The daily union. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1845-1857, 1850-03-24

WAsHNoros. d. c.. March. 1850.
Hon N. r. Dlxos
SIR now commence a review OF your speech in the
house OF representatives OF the State OF Rhode Island
January ls4I, on the petition OF the creditors OF the
State, asking payment OF State notes or certificates Is
sued by the general treasurer, under acts OF assembly
i7g5, 1877, and other acts supplementary thereto 4.
The origin OF the consideration which these cerih-
Gates were founded has been detailed in an abbreviated
statement drawn out and intended to have been publish
ed, anteceden to this communication. The press OF
public business In both houses OF Congress- OF necessity,
precudes that publication at this time. u will, how.
ever be placed before the public at as early day as
possible Inc absence q this statement !. the less to os
State delegations. in pamphlet FORM the historical facts,
as also the report OF select committee appointed under
hs san0 o. hs state on Claims agaIs ns Sae
OF accounts between the State and the United States
shows that the State had paid, during the revolutionary
war, her yearly quota Of about $200000 and surplus
sum Of Si9s6il due the State al the close Of the war
the whole having been consolidated TO specie basis,
as shown BY the final settlement between the State and
the United States in 1893. Ii is also shown by the
books in the State treasury that the State was indebted
to her own cltzens much larger amount, VIZ; more
than $4,000 All this proved before the general
by ysu denied in your speech under consideration.
The pith and foundation Of your speech was, "that in
1890 all the debts Of the State were paid either by paper
money or by an act to quiet all claims The State was
| free OF debt BY ITS own acts at that time"
| You further said:
"These certificates issued for purpose Of
tnung the claims against the general government and the
You also said
"A the acts Of the general assembly referred 10 the duty
OF the general government TO pay these claims"
II either of these positions Of itself sound OBJ
lection against the validity OF claims the three taken
one destroys the other and all fall to the ground together
Long before this time, viz January 1884, Wilkins
UPdke. then member of the House Of Representatives
said
shs oo, q. - .h, arosa oy ,o.a inns
once paid by the State in the paper money OF l7S6"
He also said at the same session
There is such thing debt due from this State ii
was debt due from the United States" !" was claim
upon the general alone. "These certificates
were given 70 show that such claims were 10 not
% s sa Pay @ the y s ss
with the idea Of paying them ourselves The
cates themselves do not state obligation on the par
of the State to pay them"
The statements which were made by you, January,
s47 and then by you considered the strong points
in your case were but the echo Of those made by Wilkins
Updke, your e-leader in reputation. will by and-by
show the falacy Of his and your statements on these
points.
In your Speech or at any time snce no exposition has
been made either OF the general features or the details
Of the acts ordering the payments BY which
the people >oheT States obtain such information as
will prepare them to judge OF the force and bearing OF
those acts II therefore necessary for to make
the wanting explanation.
AT the. close of the war the State was deeply in
debt t. her own szsa hs Hasd States e. as
no consolidated government and little expectation was
had that the United States could pay the State we
make payment Of State debts paper money party
ting 100000 Il was distributed to the towns in the
ratio OF the last State tax, and subdivded to all citizens
eub
printing and circulating the paper which was printed
could not be had at less than four for one Each month
the of exchange increased from four for TO six for
one. seven for one and on, fifteen for one and at
that time Spanish dollar would purchase thirty dol
lars of paper An act passed December 1885, ordering
quarter part of the per cent notes 10 be brought n
and paid in this deprecated and deprecang paper money
or to be forfeited to the State Similar acts passed June,
1887, October l7s7. and May l7ss-taxes having been
imposed at different times in all to 100000, payable in
the money ofl7s6 March, 1885, act passed ordering
all other claims to be brought in, and paid in like
ner and under like forfeiture Il appears that only
small proportion of the whole claims were brought in !;
even under the acts OF forfeiture about $3.50 900 only
were thus redeemed By examining the records OF the
State, we find that the Indebtedness was more than
800 900, being about double the amount OF all the
paper money called into the treasury the act was there
fore imperative and void requiring greater sum to be
paid with OF less amount even on the face, saying
nothing OF its deprecated value.
Let US carry this argument little further. Suppose
that instead Of 100000, the State had been indebted 10
her own citizens s., 100000: she could on the first day
OF January have passed act ordering tax OF
1898 333i to be paid April lst and by the first day OF
May called in sixth OF her whole debt paying in this
paper money. The money would then be abroad in the
whole community The same process could again be
gone over the four months and for two years.
when the State would have extinguished her whole in
debtedness--and extngushed il with what Why, with
that which had cost the State nothing and was worth
nothing TO those who received IT, AND THIS your
SPEECH THE PAYING OF pEBrs-paying them IN pa
per money by act TO quiet all clams" Even this
seems to have been perfectly satisfactory 10 your mind
This was not an ordinary transaction between debtor
and creditor parties il act OF sovereign power OF
the State and the part OF the State an act OF gross in
justice.
that
81 had full confidence OF demonstrating that the prnci
iomance OF contracts between debtor and creditor parties,
either In public private transactions would prove sub.
versve all the moral principles which ought to govern
the Of all honest men,"
Have not fulfilled my statement Have ! not given
the full perfect and unanswerabe promised "demonsira
ton "
In Justice TO the men OF 1856 to 1882 who controlled
the government OF the State at that time, cannot but
saw ather poverty and not their will" directed the
measure The present repudiaors boast that Rhode
Island is now the richest State in the Union, LET the cal
culaton be made on extent OF territory population.
Reputation with them has, therefore, no apology.
and Unlike You both state that the claims " not
due from the State. but they debts due from the
United Staes and this is again and again repeated, in
various phraseoogy, TO the tenth time; and were 10
extract from all the speeches OF these twin brethren IN
reputation the statements be carried TO the
twentieth repetition One short interrogation will scatter
every such declaration 10 the four winds Of heaven II
these claims were due from the United States. and not
from the State most respectfully ask OF the gentleman
who graduated at Brown University, and has completed
his legal education the law schools OF Tale and Har
~ - H. Ca II