The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1871-12-30
A New Way to Pay Old Debts.

81 A morning paper piiulo 'uS P"ASio
a new scheme for avoiding reputation Oh
the State debt, and for putting the finances
of the State upon sound footing. The
-plan is that every holder OF State bonds
shall sell his bonds to the State at fifty cents
on the dollar, receiving new bonds IN pay
ment; that the Legislature pledge the faith
OF the Government to set aside one-flfth OF
the entire revenue of the State for the pay
ment of the interest on the debt; f. t no
more bonds be issued until the present in
debtedness is paid. This proposition, we
are told, has the approval OF Scott, Parker
4 Co., which is enough to prevent it from
finding any favor with the public. Besides
this. the scheme has intrinsic objections
which will condemn it in the eyes OF all
holders OF bonds, save those who obtained
them at few cents above the cost OF print
ing
The taxpayers of the State, assembled in
convention, have formally recognized debt
OF ss,s65, 765 as valid and binding upon the
people. OF this amount S5,400,0O0 repre-
sent the bonds and stocks outstanding Octo-
ber l, 1867. The remainder consists OF the
various bonds issued by the Scott admins
tration. This debt OF s9,S65,76 is the
whole amount which is recognized by the
taxpayers as legal obligation Of the State.
The Joint Legislative Committee, however,
report that the debt is somewhere about
s2s, 900, 900, and Scott, Parker & Co. confess
q minimum debt of sl5,0O0,OOO. Either oil
these two last. amounts is more than the
State can pay, and the Ring, therefore, pro-
pose to pay fifty cents on the dollar so as to
reduce the debt to manageable and endur-
able amouat. This we regard as scheme
to rob the bona .fcls holders OF State securi-
ties for the benefit OF the spectators con-
nected With the Scott-Parker Ring.
Out Of the SIS, 100000 Of State bonds and
stocks acknowledged by GovernoS Scott, at
least Sc, 600, 900 have been the sport OF the
bulls and bears; and, for all that the public
know, may have been sold at twenty and
thirty cents on the dollar. He holders OF
these bonds could very well afford TO take
new valid bonds, at fifty cents on the dollar,
in exchange for their eQuivocal sheets OF
printed paper. A bond for $500, recognized
as binding, and forming part tof an aggre-
gate debt OF only s7,5OO,O 900, would he lar
morevaluab,e TO them than abond OF slOOO,
which is refused recognition by the tax-pay-
ers and forms part Of an aggregate debt OF
$4,000, 900 or s2s, 100000. But how is it
withAhe permanent investors, the bona Nae
holders OF State bonds and stocks-they
who bought bonds before the war and hold
them still; they who held the ante-war
registered stock and converted it, after the
war, into coupon bonds; they who received
new bonds in payment OF overdue interest
upon the old debt? Are these innocent
holders to be mulcted OF one-half their prop
erty because a corrupt Ring have made the
total debt too heavy to be borne? Are they
to be stripped Of fifty cents on the dollar,
for the security Of Northern bankers and
home speculators? Is the man who paid
pne thousand dollars in gold for binding
bond to be put on the same ground as
speculator who gave, for tainted bond,
three hundred dollars in currency? The
proposal is monstrously upjust-one worthy
OF the impeached Governor whose last des-
perate scheme it is.
But even if the plan we're such as might
properly be agreed to by all holders OF the
bonds and stocks Of the State, what security
would the holders Of the new "6fty per cent :"
bonds have that the Ring and the Legisla-
ture would fulfil their part of the bargain
1t is proposed that one-ffth OF the State rev.
enue be set apart for the payment OF interest,
and that no new bonds be issued until the
old debt is paid. While South Carolina is
controlled by the Scott Ring and venal
Legislature these promises, even il they take
the shape of law, are worthless. The Leg
islature may do and undo what they please
in these matters. They may promise to-day
never to issue another bond, and tomorrow
they can, if they choose, order the printing
OF ten million. Aud they would do it il the
price offered were sufficiently tempting. The
game may be said in regard to the interest
fund. II the Legislature wanted the "one-
shfth" for per diem, or for any other pnr-
pose in which they were interested, they
would big it without remorse and without
hindrance. No faith can be reposed in any
promise, formal or informal, made by the
Executive Department or the Legislative
Department OF the Government OF the State
They are rotten through and through. Until
honest men, whatever their politics, hold
public office and control the Government, it
is impossible to make any financial arrange
ment which the creditors can safely accept,
or which the people will acknowledge and
sustain.