The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1871-12-06
ABBEVIILE, S: C.. WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER s. 1871.

-BBEVlLLE, >. w.. "
measure, by many leading fpanciers
both in this State and in New York
Its design was to replace our securi
ties, already issued, with o uniform
class of bonds, many of such securi
tics not being good delivery at the
Stock Exchange in New York. This
loan was calculated to commend itsel
to capitalists, for, while it changed the
form of the debt advantageouslY, il
was guarded with the irrepealable re
striction that it's proceeds should be
"ezclusively used.,in exchange tor, or IL
payment Of, the ezist'ng public debt O.
the State"
It's very terms thus show how un
warranted was the action of the Con
vention in stigmatizing it as an inten
ded increase Of the. bonded debt o.
the State. In view of all the facts ir
tho premises, the sterling loan, thus
discredited in advance, was rot put
upon the market. ;. 49,
The gentlemen who guided tho &C
ton Of the convention, on questions o.
finance, expressed, as a further objec
tion to the loan, their waut Of conf
dence in the Financial Agent in New
York. In evidence of the real pur.
pose, and the wantonness Of these
systematic attacks upon the State
credit, Iswould mention that I there.
upon proposed that they should des.
ignate the syndies, or agents for the
negotiation of the loan, both in Lon
don and New Yyrk. I further propo-
sed, with the unanimous consent OF
the Financial Board, to guard holders
under this loan from loss, through any
possible subsequent action Of the Gen.
eral Assembly in regard to 1t, by en-
tering iuto such stipulations on behalf
of the State with: the syndics, charg-
cd with negotiating the loan, that no
future Legislature could divert its
proceeds without attempting to "in-
pair the obligation of contracts u
thereby giving tho Courts of the
United States Jurisdiction, should q
question of the kind ever arise, in
volving tho rights of the bond-hold-
ers and the faith of the State. I in
stanced to them, in this connection,
the decision in the case Of Minnesota,
where. under a similar stipulation,
the rights Of the bond.holders were
enforced by the Federal Courts, on
cr post taeto grounds oven against a
provision in the Constitution of that
State, adopted subsequent to the crea-
ton its debt. Nothing, however,
could change their predetermined
purpose. Had they and their allies
displayed the same diligence in coop
Grating with the Financial Board for
the negotiation of the sterling loan
that they have shown in their efforts
to- discredit tho securities of the State,
our entire bonded debt. would not now
exceed S1O,O0O,00O, and tho State
would have been saved near So, 100000
necessarily sacrificed in the negotia-
ton Of it's deprecated bonds. For
them now to complain Of our immense
bonded debt and high taxation, and
to claim commiseration for these d.
rect and inevitable consequences of
their own acts, is to initiate the crimi-
nal who, having murdered his parents,
plead ophanage in mitigation Of SEN
tcncc. On this question of RESPONSE
bility. between thom and tho State ad-
ministration, Invoke, and fearlessly
await, that just judgment which al.
ways springs from the sober second
thought of the people. The deprecia.
tion in our bonds, therefore, springs
from causes purely artificial, and in
their nature temporary. The State
can, and will redeem, all her, obliga-
tions, to the last cent. I might, with
propriety, end this branch of my mes
sage here, but deem it both proper
and timely 10 show who those men
arc that arrogantly and falsely assume
to represent abroad the wealth
of the State, and the sentiment
of the people Of South Carolina.
They are remnant Of the Glass; who
ruled this State when the many toll
ed and suffered for tho benefit of the
few, and its Government subserved
the largest good of the smallest num-
Der. Asserting and exercising q pre-
scriptivo right to govern wrong, in
times past, they made tho laboring
masses, without regard to race, their
pack. horses,ito bear the burdens of o
Government that conferred its ben
efits only upon limited and select
class of it's people. They are essen
TALLY non-producers, and do not con-
tribute five per cent to the S30,000,-
900 value Of the annual exported pro-
ducts of the State. Claiming to rep
resent largo amount Of capital,
their names are chiefly found upon
the arrear list, when found npon the
arrear list, when found at all in the
tax books, and nearly all OF them
have long siLcc voluntarily. recorded
themselves upon the roll of. bank
rupts. Their pretense that they are
tho guardians of the honor and credit
of South Carolina. would be supreme
ridiculous, if it were not so supreme
ly shameless,
Their present cry of .'repudiatlon"
lis not surprising. Reputation is
their chronic disease. When they
were in power in 1862, they repudi-
ated oil their debts due loyal men,
both private and public, and have
themselves been repudiated by the
people of South Carolina, upon the
blood, and muscle, and sinews of
I.-l l. a.