The tri-weekly standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1866-1868, 1866-05-24
For t,,e Standard.

For the Standard.
M,.s,s EDrToRs On looking over JUG
Standard of the 18th inst, sd" !. h;ob
nication from an anti-repudlatol' ~ 1T
the writer undertakes to sho" u. and mr.,
e.,os that # ought to be repealed I'M . e
81, The first reason given III suPPo,I VI
10 that non-residents OF the SIaIe
ILLS 49, =, and sweep all the effects OF the
WI w. nIoss away before the home cretiitor
ue a a,oh them. The second reason is tnat
there is danger of getting rePuo,ls.t' tI
Governor elected, and LeglsiaIute "
ooNo' 80 and then the indebtedness to be
ahoIishcd As to the first argument 1t Is SO
sha;Inw that it is only necessary to remenl-
Inr Thai rs the law stands now, DEBTOR can
like an assignment for the beneht OF al MS
creditors. l suppose that the IDEA o. GOV
eioar and Legislature repudlatlhS ese,S
: .in.r is misconception or mistatement, anu
that the writer was thinking OF the o0 4n tei[
tion which is soon to assemble again n".
ever the Convention may further do IN reSalu
eve, ,II or nrivatc repudiation, 1 am not
informed. The only fear have on the SUI
;oct is that the members of the Convention
have not mixed up with the masses enough
20 ascertain their condition and wants L
know that if the people of North Crrolina
have to pay all their Indebtedness even y
five years after they get all the benefits 21.ne
STAY Law, nearly one-half of the best hIi-ehS
of the State will be rendered hopIeless anu
homeless What is to become II THOUSANDS
of Guardians and Wards, EXECUTORS ana Az
ministrators, who invested their lun'ls III
State stock during the var! Either the one
or the other of thee very numerous ana
highly respectable classes must go 10 the
wall. Now, IN this state OF Things WnaC
ought the Convention to do? L undertake
to say that in view of what 1t has Gone, II
OUGHT to 90 further and repudiate all the in
debtedness of the citizens up to the 1st
June, 1865. But some one will say, On the
Constitution forbids any State to pass ordl-
nances or laws impairing private contracts
I answer the Convention has already done
this thing to very great degree. How Is
the stakeholder to be able to pay his debt
when the State has forced his bank to loan
her money to the State, and then the State
through the Convention refuses to pay BACK
a dollar? How is the Guardian to pay his
Ward, when he invested his funds IN State
bonds, and the State through the Conven-
ton refuses to pay these bonds? And so it
will be found to run through all the ramiti-
cations of society. Now, why should the
Convention stop on this halfway ground to
the utter ruin of its down-trodden people
Look at the Counties while the war was be-
ing waged, and our people hard pressed Tor
money and credit; individuals were appealed
to for help; the Counties were urged to come
forward in County organized capacity t.
raise funds to carry on the war. Many o
them did so and created large debts. Now
these debts were made expressly to aid ant
carry on the war, has to be provided Tor ant
paid unless the Convention will assume Ii
and blot it out as it did its own. But viii
be met by some who will say reputation Is
so mean and contemplate. Well, if we
could have done without any of 1t L say
good but the Convention felt obliged to re-
pudiate some thirty or forty millions of debt,
and also to destroy one hundred and fifty
millions of property belonging to private
citizens. Now, after two strokes such as
that, it is rather provoking to hear it said
that the Convention cannot do anything to
impair private contracts.
Now, Messrs. Editors, I come to look
little at the spirit of an anti-repudiator It
is easy to see the fire that burns in this short
communication. He is anxiously awaiting
for the Courts to be opened, and then, not
withstanding he promised while the war was
going ON that the last dollar must be sacri-
feed, he is ready to pounce down ON the
poor debtor who did all that he could to
avert this war and demand the last copper.
This anti-repudiator is a true representative
man of class of men left in our State who
Will, HUI plSNeuIeu ny uIlcIlJ
break down a still more numerous and
worthy class of citizens, and turn them out
as fugitives in the world.
In conclusion will remark that l have
not been an idle spectator of men and things
during the war. l have seen the fierce con-
test between the war and the anti-war par
ties, the one contending that the very best
interest of the country was to be promoted
by the war, the other equally confident that
in the end of the war we were to be a ruined
people. I have seen the war man collar the
Union man and punish him, and 1 know
something of the gall and the wormwood
that still turks in the bosoms of these men,
But, Messrs. Editors, when you come to see
nearly half the citizens of North Carolina
turned out of doors with their wives and
their children, and many of them now passed
labor, you will see state of things worse to
be dreaded than the war itself. l pray God
that something may be done to avert this
dire calamity.
A REPUDIA-oR BY NECESSITY