The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1870-09-15
The New York Times on South Carolina
Finances.

the public have been accustomed to look
for candor and fair dealing, whether the mat
ter in discussion affected the North or the
South, Republican or O Democrat.
How much of this enviable reputation was
due to the studied journalistic impartiality
of the late Mr.. Raymond, We do not pretend
to say; but, unless it adheres more closely
to the truth in discussing the finances OF
New York than it does in lauding the fnan-
cial administration OF the Scott Ring in
South Carolina, the Times must soon lose it's
ancient credit, and become as notorious for
misstatement and Misrepresentation as it
once was for conscientious care. There is
less danger, of course, in printing untruths
about South Carolina than in circulating
falseAoods concerning the great States OF
the North. This State is to many thousands
a terra incognita, land Of rattlesnakes,
palmettoes and midnight assassins, but hap
PLY there are in New York capitalists enough
who, dabbling occasionally in South Carroll
ma securities, are reasonably well-informed
as to the condition OF the State finances aud
the character of its government. These, at
least, will detect the glaring and wilful er-
rors made by the Times. We call them will
full errors, because the official statements of
the Scott government show them to be who'll
ly untrue, ard because it is hardly credible
that the Times has not been furnished with
a copy of the last report Of the State Comp
troller. General. The financial agent of
South Carolina, Sfr. H. H. Kimpton, has
been praised to the skies by the Times, and
that cherubic individual has not neglected
to send his sponsor all the official papers
which might serve as basis for new putting
and fresh laudatiou. We assume, then, that
the Times has in its possession the official
reports OF Governor Scott and his subortl-
mates, and by these very reports-not by any
campaign papers Of the Union Reform par
ty-we can prove that the assertions of the
Times, relating 20 the State debt, are with
out foundation in fact. This is what the
Times says:
"In its eagerness to blacken the record of
Republican administration in South Carolina,
the World rather oversteps the boundaries OF
facts. 1t spoke, yesterday, Of the monstrous
spolation which has raised the debt Of the
State to sl, 900, and alleged that this is the
only visible financial result of reconstruction.
Now, the debt OF South Carolina Is not four
teen millions is less than halt that amount,
and there has been no increase since the war.
Moreover, South Carolina, under Governor
Scott was the first State in the Union which
resumed the payment of coin interest on its
obligations fact that we'll exemplihes the
reckessness of our contemporaries unfriendly
statements. The credit of the State is not an
issue in the canvass now Going on. That is
confessedly satisfactory. Il has been reserved
for Democratic Journal In New York to try to
damage what the South Carolinans, rrespec-
tive OF party, are anxious to uphold"
The main statement in this extraordinary
paragraph is, that ''the debt of South Caro-
'lna is not fourteen millions-it is less than
'half that amount, and THERE HAS BEEN NO
"IScREAsE SINCE TIE WAR;" Reversing the
order OF these statements, we answer:
l. The State debt on the lst Of October
1868, according to the official report Of Gov
erno: SCOTS Comptroller General, was S.
407, ,3O6 p. The State debt on the lst of
October, 1869, was (see Comptrol!er-G Gene
RAILS report, pages 81 and 3S,) no less than
S9,367, 793 6S, made up as follows:
Fire Loan bonds, past due. ...... 4S4,+H 81
In hands Of financial agent, and
for sale to pay floating debt, &c. 2, 1OO,OOO 90
Total. .......... 50, ,367, ,79s 6s
Debt October l, 1865 ............ S, 5,407,3O6 81
Increase Observation-Disclosures. 81, $50, 4S7 Al
Since issued for Land Commis-
Siou. ou............... ............ 'uU,ouU w
INCREASE IN ONE YEAR. 81, ,GGO, ,4S1 IL
This, we take it, is sufficient rebuttal OF
the statement that the debt of South Carroll
ma is 'less than" $1,000, 900, and that ''there
''has been no increase since the war. ;"
2. The Times says that the debt of South
Carolina "is not fourteen millions" We an
swer that, to make up the total debt OF the
State, the s4,OOO,O 900 Of bonds OF the Blue
Ridge Railroad, guaranteed by the State,