The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1872-10-26
No aSIAVE OF THE HI RING
A TART RRJOINDER FROM Ex-AUDI.
TOR GARY.
He Defends his Action In Refusing 10
levy tho New Tax-The Origin OF tho
Blue Ridge Scrip oase-A Shot for b
Union and Its Editor.
CoLUMB1A, s. c., October %.

- Sa.iz ~E.i:s.'tl -:
~ COLUMBIA, SC, October %.
notice in the Daily Union, Of this morning,
an editorial article bearing the title of 1.-THE
Late State Auditor and His Manifesto will
endeavor to reply TO it as briefly as possible,
taking up the points as they occur.
! The frat point Ia, that said tmanlfesto" Yves
pnbnshed In q Democratic Journal. In reply
Il this.I would say that I have yet to learn
thsstl IL Is the duty Of any one to ask either per.
mission or advice as to what medium he shall
use to transact his business. providedit,be an
honest one;sand I have also yet to learn that
the Union would have published the article
had t;been requested 80 TO do. The Union
has been too well paid In the past, and expects
to be- too well paid In the future, to risk It's
poaition by publishing an article which would
be obnoxious to the persons from whom it De;
FtveB its support AS an evidence Of this i
VIII cite the fact, that although 1t has. publish
sed an editorial ~condemnatory Of the article In
queattop, tf.has- not and does not, intend to
Observation-Disclosures -
$ sThe second charge Is, that I purpose to set
-taside.the will OF the Legislature by refusing
to levy q tax to pay the interest upon the en-
tire bonded debt.of the State, which was also
TO include Q tax Of three mills to redeem the
Blue Ridge scrip. Now I am sure that the
peeplerWhose servant the, Legislature is, do
not Want the contamination OF. 8 scheme TO
enrich smenewho have already been made rleh
at their expense, and which will still further
OF the Leglslaturein-passin the Blue Ridge
ibilE has 0ssf made.a subject of; discussion In
ihat conytSSS,snnd by. the decision of q Judge
w~knEe3onhdness In law cannot be questioned,
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES unconstitutional and
invalid. This Atectsops i thlnk, lkssyes es no
&.o- .rosksan 40 - Fha Dirt ~ IF onm nf7r0R RI
uexaetsA taxfof uHifedemption. ~ q
As to the validating bill-by which 1t 15
claimed that all illegal Issues Of bonds are
made valid-f would say that the best legal
advice which cthel State affords has been
sought, and %thn'upinton given that this Bill IL
open to the same objection as thai of the Blue
Ridge. stHl further, It being an acknowl-
edged fact that thls bill. as well as the other,
was put through the Legislature by use OF the
same meansLmoney-f0rthe e~xpress'purpose
OF, shielding the guilty parties from the con-
sequences OF their own !mIsdeeds, / consider
ed1 l. still more Q duty to do!'what I could TO.
prevent the suffering which must follow toa
not only unjust but about the legality OF
which there are very grave doubts.
Again, from whom Waa L to take the rate
oftaxatipn to, be- levied for this purpose ? Was
It. sfrom.the parties who created the debt ?
Who else knows the amount of the State
debt, i do. not; and faside from three or Jour
men, I do not think 1t Is known with any de-
gree of certainty and their knowledge ex-
tendstdefnitelyronly TO the: BOMBED debt. 1t
was their duty to furnish me with q statement
of the bonded debt, and request me TO calcu.
late, the rata OF taxation requisite to raise
money sufficient to meet the requirements:
This has not been done.
One thing further, and Ihave lone with this
.potntd Brthe present. Governor Scott once
.Jold me (and he has, repeated the statement
70 otherst that 1t was not intended to pay the
fret years unpaid interest, but to commence
payment with the ak months Interest due
January !, 1878, thus leaving an intermiesion
of one year, dating from July 1, 1871. to July
/, 1872, tor which no interest would bs paid,
should this scheme be carried out. How Is
thatSor usurpation of power2 Who vested In
the chief executive of the State the power not
only to take from the officers created by the
people, and whose duties are equally distinct
with his own, q power entrusted to them, bot
TO assume 10 Violate the very law to which he
appeals. Another instance Of a remarkable
development Of That much priced jewell con-
sistencyl W
The next point In order is the question,
why, LII execution of,this duty was so OBJ
'noIious to. me; did + not reslgn my position.
and allow some other to perform the duty Z
wilsSl think, no erequire g. lengthy. expiana-
tion.o,Idid NOT do tniss simply Tor the reason
that. felt It my duty TO administer the affairs
OF mYsofdce to the best Of my ability, and
solely fff'the interest OF the people,. to whom
I was alone responsible. Simply because
felt It would be to great harm should
do,ss the Union suggests would have been Its
conrse, Simply because I have some regard
for my good name. and desire 1t toremain
unspotted. And, still further. to add one
more pfoottto the fact that this people, have
no right to Unfortunately link the word
thief With the name of. him whom they are
pleased to term carpet-baRger. $3.50
cas-; for although the Union thinks 1t of no
,impOecance who commenced this suit 1t sees
6t1oascribe the ereditof Tito Governor Scott.
Now, Mrs. UnIon; IL you had made;tl1s state
ment any time heretofore, your State patron
q would not have been Of much value. To
proce6d; h0weveftkw twill say that when Thirst
t sagss az e n,ss seSn Sy mSsslt tna wo @nis not Ss o eaa.
menced- at all, not q living soul had ever men
fionedyto.ma the idea ,otl my taking o yacion
Whatever. After having come to the deter
mlnation to Institute proceedings, I asked
Governor Scott If hes would assist me to pay
counselin the case, and II he would suggest
matter. He agreedtohelp mo; and suggested
;Messrs; Pope &aHaskellas his attorneys, and
TO them / took the case. The Governor
had no connection whatever with the matter,
except to nay the attorneys for prosecutlng;a
c1sa WhIcs1 he did his best to have discontinue
ed. Any statement which I have now, or here.
fofofe made, Is susceptible Of proof. would
bare ,reurafk that no one thing which nave
saId Ia In siny way intended" to reflect upon
Nessrs. Pore d Haskell, whose conduct In THIS
AFFAIR hss 6iaen ,spch as TO add much TO their
REPUTATION as- sound legal advisers and homer
able men: and to them ls due q heavy debt Of
gratitude from the people. As TO me men
who made me what the Union terms Hhberai
oHers,nI will Say that feelings ola personal
nature make me. reluctant TO point out the
men. It is sufficient to say that they we're
members Of the Ring, the make up OF which
few menIn Columbia are unaware; and they
acted for the. entire party. This matter 10,
also, 7 think, susceptible OF proof, for he VINO
Ia considered the most cunning among them
was foolish enough to betrayi 10 another.
=. Now: comes the charge of neglect OF duty, IN
that did not levy the tax when the Union
saws I should have done so-last September.
This. I Will observe; is not the first time that
the editor of the Union has assumed to be
learned In the law, (tFrank, pass the greens")
and 1r IA also not The first time he has found
himself sap q tree" If he will refer to the
0enersl Statutes of this State, Title 8, Chapter
70 and Section ", he will there learn that the
state ndito has until the 18th Of November
tomske the levy; and I would add. for hls
further information, that heretofore The levy
has not much preceded In point OF time THIS
one. / viii further say, that the books Tor the
cnl,ection of taxes are not yet all ready for
csienlstlnp the tax; but although l am aware
mat some of the county AUDITORS are
faa fhatr- N0mnAIRnEV.