The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1861-03-02

We give, on tie tirs: page, list Of the
canal claims allowed st the recent session
OF the Legislature. As the nature OF these
claims is little understood and the papers
are full Of erroneous statements III refer
ence to them, we propose briefly to give
their true history.
While the Illinois a-d Michigan canal
was in course OF construction, in 1910, tue
State became bankrupt-was without mo
ney and without credit. The contractors
on the canal-these acknowledgement
to take OF the State, in payment for largo
balance due them, and for work which
they proposed to 90, 900 bonds Of e225
each at par. How much was par under
this contract, Va. the only question IL the
case.
The State had setiled Ills question for
herself before this contract was made, in
three different cases. l. By a sale OF 100
like bonds to the Rank OF the |. ). for
$1,000 each, and for which she did not
quite realize 1900 each. 9. By sale of
1900 like bonds III London for professedly
81 900 each, but from which, also, the
State did not quite realize 81 600 each; and
3. By ti.s sale OF 900 like bonds to these
contractors, at 81, 600 each.
1t is true sterling bonds OF .e225, at le-
gal, technical par, must bring about 81 loo;
but il the State sold them at Fl coo each in
Loudon, the difference IL exchange be-
tween London and Illinois was SO great at
the time, that by the. time the money got
here, it was enough to cover the face OF
the bonds
So the contractors took the bonds, un-
.lerstondins that taking them at pr
meant 81 eco each; and il order to raise
their money On them they (in conjunction
with the .5tste) sent Gen. Thornton to
London TO sell them. lie sold them al IS
per cent-not of 81 100, but of $1,000
that is, he sold the C225 bonds for $3.50
each, (stiH preserving the idea that par
meant 81 ,00O,) realizing upon the whole
$4,000 in London. The exchange on
this sum amounted to about s6j, 900. The
money was brought 10 Illinois, and now
comes III the State ard demands that, as
the contractors had taken these bonds a.
"par' in Illinois, they must either allow
the State 81 100 each for them, or pay the
State at the rate Of I! per cent, or 90
600, as tho exchange on Si,0O00Oo. And
the State retained, accordingly, So. 900 OF
the $780, paying the rest over to the
contractors. The contractors We're help
less and had to submit 10 the shave, but
at the time and from tia. day 20 this,
have always contended that they took the
bonds for S 600 each, and were entitled to
all they could realize out of them above or
below this sum by their sale in London or
anywhere else; in other words, that the
retention OF the $4,000 by the State as
exchange was breach OF their agreement,
and that the State was in honor bound to
refund that sum.
The claim was pressed from year to year
upon the Legislature, until, At the session
OF the Legislature in lSj5-jG, the whole
matter with numerous other canal claims)
was submitted to Judges Treat, Cation and
Scatcs. Of the Supreme Court, as Commits
sioners, who after full and very careful
examination, pronounced this Thornton
loan claim, as it is called, morally, equi-
-tably, and legally just" and recommend
that the sum be paid them with per
cent interest, which has at length been
done by the recent act of the LEGISLATURE.