loan; and to the agent TO bind tho
oaio Dy any arrangements he might deem
most cxpcdicnt for procuring the money!
What then was the form of the Bonds or
contracts which the Governor drew a,urbv
which the State is bound? He drew bonds.
| payable, not to- the lenders of the money.
but to the Bank of the State, of ,Sanh
CaroIlnr, at tho Blinking House Of BAR
ING, BRorIiEHs g. Co. in London, which
bonds the Bank, by the direction of the
Governor, assigned to the lcndcrs,. making
upon each of then. the following iradorse.
mcnt
In pursuance and by authority Of an
Act of haf.egisla,urc of the State OF South
Carolina, ratified on the first day of June,
lS3S--the President and Directors OF sl,c
Bank of the Stale Of South Carolina, with a
capital of $3,lO00OO, Cncludinp the pres.
ent loan,) for value received, assign and
transfer the within Boud 10 or
bearer, and hereby guarantee the puncinal
payment ofthe principal and interest of said
bond, as it becomes due ut the place speci-
fled within" (SigncdD" G !. Colcock..
President OF tho Bank of the State of South
Carolina"
Here tfon is the form by which State.
acting through her agent the Governor,
bound heTscis- and in that form the Bank is
put down as security for the paymen, oftho
money rs II becomes due. and n portion of II
will not become due until 1870. How can
the State release herself from the obligation
which the contract. drawn in that form, i'm.
poses
But the above is not all. GHoRGE McDur,
rIE, the agent selected by tho Bank md
commissioned by the Governor, and who
was fully empowered 10 make all such ar
r'ngemcnts as in his Judgment might DC
deemed expcdcnt for procuring the money,
went to Europe, with the bonds thus drawn
and thus garamccd. On arriving in London,
Inc issucd pamphlet, in which after stntinp
the objects of the Act, and the means which
the State had provided for the n,vmcnt Of
the money which she proposed 20 borrow,
he says: But the Legislature has not on.
ly provided the most abundant and available
means for meeting its engagements, but n
-hScdt agency, emncntly adapted to ensure
the most perfect punctualily Tho pay
mcnt OF tho intcres, and principal of this
loan is guaranteed by tho Bank of the Sn,e
OF South Carolina, an institution of us hip|I
character as any i'll HE United States. The
Importance the agency of such an i,stitu.
ton, connected, as it is, will, all the opcra-
tons OF trade, and depending on the punc-
tual discharge of its engagements. for tha,
public confidence upon which its prosperity
essentially depends, will be fully apprccia-
ted by ell w.o arc practically acquainted
with the inscparablcncss Of the connection
between Bank credit and Bank punctualilv.n
Against a private individual the force of
such evidence would l,c ovcrwliclmur-no
Judge, in Court of Justice, would listen to
nn argument against it; and because there
ID 40 Court of justice which can compcl
the State specifically TO perform her con.
tract, or award damages against her, for a
breach OF II, does it not follow that she is
bound, ina higher degree ,hana private in
dl'idunl would be, 10 adhere to the moral OBJ
legation which i.imposcs? i.
1t is said, by some persons, that i, is true
the Bank is pledged 10 the creditors; but that
j, is only tho Bank, as it existed in lslS.
that is, Bank whose charter would expire
III 1856, which is pledged; and that there
Is no obligation imposed upon the State, by
lhc Act oi 1888, TO rcchnrtcr the Bank -
What tie Legislature intended, can only be
determined by what the Legislature said;
and, II Is we'll known rule, that where the
construction of an Acti is doubtful, coternpo
rancous exposition is of high authority in
law. We have already shown that the CO..
tctnporancous acts and declarations of
! the Governor and General McDrrrlE
! show, that they construed the Act rs
we do; and we think no other con
strnction can, consistently with It's terms.
be placed upon it. The Legislature directs
the Bank ito make provision for the pune
tnal payment Of the interest and the u,i.
mate payment of the principal Did The
Legislature intend that Bank, whose
charter would expire in 1856, should make
this provision Was il intended ,b,,
the provision for the payment of the
principal should be made ii wears be-.
fore the debt would fall due! But arain.-
The Legislature (scc lIth scction) directs
the Bank to debit itself with all the future
annual profits of the loan, and then pledges
the profits to The creditors. Did the Lep.
IsIalurc intend that, after 1886, no profits
should be made OH the loanl Or did il in
tend, that a Bank, which had ceased to ex.