The Evansville journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ind.) 1866-1870, 1870-09-14
Straight Line BOndsI
How They Should Ds Prepared.
IMPORTANT 10 TAX PATERs !


Editors Journal:
You have already noticed the pro-
position Of Councilman Van Ripper
made to the City Council. on the 29sh
day Of August last. to issue three
hundred thousand dollars (S3O0, OOO)
Of bonds, voted to the Evansville &
indianapolis. (Straizht Line9 Rail-
road Company. and plaos the same IN
the custody Of some banking house,
in tie city Of New York. Final &C
ton on the proposition was POSITION
ed until the 5sh- day Of September,
and at the meeting Of the Council
held on the evening of that day, tie
proposition was not taken up, fo't -e
reason, doubtless. that some of tie
members of the Council became ga.
gagged In a disgraoeful squabble. as to
who should occupy the place Of tes
Mayor during the short interval b..
tween bis death, then mcmentarily ex-
pected, and the election of bis sue
cessor. This proposition to remove
these bonds away from the jarisdie-
ton Of the courts Of Indiana, is, to use
no harsher tern, a singular proposition,
unless made at the instance and in the
interest of some parties who expect
to be benefited By causing the bonds
| to be placed In circulation before the
railroad company shall have per-
| formed the conditions upon which
they are to be delivered TO them.
Certainly no one acting In the interest
Of the city OF Evansville or DESTROYS
of protecting its rights could make
such proposition.
| The terms upon which the beuds
were voted were certainly sufficiently
| favorable to the railroad company,
without seeking Ia this i1apr0per and
apiustihable manner, 10 destroy all
safeguards reserved to the city.
For the purpose of reminding your
readers ofthe terms upon which these
bonds were voted, and 10 enable them
| to ace how Dir. Van Riper proposes TO
change them against the interest and
safety OF. the city, let me refer them
to the following from the proposition
of the railroad company, and en-
braced ia the order for the election as
the terms aud conditions upon which
the stock was to be subscribed and
the bonds issued:
The said bonds to be placed ia the
custody of some disinterested aud re.
sponsibie party, and 10 be held by
such party. and delivered to said EV-
ansville Il indianapolis Railroad Com
pany, upon the following conditions /:
That, whenever the said road Is so far
completed as to permit q locomotive
and train of cars TO pass over the
whole. length Of said road. from the
city of Evansville to a junction or in
tersection with the Indianapolis &
Vincennes Railroad at some point Ia
Green County, in the said State Of
Indiana, then tbs whole amount Of
the said bonds shall be delivered 10
said Company; aud that tho said com
pany shall, in no wise, have any right
or claim to the said bonds without a
compliance with the said conditions
and that interest on said bonds shall
begin to run only from the time when
said bonds shall. or ought to he, de-
livered as aforesaid"
The two important conditions upon
which the bonds were voted, are:
/ The bonds are not to bedelivered
to the Railroad Company, until after
the completion of the road, nor shall
said company, in any wise have any
right or claim to them previous to
said completion.
2 Interest is to commence on said
bonds, at the time when said bonds
are delivered to said company. or
when they ought to be delivered,
that is. upon the completion of the
road. Now, then, bonds when issued
are to be either coupon bonds, that is
bonds with warrants or coupons
attached TO each bond for the semi
annual interest, the interest payable
upon presentment and delivery Of the
coupons without the production Of the
bonds, or they are to be bonds without
coupons, aud on such bonds the inter
est can only safely be paid upon pro.
duction Of the bonds, asd the indorse.
ment thereon Of areceiptfo for every ne y
ment of semi-annual interest. 1t Is pre-
sumed, however, that bonds without
coupons arc out Of the question, being
utterly irnpracticable in TIE case OF
bonds which may be held abroad or
in Eastern cities. With bonds of this
character, having thirty years to run.
interest payable semi annnRlly. each
bond when due would have Endorsed
upon it sixty separate receipts for
INTEREST," ae All .1sa6esE
The only kind of bonds which the
city ought 20 issue, or the company
accept, are coupon bonds. nlthat
case, when shall the first coupon for
interest be due and p5yable2 The
contract requires that interest shall
commence to run when the road
is completed. Then the first coupon
for six months interest shouid be
made 70 fall due, six months after that
time. Now how can il be ascertained
when that time will be? And che \
uncertainty does not apply to the first
payment Of interest only, but 10 every
one. of the sixty separate payments Of
interest at intervals Of six months,
during the whole period of thirty
years. Now, suppose that Mr.. Van
RIper's scheme 60 whisk off these
bonds to the city of New York SHOULD
succeed and suppose the road is never
completed under this arrangement, /
aud, as consequence, the Railroad /
Company never becomes entitled to
the bonds-who can tell how much |
trouble and expense it will cost the |
city to get these bonds back again. or
whether they viii ever be recovered? |
Of, suppose that during the time /
when the bonds are on deposit ID
New York portion, OF the whoIs of !
them, are stolen. ass aaaes -
The experiences Of one of cur bank
ing houses here win warn the peonIe /
that the loss would fall upona the. citv. /
Or. suppose that IN two or three |
years the road is completed, agreeablv |
to the proposition. and the bonds de- /
livered to the Company. What about /
the coupons attached and maturing |
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