The Orangeburg news. [volume] (Orangeburg, S.C.) 1867-1875, 1873-10-21

adequate eanstlyhtlppal provision Tor The pay,
mcntapf Ahorrileipal wbettdue, the accr,iing
interest aud thc iute&st u nrfcar thoreiere"
&c. IS IA & '4
81 Under lhis act tie ohhro debt was fluid.
Itd, exeept certain bands and scrip kuSwh
as the Macalister aud Stebbins bouds and
scrip, canal bonds aud other evidences of
Indebtedness of tho lluois and Michigan
canal.a New internal improvement scrip wns
ISSUED for the old debt, equal III amount aud
bearing like interest and payable at the same
time as the bond or scrip surrendered.
The "Macaistcr and Stebbins bonds and
scrip" amounted To $9l l3, ,2l5.44 They camo
into the possession of said firm as the agents
of the State Tho State received for said
amount $26I ,5Gn.S3, or about 2S G4-lO0 cents,
whereas they were entitled to receive accord
| ing TO agreement about 40 cents on the
dollar. Tire firm refused TO pay the balance,
and the Legislature in February lSl9, in
structcd the Governor to compromise the
matter by Offering TO furd tho amount
actually advanced upon the bonds with per
cent interest, from the date of the advance to
the time of fundng and Notwithstanding
these bonds had passed into the hands of
innocent holders, the State refused TO recog-
niZe any further liability uvon them, except TO
| the amount Of 26 cents on tho dollar
| with per cent. interest This arrangement
was acqucsccd in by many of the holders
| aud most of the bonds lave been funded mt
| said rate.
Tho constitutional convention Of ls4S
submitted TO the people the following amend
ment, which was ratified ty Il large majority
| of votes:
There shall he annually assessed and col
lccted, in the same manner other State
| revenue may be assessed aud collected, n tax
| of two mills upon each dollars worth of
| taxable properly, in addition To all other
taxes 10 be applied as follows, to wit: The
fund so created shall be kept separate, and
| annually the first Of January, be appor-
| toned and paid ovor pro i1hn, upon all such
state Indebtedness other thnn tho canal and
| school Indebtedness, may for that purpose
| be presented hy the holders of the same, to
be entered as credits upon and to that cxtent
| i'll cXtinguisliment of said indebtedness"
The first tax under this provision was col
| lcctcd in lSl9-50; tie credit of the State
Immediately revived, aud in 1862 the State
entered upon an era Of pros .erty uuprcce-
| dcnted III the history Of any other State of the
Union.
This feature Of the constitution operated
beneiicay TO tho tag payers in manner
entirely unforeseen. Az the State grow in
wealth the two mills tax, the collection of
/ which was imperative began To realize
larger sum Than the State could annually apply
| To the eNtinguiShment of the debt, as the
| holders refused 10 surrender so valuable
security until compelled TO do 40 by its ma
| turi,y 1t became necessary. therefore in
orlcr to avoid the collection Of an amount OF
money under ihiS tax in excess of what could
be actually applied yearly to the eXtinguish.
mcnt OF the debt, 10 reduce the valuation of
property as low M possible. Tie State audi.
tor, i'll his report tor 1862 estimated the taxa.
. hn prOpprty pG tln A la. oSSnsSnI nj
twenty five per cent. or Que fourth OF its actual
value.
The last levy under this provision of the
constitution Of 1913 was made in 1870. The
moneys now on hand, together with the rev.
enne from The llluoS Central Railroad, will be
more tho" """'"'s'' - .-."--Si 'l'v "mti'o
Indebtedness nj maturity which amounted on
the 3ist day OF December, 1872, To $4,000
l50.G3.
The foregoing illustrations are sufficient to
show tho manner in which several of the
states got inIo debt. the means they used to
eNtricate themselves, and with what success
The lesson they teach is too phn 10 require
comment.
Having looked at that picture, let us OK.
anime thus
Tho State Of Minnesota in 1859, authorized
the issue OF 81, 000, 600 Of bonds in aid of ccr-
! tain railroad cnterpriscs. The roads were not
Stale refused TO recognize the validity of the
debt or provide for The payment OF interest or
! principal They have been practically re-
| pudiatcd for fourteen years.
1 The bundhodcrS have made repeat cd efforts
TO elect n compromise, hui each and every
effort has been unsuccessful.
| The present treasurer however. states that
| he desires the matter To 10 settled and is on.
| quirng as /" the best method of adjustment
From Tie report OF the committee on fin.
ancc ot the constitutional convention of 1868
J of the .Stfts ~ iIkTgsGS, il appears that said
State had t|tuaiy repudiNtcd her debt Tor
thirty years. In reply to the question
| "What is tho present yauo of our State
! bonds, the committee reported That the
! bonds OF tho State OF Arkansas are not
! quoted in the market OF any city OF the ciri.
| ti:ef tcorld This is attributable to the fact
that in Il period of neariy Mhty gears, the
| State authorities have not provided for the
| payment of interest on her bOnds \ system of
| linancering known only To thieves aud robbers
| without conscience prevailed to such AN extent
! tllal their operations now cost the State the
neat little sum of SO, | Oh, GOil6. Not content
! with impoyerishing the State, dosolating the
country, and causing mourning ut every hearth.
| stone, find these sef.same mon arrayed
| in hostility to the present reconstruction
measures, hoping thereby 10 hide from the
| public gaze and investigation, tho plumber
aud thelts of thirty years
| For years the levy OF the State tax was light
the people thought tho government was well
and economically managed, 10y letting the
| bonds run tor years without paying any in.
terest, aud not seeing any appropriations
Tor the payment of interest Oh those bonds
| IN tho disbursement Of tho public funds
| IL liz not strange that they forgot the .iudrbt.