Holmes County Republican. [volume] (Millersburg, Holmes County, Ohio) 1856-1865, 1859-04-14

entered upon the duties of their office in
1s45, didnot find their department of the
Treasury as they left it to their successors
with ample funds to meet every demand
upon it-but literally and absolutely bank
rupt To pay the semi-annual interest up
on the public debt amounting to more than
half million of dollars, and to redeem
more than one hundred thousand dollars of
outstanding checks of a previous admins
tration there was not one dollar in the
Treasury. And the first official act of the
Fund Commissioners was to borrow from
all possible sources, these large sums. And
in their first Report in December, 1915,
they advise the Legislature of this necessi-
ty of resorting to temporary loans 10
maintain the credit of the State, and urge
upon its attention the Importance and ne
etssity of providing remedy for the evil.
And again in their Report of December
Is46, they exhibit, as before, the amount
of temporary loans, and after referring to
this floating debt as sometimes being in
large sums due to contractors upon Public
Works; sometimes on other funds of the
State; and at others to the banks for loans
of from sixty to ninety days-in all forms
Objectionable and maintained at great ex-
pense, as every debt maintained upon short
loans necessarily must be-" They further
report as follows, 'during the past year
portion of this debt has been put into the
form of loans for two years, and that there
has been placed in the hands of those
granting these loans certificates of stock,
upon a contract that these certificates are
to be returned or oraccounted for to the State
at their par value e.upon the payment of the
sums borrowed. We owe this very ad-
vantageous arrangement to the Gberality of
our moneyed Institutions, and we feel un-
der obligations here to say that We have
found these Institutions greatly interested
in the credit ofthe State, and ready at all
times to make every effort to aid US in
maintainingits obligations"
The facts in this case will now be un-
.derstood to be these. The Fund Com
missoners embarrassed and wearied with
carrying a large floating debt upon loans
ofshort lime, solicit the Banks to make them
of from one to two years at their own op-
ton, and at 6 per cent. interest. And,
among others responding favorably, the
Canal Bank grants loan upon the desired
terms. And this loan is duly entered up
on the books of the Commissioners office,
with other similar loans, and the matter is
fully reported to the Legislature as above.
And now, after lapse of thirteen years,
comes this honorable Committee, and with
holding all of these facts, perfectly well
known to all who sought to know them,
because to be found upon the public docu
ments of the State-they insinuate that
this was private, unlawful act, for
the benefit of the Bank, and one of the
of the Board of Fund Commits
sioners. -.ts.,. -..r -.
The party that can make such demands
of its members; that compels gentlemen
and men of intelligence to sacrifice their
self-respect in order to injure a political
opponent or opposing party, must have
settled down upon the lowest
level of political degradation. And the
men who can thus submit to such humil-
ating demands must have had long and
severe training in most-doubtful
school of morals.
Very truly Yours,
Nd .r E. N. SILL.