The Evansville daily journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ia. [i.e. Ind.]) 1848-1862, 1859-02-14
nag- The Safe journal in discussing the


mode of investing the Sinking Fund,
says if the Evansville Journal was as fair
as smart ait would have occurred to that
sheet that the Sinking Fund MUST remain in
this city Indianapolis) till the Bank bonds
shall be paid off, and that can't be for several
years yet; consequently neither the urging
nor adopting the stock plan can effect the
locality of the fund, or its use to the locality
that contains it. Until the fund is freed
from all the liabilities for which it is respon-
sible, it cannot be invested at ALL
1t is unnecessary to expose to readers in
this part of the country, the absurdity of
these positions of the Indianapolis Journal.
The Sinking Fund is pledged, by the act
creating the Bank bonds, as security for the
ultimate payment of the bonds. Under
this pledge it would be wrong to expend
the fund or allow it to be wasted or embez-
zled instead of prohibiting the Investment
of the fund, the pledge in the act makes
it an honorable and imperative duty on the
part of the State to see that it is all safely
and proftably invested. Is s
To hoard it up in Indianapolis for five
years-as the Journal says it must be-if
the character of the community and the
moral guards that would surround it there,
is to be judged by the official reports being
presented to the Legislature, and by the de-
velopments daily made in the columns of
its prints-would be an act of delinquency
that would charge the whole State with a
palpable breach of trust Messrs. Dumont
and Rays integrity might shield, it, but
death may, at any time, remove them from.
its custody, and then where are the bolts
and bars to be forged that would protect
glittering heap of $4,000 900 of goldin such
place?
We have never proposed to violate the
conditions of the act by giving the fund
absolutely to the counties. The plan pro-
posed is, to retain enough of it to purchase
the Bank bonds as they can be obtained at
reasonable prices, and loan or deposit the
other portions of the fund with the counties
liable to such calls of repayment as might
be necessary to make up the losses caused by
the delinquencies and Encouragement of
the fund reserved at indianapolis to redeem
the Bank bonds. Though the liability of
the fund, under these circumstances, would
be imminent, the counties would probably
accept the deposit, on those conditions, to
save part finally for themselves; aud if it
were required, they could probably give Sc
curity to comply with the conditions, at
least equal to that obtained for its safety at
Indianapolis.
The depth of financial wisdom in the fol-
lowing paragraph from the State journal is
beyond the soundings of our plummet.
Three millions of dollars distributed for
loan through the counties will no doubt do
good deal of good, but it is open to con
slant chances of dissipation, as is proved by
the fate of other funds; it will continue de-
plotting the State of $3.50, 900 in gold every
year, though it may be earning little more
in the same time; and it will leave the
State to raise by taxation the money to re-
deem those So, 600, 900 of bonds when they
have to be paid, which may now be redeem
ed without cent of tax, and virtually liqui-
dated by turning the debt from a foreign
into domestic debt, and keeping in our own
pockets or taking from one to put into an
other. the tax that pay the interest on it.
1t turns foreign debt into domestic one
by sending away all our money to bring il
home-a most profound financial process
To prevent the State from being depleted Of
$4,000 in gold per annum, the Joarna
proposes to gather up all the goldi the State
amounting to $3,OOO,O Oo and send it off al
once, to buy the State Stocks held by for
eigners. 1t will deprive the State of all it.
cash at the present date, to save the people
paying So, 100000, twenty years hence. Il
would pay the State bonds with the schoo
fund, to save the people the unpleasant obi.
CATION of paying them out of their OWL
pockets. 1t bias been alleged that if the
State should pay her own debts with the
school fund, she would never repay the
fund.
Here the scheme is openly confessed. The
school fund is to be used to avoid the neces
sty of raising the amount by taxation.
the school fund is to be preserved, how is i
to be restored after borrowing from IT, but by
taxation? There is no difference between
taxation to pay the school fund, and to Ii
quidate thebonds. Unless the State intends t.
embezzle the school fund, the people mus
pay the State debt by taxation. If tn
school fund is not to be distinct fund, VIII
create it at all? If the schools are to b
maintained by funds annually raised by tax
alton, though nominally to pay an imagin
airy debt due by the State to herself-wh
not tax from the beginning for the main
tenaace of the public schools To create
school fund to relieve the people from th
burden of supporting schools, and to tax
that fund to pay the State debt, aud then
draw the means for the support of the school
from the people by the tax gatherer, make