The daily phoenix. [volume] (Columbia, S.C.) 1865-1878, 1872-12-18

takes that if the company will deliver to
the State Treasury for cancellation it's
$4,000 600 OF bonds guaranteed by the
States endorsement, the State will re-.
ceipt for the advance made by it's
Financial Agent to the company, release
its mortgage lien, and pay to the COM
pany. or what is equivalent, give the
company certificates of indebtedness to
the amount of 81, 100000.
2. The method by which that contract
shall be executed, Sections 3, 4, and 7,
viz: That the bonds shall he delivered to
the State Treasurer, and cancelled in the
presence of o legislative committee; that
the scrip be issued in certain form,
and be made receivable for taxes.
3. Certain provisions for the redemp.
ton Of this scrip and its reissue.
The company and its creditors are in
torested in but the first two classes of
these provisions, viz: The contract and
it's execution. What the State might
SEQ fit to do, or could legally do, with it's
own paper, after discharging its debt to
| the road, was and is no concern of theirs,
Now. with the strictly legal points
raised upon this Act, whether the scrip
is bill of credit, we have nothing to do.
We are not lawyers, but simply business
men. II the law has not provided the
proper mode Of paying this debt, let the
law be made correct, and the form
| altered. All that We contend for is that
the State has made contract with the
Blue Ridge Company. which is as simple
and clear as any business contract en-
tered into every hour of the day by
bankers and merchants, viz: That If the
Blue Ridge Rlilroad Company will sur
| render certain securities on which the
State is eudorser, the State will pay the
company 81, 100000. We have shown
that the securities are good and lawful in
their issue. We have shown that no
fraudulent use has been made OF them
since their issue. All that remains to be
asked is: Have they been surrendered.
as the company pledged itself to do?
And the answer is yes. So, 400, 600 are in
tho treasury, cancelled, destroyed, i'm
possible to be renewed or re issued; aud
the other 5000, 900 are in the keeping of
the Financial Agent Of the Stnte-hypo-
thecated, AS he alleges, for other debts of
the State. More than that, the com
pany has paid 1915 900 to relieve the
bonds that it was pledged to deliver,
and that S375, ,00O was borrowed from
innocent parties on tho pledge OF the
State fifth nude by this Act, while other
creditors have been paid in the same
pledges. Let the courts decide as they
think just. All we say to the State is,
you have the bouds, and have destroyed
them. Pay what you promised for
them.
It will not do to say that 81, 800, 900 is
too much for the bonds, after the State
has them. It may be so-very probably
it is so. But if the history of the scrip
is correctly told on the streets, there
have been heavy deductions from the
81, 500, 900. for which the company is
not responsible. The 1915, ZOO neces-
sary to relieve the bonds from hypothe-
cation was negotiated with Mr.. Wesley,
q tiuancier Of irreproachable character
aud standing. But Mr.. Wesley required
$1,000. 900 Of scrip as security, with the
privilege OF accounting to tho company
Tor it at seventy. and paying his own
advance before any other creditors.
This was not the company's bargain
but Mr. Wesley had the bonds, and they
could do no better. Again, 500, 900 Of
those bonds were held in New York for
al advance of $50. 200 made to the
Financial Agent Of the company. When
the company came forward to repay tho
advance, tho bonds had been sold, and
they had to pay $3.50, 600 OF scrip to re-
cover them-n clear loss to the company
in two items of over $500, 900. There
arc other matters not worth while to dis
cuss now,In which, if there was specula-
tion and swindling, the company were
only sufferers. But whether tho amonnt
be too great or little, whether extrava-
gnntly swolled or fraudulently de-
peted, it was the price agreed upon.
Nor will it answer, in reply to the
claim Of the holder of this scrip, to say
that the Legislature was corrupt which
passed it. The corruption of one or oil
Of tho members Of Legislature can no
moro invnlidate bill regularly passed,
than the corruption of q Governor could
invalidate pardon regularly issued
from tho Executive ofice. And although
it may be dcplorabe that mon trusted
with great power will or have used it
corrnptly or fraudulently. the fact that
its lawmakers will not pass laws for
good purposes without pay, and will
thus confuse in tho popular mind the
justice Of Tho action with the meanness
and crime Of the motive, cannot relieve
tho State from liability freely snd
openly assumed, and in exchange for
lxrh al, ~,