The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1867-02-18

Snowledge and assume them, it would
De 10 the State of Virginia and not to
the creditors. They look to Virginia
sne 70 west Virginia. II West Virginia
refuse 70 pay her proper portion of this
Indebtedness, our recourse against her
/ is by suit in the Federal cn1rts We
are the creditors, she owes ms aud We
are not exempted from respoDsibiIifyy 10
them by her denial of her d.bl "a, us
] No matter what she decides to do in is
our duty to acknowledge our indebted-
ness and make all practicable arrange
ments to pay the interest and secure The
I principal.
1t is. not only the part of duty, but of
| policy. Let us suspend this third, and
the cry of reputation will ring through
the land Our credit will be destroyed
when we most need 1t, and the very GER
l tificates of Indebtedness issued for the
two-thirds assumed will be greatly de-
preciated at the start. In addition TO
these objections, there is one of grave
] political character: When the General
Assembly formally suspends this debt
as one chargeable TO West Virginia, il
/ recognizes her as q separate State
( We come now to the bill of the House
! Finance Committee, of the leading fea-
ture of which We have heretofore spoken
approviDgly. II does not divide and
classify the Indebtedness of the State
part to be assumed and the payment of
( interest provided for, and part sus-
! pended and unprovided for. 1t says
nothing about West Virginia. It puts
! the whole debt on the same footing, and
assumes il as an entirety, making this
7 provision for the payment of the inter
est thereon :tBOnds, called consolidated
| bonds. to be given in exchange for all
/ outstanding bonds and certificates of
I stock, with the interest accrued on the
/ same-this privilege to expire on the
! lst of January 1863 The consoiida-
] m lNa Inl hi
I after date, and the interest semi-annu-
ally, at the rate of three per centum per
aunum for the first four years, four per
l centum per annum for the next four
years, five per centum for the next four
! years, six per centum for the next six
/ years, seven per cent for the next four
] years, eight per cent. for the next four
/ years, and nine per cent. for the last
| four years. The accrued interest on
these consolidated bonds TO be receiya-
I BILE In payment OF all public dues until
! otherwise provided by law. To pro-
/ vide for the payment a tax sufficient
! therefor is to be annually levied and
I to be '.saCredly applied to that object"
After what we have said in this Arti-
Z Gle and in previous one, il is needless
/ for US TO say that between these two
plans the latter is the plan of our choice.
! The reasons we have urged against the
/ Senate plan-substitute proposed by
the Committee on Finance TO Senate bill
| No. 1lS-are reasons for approving the
/ House bill in the main. The 7th section
/ unfolds a plan for the reduction OF the
| principal of the debt by the exchange
of the stocks, bonds and other securi-
/ Ties owned by the State in the various
internal improvement companies,
I which we have not at present the : pace
TO consider. This is a subject entirely
| distinct from the other, and to which
nothing said above is applicable.
Since the above was written, the able
( Senator from Orange, Major Lee, has
] introduced into that body bill en-
Z bodying tine most valuable feature of
these two bills and so extending the
/ currency feature in the House bfl.
which provides that the accrued inter
! est on the consolidated bonds shall be
receivable IN payment of all public
Z dnes, as To supply IN part what we so
! much need, a circulating medium. One
prominent feature in Major Lees bill
/ Is that, instead OF ave-a lIns interest at
! six per cent. through u pe-i.d of years,
] but varying il from thee, four, five,
! six, seven, eight and nine pea cent. Tor
| different years, IL carries six per cent.
from the start Another featuT- .s tL4I,
| without saying anything about West
! Virginia, it assumes payment, for tne
! present, of two-thirds of the State d Ut.
| We are not prepared at this moment
| say more in regard to Major Lees Dill,
/ farther than that It deserves a careful
I
\ We can see how a sensible and adeq uate
I plan can be constructed out of the three
| 20 which we have alluded.
We subjoin Major Lees bill, rs offer
I ed, with the remark that he has 3nd--
Gated willingness to hold it open 10 all
needful amendments:
! a bill TO provide for the payment of
{ interest on tTO-thirds of the amount
] of the public debt.
! j. Be Il enacted by the General Assem-
I bly, That the Second Auditor be author
! lied and directed to issue his warrant or
warrants on the treasury, payable out
I of any money therein not otherwise
! appropriated, for the amount of inter
/ est due on the lst day of July, 1867, on
! two-thirds of the amount of any State
| bond presented to him, at the rate OF
| six per centum per annum.
| 2. Be u further enacted, That in case
l there be not sufficient money in the
treasury TO pay the entire amount OF
interest due and payable on the said LIST
day of July, 1867, as provided in the
first section OF this act, the treasurer is
authorized to issue certificates of in
debtedness for such deficiency, at the
/ option of the creditor, which said GER
| tificate shall be receivable in payment
of all public dues.
3. This act shall be in force from its