The western Democrat. [volume] (Charlotte, N.C.) 1852-1870, 1866-02-13
REPORT
Submitted to the " G. Legislature on
Bdnks and Banking.

much of the Governors Message as refers t
Banks and Banking, and the resolutions inqul
ring into the conditions of the Banks OF tn
State were referred, beg leave to submit the FOL
lowing report:
If the corporations of the Banks still exist IN
impaired by the revolution and its legal conse
quences, the Legislature cannot legitimately In
terfere with their capital, or divert it to any 9th
er purposes than those authorized by thel
charters, until the outstanding obligations are
discharged for such legislation would tend te
impair contracts, which the Constitution OF the
United States torbids. These institutions are
largely in debt; the debts contracted on the
faith and credit of the coin, which their charter
required them to keep ia their vaults. ANY
Legislation authorizing the transfer OF that coi'
into another direction by the corporation IS, In
| the opinion of the Committee, in spirit, II not
in letter, violation Of contract.
After carefully investigating the subject, the
| COMMITTEE is of the opinion that Iii, or nearly
all of the corporations of the State have ceased
as corporations, to exist, as legal consequence
of the revolution, and the complete conquest Of
the State. 1t is we'll settled principle ofinter.
national law, ESQ we'll settled it is unnecessary
to refer to authorities) that 10 conquered coun-
try all laws and all rights of persons and prop
! orty cease to exist, except such laws and such
rights the conqueror choose to decree. No
one will deny that the South was conquered and
surrendered without terms ); no one can doubt
that in the opinion of President johnson, we
were conquered people, and that he as COM
mander-in-chief Of the armies of the conquered
| POWER, had right to decree such laws as to
him seemed best He refused to accept the
! terms offered by General Sherman to recognize
North Carolina as de tacto government He
proceeded In manner unknown to our laws, to
appoint Provisional Governor; without the
forms of law, he deprives the people of the State
| Of two-thirds Of their property, without '.just
| compensation )" he declares in his proclamation,
net that part of the civil laws were at an end,
but that Gall civil government was at an end 10
North Carolina" He provided for call of a
Convention, not in accordance with our Consti
tuition: prescribing qualifications for our dele
gates and voters i'll a manner unknown to our
laws. In obedience to the will Of the Presi-
dent, the Provisional Governor declares all civil
offices In the State vacant, and proceeds to fill
the same, prescribing officers for corporations
and qualifications for stockholders in said eorpo-
ratlons as voters, or proxies; regulates our
Courts, when and where to be held, and what
subjects should be cognizable before them. In
obedience to the proclamation of the Governor,
Convention assembled, which Convection, by
its acts, accepts and recognizes the fact that it
was called by the authority of the President as
conqueror, and proceeded to act according to
said terms, receiving messages and dispatches
from the President controlling the action of the
Convention in matters Of vital Importance to
the people of the State, abolishng slavery, re-
moving all civil officers, and declaring by ordi-
nance, that "Whereas, doubts may arise from
the late attempt Of North Carolina to secede
from the United States, whether any and what
laws have been and are now in force, &c, 4" and
ordainng by SAID ordinance all laws not inconsis-
tent with the Constitution of the u. States, &c.
The Convention gives legality TO the principle
that it was Gecreed by the President as conque-
ror, otherwise we have had no Convention
There IS now no civil government, no Legisla-
ture, as all owe their existence to the permission
of the President, and not to Constitutional forms
This idea OF the supreme power Of the President
has been acquiesced in by the people, by the
Convention, and is now recognized by the Leg
slature enacting such laws as are decreed by
the President he not only recommending, but
demanding such measures condition prece-
dent to civil government. Measures at variance
with what we deem to be our best interest, and
repugnant to all of our feelings nave been, and
are continually being enacted simply because it
was SO decreed by the President. 1t is our in-
terest to continue to conform to the DEGREES Of
the President.
The question arises, what is the legal effect
Of the ordinance of the Convention declaring
what laws are in force corporations, it being
admitted by the whole theory of the government
and implicitly in said ordinance that during the
revolution, corporations with all other laws ceas-
ed to exist ? No one will doubt but that with
the consent of the President, the Convention
had power to ordain charters. for corporations
Yet the corporations being in the nature of
contract between the State and its citizens onca
ceasing to exist, the corporators can accept of
the charters or not but until accepted by the
corporators, the ordinance is of no effect. The
Committee is not informed that the stock holders
of any Bank have accepted the ordinance of the
Convention, and it is not to be presumed they
will do SO, as such act would be against their
interest, as from the recent message Of the Gov
ernor we learn that the Banks are hopelessly
insolvent, not being able to pay ten cents in the
dollar. 1t is we'll settled principle of law in
this State, that the corporations expiring, the
debts both due from and to the corporations
cease to exist as liabilities. Judge CASTOR says
in the case of Fox Horah, l 1redell Equity
sit is not to be questioned, we think, that on
the expiration of the charter, the debts Of every
kind due from the Banks were extinguished as
completely as debts due to it." The same prln-
ciple is decided in Jones' Equity, 6 vol. Nal
lett as Malioy. From the reasons above set
forth, the Committee is of the opinion that BY
the effects Of the revolution in the language Of
the President, "depriving the people Of North
Carolina of all civil government the charters OF
the Banks expired, and cannot be renewed ex-
cept by the consent of the corporators, add this
Legislature cannot interfere, all the questions
connected With the corporations are for judicial
and not for Legislative action. Respectfully
submitted, A. j. JONES, Chairman