The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1869-12-11
Paying I'm Coin.

The bill! TO provide for tho payment in
coin OF the interest and principal OF the
| State debt was dead and is alive. A mo
tion was made in the House on Thursday
TO strike ont the enacting Clause Of tho
bill, and was carried, in spite Of the squrn-
| Ing and clustering OF the hangcr5-on Of the
Ring, and had the members Of the lower
House held aloof from the practical ar
gutnents which make the Senate The will
ing tool OF Scott, kimpton, Corbin & Co,
the bond-jobbcrs would have been disap-
pointed for once, and have failed in one Of
their schemes for robbing the psop!e Of tho
State.
AS we have already explained. tho State
OF South Carolina does no injustice to hcr
creditors in paying her debts in the legal
currency OF the United States. What the
United States gives 10 the National credt-
sor, South Carolina gives to her creditors.
This is all that is asked. There has been
no word of omplant-oxcopt from the MEN
who did not lend cola TO the State, who did
not expect to obtain coin i'll payment for
their loan, but who did huy mp State bonds
and stocks at twenty and thirty cents on
the dollar = now claim dollar for dollar iu
gold No one denies that the prominent
State officials boughtup Mt starvation prices
the bills OF the Bank OF the State. \ list of
The amounts so bought up and held by
State and Federal officials has been pub
iishcd' and The truth of lis statement wls
not denied When the bills were in the
right hands a law was passed anthorzn.
their conversion into State bonds at par
In this way State bonds worth sixty-iiyc
cents on the dollar were obtained in ex-
change for bank bills costing ten or fifteen
cents on the dollar Flfeea thousand tlo!-
lars was about the price OF one hundred
thousand dollars in bills of the Bank OF tho
State. and the same amount Of State bonds
obtained in exchange, could have beon
sold for at least Si:rtyJfrs thousand doUors
Every fifteen dollars so invested would have
put siyty-ive dollars into the pockets of the
fortunate speculator. This, however, is net
enough. The men who have received oAe
hundred dollars in State bonds for every
Fifteen dollars invested in bills of the Bank
of the State now ask that the bonds he paid
in co;n-!hat ;hcy receive one kun.ire,i tot
t@"s ia Goti far what cost thcm J;fIs.a cIals
in c~ryracw No wonder that the bulk OF
the Tnemhers o! the House of Representa-
tvcs, who IRE not in thc Ring would ro.
bear This crowning iniiic:ion no wonder
that the COW which has been milkcI so
often licked over the bucket at last.
But The v:rtnOus Indignation of The House
did iios last long. Yesterday tho vote ty
which the cnacting clause OF Tie hill was
stricken out WAS rcconsderct, and, after y
long debate, The bill passed its second read
ing. Only the formal third reading and tha
concurrence Of the Senate now stani Ge-
tween South Carolina and the payment in
coin OF the interest or her debt The House
had the power 10 kill this monstrous job;
but has only dealt 1t grievous wound. For q
moment the members stood firm. The rca-
son Of their bachsliding is suggested in the
letter of our Columhi. correspondent.
We'll South Carolina is about to resume
specie payments. The interest of all our
debt except that created for Stntehousc
purposes, is to be liquidated in coin. And
1t may, perchanco, Go so liquidated until
better men take the place of the stock-job-
bers OF the present Geneinl Assembly, when,
unless gold DO ut par the bill TO resume
specie payments will be speedily repealed.
Nor must it bc forgotten that tho present
General Assembly can Itself repeal the laa
nc!o wcoa;, or mex: month, II the mc:nbarsf,
desire