Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1866-07-04
For the Advertiser.

- d MR. .EDlTpRs-f!ease aiioh <5ues D small space
in your paper to answer certain allegations con.
tanned in the communication Of W. w. ADAMS,
Esq, in your last issue, we'll calculated to misleud
the public mind, and place myself in false Do
siton before the people of the District. After
avowing myself the author of "Rrs7Ic," 1 will
very briefly notice some of his criticsms.
Iwould inform the gentleman that utterly
disclaim using anything like "vituperation"
against him, or any of his profession. Lawyers
are like the rest of mankind, diYled into two
classes. The late war has demonstrated that there
are many of them as brave, self-saerifcing, and
patriotic as the best of any other class of men;
but that there are some among them who are
tme-serviug politicians and political tricksters,
will not be denied by the good men of their own
profession.
Honor, Honesty andSJ Justice" are arrayed by
the gentleman before the public gaze as attributes
in human nature to be admired, but Truth, With
her modest pretensions, has been to some extent
ignored. How tho gentleman could draw armed
resistance into the plan proposed by "ssRusTrc,"
I am a. a loss to conceive, when motor word
thereof was written or spoken in the communica-
ton or addresses; the very. reverse wns sought ta
he impressed upon the minds of the people, far
as could command language. And in private
conversation, have never advised livi. 6 NOR
tal to.resist the law but haye said if there
was not something done to relieve The people,
that our whole social system would be demoral-
lied, and mob law would usurp the place of law i.
and order; that ths incendiary's torch would be
lit, and the assassins knife unsheathed, and there
would be no security to life or property.
As for Reputation, I will reproduce the only
plan ever suggested, which was done at three
large assemblies of the people during the canvass
for the election of Representatives, and which
has since been reiterated through the press, and
verbally before the people And I was elected,
the people knowing my opinion in reference to
the debt question. In the last nine months,
events have transpired in such rapid succession
that tho people nog realize their condition much
more fully than they did when the late Conven-
ton was in existence; and believing, as do,
that very large majority of tho people will be
exiled from the State if some satisfactory dispo-
i,iou of the debt question is not made outside of
the Courts, and knowing, ,thatth Legislature, as
at present organized, will do nothing, have ad-
vised the people to instruc. their Representatives
to call another Convention for the purpose of def
nitely settling the debt question, And my plan,
and only plan, is as follows: The Convention TO
declare by an.ordinance all debts contracted for
slaves, irrespective Of the time the debt has been
owing, void except interest or hire all bonds or
other obligations in favor of minors where tie
amounts of said bonds were derived from the
sale Of slaves, to be reduced -hfths; all bor-
rowed money or notes bought with bank BILLS to
b, paid in proportion the value of bills when
demand is made; real estate or visible property
to be paid for on demand, or revert to its original
owner; contracts since the first Of May 1865 to be
in no wise interfered with; the Convention to
dain stay law Of four years, one-fourth I o
paid on the first of juno 1867, and one-fourth
every January thereafter until all the debt shall
be paid The Convention of South Carolina is
the first body that passed legal or constitutional
act destroying slavery IN the State; the Legisla-
ture adopted thi; constitutional amendment, there
by doubly legalizing the abolition Of slavery.
And I contend, and am sustained by some of the
best legal lights of this State, that Convention:
aas ample power, without conflict with the Con-
stitution of tho United States, to set aside all
debts contracted for slaves, on the ground of fail
ure of consideration, according to the Constiu-
ton of the State. Nothing but gold or silver is
illegal tender, and consequently the Bank Bills
arc worth just what they will bring; and ssk
if it would not bo perfectly right for Conrun-
lion to pass ordinance declaring all those notes
worth exactly tho same as tho bills are worth
which bought them. One of the highest Judicial
Officers of the United States has DECLARED that
the rebcllious States have ample Constitutional
power to repudiate all debts contracted for slaves
Let US pursue the subject little further, and
see what the condition Of the country would be-
if the plan indicated should be adopted. The
negro debts disposed Of all real estate paid for
given up to original owners, notes made for bank
bills put at ono-sixth their value, and guardians
relieved of four ffths of their Indebtedness would
leave comparatively little owing. There would
be the merchants notes AMI accounts, the me-
ciancs credits, The lawyers fees, the physicians
bills, and the farmers products that he has sold
on timc which, with the stnyla above indica-
ted, would at onco relieve the people, and restore
confidence to The country.
| I Invite Mr. ADAMS to loUk at and examine
these suggestions, and see if even "Rrs7Ic's"
obnoxious plan" docs not have some regard for
tho rights of creditors. And I advise him fur
hcr TO better inform himself before he again
makes sweeping charges of SO scrious charac-
ter; moro especially against one who has always
been his friend and supporter.
And beg leave to inform the gentlcmaa. thai
I am prepared to act on this or some other plan,
for the relief of the people; and so 10 net with
ont doing any violence to "Honor, Honesty or
Justice )" and tba. do not think Truth will bo
perverted into Misrepresentation by so doing.
THOS. JONES.
---N>.-.-
ISS The Tallahassee, Fla, correspon-
dent nf thn Golumhnc Snn ,ur;tes no T,llowc