The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1872-01-04

or to assess it; and we now propose 10 show
that, contracted by your predecessors, you are
as much without the power 10 enforce 1t by
| taxation.
It is known to you that there are two kinds
of corporations, the public and private. The
public, as town council for Instance. Is the
agent of the State for local government.
It makes laws only, and, having no capital,
may be, and generally is, vested with the
power to raise the fund for Its expenses, by
taxation.
The private, as the bank or trading compa-
ny, is the agent of the corporators for private
enterprise. 1t makes contracts only, and hay
ing capital, Is without the power of taxation,
and not paying its debts, like natural persons,
is subject to the adjudication Of the courts.
It Is known 10 you, also, that these corpora
tIons, usually distinct, are sometimes combined
in the same body; and the municipal corpora
ton, the agent of the State for local govern
ment, Is made the, agent, also, of the people
for their private enterprises; and 80 harbors,
parks, gas and water-works are constructed.
And.,t may be known to you, or If not, the
fact Is so, that these corporations, though COM
bined Ia the same body, are yet distinct. 30
far as it is the agent of the State In making
laws 1t is public corporations; 30 far as 1t Is
the agent OF the people In making contracts 1t
Is private corporation, and Its acts In either
character are the same, precisely, as II still
apart, and in its public character It can no
more make contracts, than In It's private 1t can
make laws, and Its expenses In making and
executing laws are as necessarily assessed,
and It's contracts a. necessarily adjudicated.
as II they were the laws of q public, or the con-
tracts OF q private body.
Now your Council, by the charter, Is simply
pubic body. It hos no capacity as private
corporation. As we have shown, and as you
will see, looking Into the charter, 1t was ere.
servatlon, peace and order of the town." To
that end, 1t has power to make sbY-aws, rules
and regulations" only, respecting certain
designated objects, and others added BY
amendment. There Is no indication Of q pri.
vate characterize intimation that it Is to act
to any business enterprise-no capacity to do
so. It has no capital, no means of raising
funds but by assessment, aud by assessment
bu, to the objects of its powers, and any i'm.
plication that 1t should make contracts ts
positively excluded by the provision that all
its acts shall be sdbJectto the revision, alter
If contracts. they could not De, for reason OF
the prohibition in the Constitution of the
United States.
But It has assumed that capacity. 1t has
undertaken to act as g private corporation
for the paople In their business matters. It
has assumed capital, issued certificates OF
stock, made Investments In railroads, and
and most complicated moneyed corporation,
and In that capacity 1t has contracted. Its
certificates of stock are contracts. rs sub
scrlptlons to railroads are contracts Intended
to be obligatory upon the people IN their
private fortunes, and thence Is the debt, the
propriety Of whose assessment, we are now
considering. And 30 contracted, can you also,
to assume"that the obligation results upon
you to pay that debt, and to raise the fund
for payment by taxation, and We say 1t does
not. We say, that so incurred, 1t Imposes no
obligation on you whatever, and II 1t does, IL
gives you no power to execute that obligation
upon US.
point We make, 1t Is necessary to state that
the question ls not whether you shall pay your
debt. lit be your debt. pay 1t, OF course;
and we would h1far from impertinent inter-
ference with your sense OF your own pecunl-
ary or moral obligation. But 1t Is not your
debt. 1t is our debt. Your body has assum.
agent in contracting obligations for us. and
the question you consider Is whether we shall
pay Il; and, not only is 1t not clear that you
propose any peculiar Individual sacrifices to
this preservation of pecuniary faith. but some
Of you may hold the stock, and If the blush OF
Virtuous indignation shall mantle your cheeks
at what may seem to be our hesitation 10 the
matter, Is 1t not possible that it may be in-
spred as much by the feeling that ybu will be
prevented from receauing as from making pay
meut?
Nor is 1t the Question whether you will pay
the debt. II you holdsfunds OF ours in your
hands 1t would, we think, be unbecomlng and
improper in you to apply Them to tbis :. DEBT, debt,
dow, with 30 many reasons to believe 1t ques.
tionable, and when you know 1t is ques-
toned, and that proceedings are now pend.
ing in the courts to test It's validity, and to re-.
strain you. Your body will have done enough
in this matter to perplex us. Without capacity
In the charter Without authority from us
without notice of your instentlon, to have
millions to no earthly advantage, upon which
we have already paid more than s2,Oo0,0OO in
terest; and which, when paid, If 1t be paid,
must utterly exhaust our fortunes, surely
were enough for you to do. And, when we
question obligations so incurred. If you had
our funds In hand, you ought not to antici-
pate our right to try that question by the
In hand. The question is not whether you
will pay this debt, but whether you will make
us pay IL; and we surely may complain that not
content with such gratuitous infctlon, you
should persist in, as we think, the equally
gratuitous enforcement, Of that wrong to It's
final consummation.
But to that have you the power This. 1t
an obligation at all, Is legal obligation. This
debt is q contract. The snbscriptionsto rail-
roads were contracts. Each issue OF stock is
contract-a contract with the holder that
at certain rate of annual interest he shall be
paid certain amount Of money. II is q con-
tract by you as private, not public, corpora
tion; as the agent, not OF the State, but OF us,
binding not the State, but US, II 1t bind at all
and that, like every other legal obligation, Is
within the judicial power, and to be enforced,
If enforced at all, only on the judgment OF q
court. And are you court !! Has the State
given you commission to try causes or do
You take that power from the fact that you,
as agent, made the contract? Is 1t the office
of agents to determine the validity of the OBJ.
legations they undertake to impose, and to ex-
ecute them? Could the broken bank, for
whose debts the corpcrators by Law In this
State are liable, render judgment and exeeu-
tion against them And ls 1t not, 10 fact, an
additional objection 10 the exercise Of tnie
power by corporation, that 1t Is, itself, Inc
agent contracting the obligation 1t undertakes