The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1872-01-04
Scalind the State Debt.

The Charleston Courier publishes the follow
ing programme of the State officials, as fur
nished by its Columbia correspondent, propo-
sing to adopt the scaling process to reduce the
Indebtedness of the State. There are innumer-
able difficulties in the way of these astute
inanciers, who are evidently seeking method
of extricating themselves from present troubles
and adopting a plan to quiet the clamor raised
against their management of the State finances.
The programme here given is fraught with
many perils, but the main objection we would
urge to their proposed plan lies in the fact that
it gives them another opportunity to furnish an
elastic issue of bonds. Past experience proves
that there is no limit to their aspirations in
this direction, and while the State debt has
been trebled heretofore by vague authority to
issue conversion bonds, we fear that under SIM
liar pretext, instead of scaling the Indebtedness
so per cent, the opportunity would be afforded
to increase the bonded debt another hundred
per cent. In word, we have no confidence in
the integrity of the State officials, nor do We
place any reliance upon their professions Of a
desire to- extricate the State from its present
labyrinth of woes. With this preface, we ap-
pend the plan as reported by the Courier:
The holders of State bonds have been con-
suIting together of late, to devise some means
whereby repudiation of the State debt can be
avoided Scott, Parker, and other members of
the State Government were present, and various
plans were discussed. 1t is said that an agree
ment will be submitted to the bondholders for
their approval, of which the following is the
substance:
Every holder of bonds is to sell his bonds to
the State for so cents on the dollar, receiving
in payment new bonds that is, each holder is
to receive new issue of bonds bearing one
half the value of what he now possesses.
In order to give the holders guarantee OF
good faith, a Bill is to be introduced in the
Legislature pledging the faith Of the Govern;
ment to set aside one-ffth of the entire revenue
of the State for the purpose of paying the in
terest on the public debt. No more bonds are
| to be issued until the present indebtedness of
the State is paid of. This is said to be the
substance of the agreement entered into, and
| it is proposed to submit it to the approval of
the holders of South Carolina bonds through
out the country. Scott is in favor of the plan,
which, he says, will reduce the State debt to
about seven millions. he still claims that the
debt is only fifteen millions, in spite of the re-
port of the Investigating Committee, which
makes the debt twenty-nine millions. Finan-
cial men here endorse the plan, if the pledges
of the Ring could be depended on. The diff
Guilty seems to be that even if the Legislature
should pass the required Act there would be no
guaranty that the law would be respected. The
above, however, is the plan submitted by Scott,
and the proposition has already been submitted
| to number of the bond-holders.
Even if the proposition is agreed to it will be
somewhat difficult to pass such bill through
the Legislature, before which is now pending
bill to repeal the Act to provide for the pay
ment of the interest on the public debt.