Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1874-06-06
nLoATEp BospHoLpERs.
There are three classes of people

I6re6I6Q III our CIdIe DOuO6.
l. Permanent investors. Themajor'
ity of these bought the bonds now out
standing before the war, and paid pref
ty full prices for them. The war and
subsequent Radical rule deprecated
this property on their hands just as it
deprecated all other Tennessee proper
ty. The old State bank bonds, for in
stance, and the Capitol bonds issued to
build the State-house in which the Leg
islature meets, are still unpaid and are
nearly all held by our own citizens.
They hayeundergone all thevicissitudes
of war and Radicalism like other forms
of property. This class of permanent
investors are personally interested
in enhancing the value of the bonds.
2. Momentary inventors. These are
the class indebted to the State for rail
road subsidies, etc. They buy the
bonds to turn them over Immediately
to the State in liquidation of its claims
against them. The cheaper they can
purchase the bonds, the cheaper they
get off. This class are personally in
terested in depreciating the market
value of Tennessee securities.
8. Speculative investors. These last
are the Shylocks who play fast and
loose on the needs and necessities of
the other two classes. They invest
from time to time, and work the mark
ct up or down, according to the plans
they have in view. They have no hes
itancy in siding with railroad clique
in demanding low taxes and depreciat-
ing the bonds, SO they may invest at
low rates. Just when the duped rail-
readers think it good time to buy,
they find the bonds suddenly locked up,
and their recent allies on the other
tack preaching the faith and credit of
the State In order to run up the
price of the bonds and unload. These
speculative investors, it will be seen
are sometimes interested one way and
sometimes another. They are the one
class whose punishment no one would
regret. But it is impossible to reach
them through the bonds or any scaling
or non-payment of interest. They do
not hold long enough, and on the first
likelihood of such action they would un-
load, leaving innocent purchasers to
hold the bag, while they invest their
flying margins in some more promising
speculation. The United States Gov
eminent, with all its centralized power,
found it practically impossible in the
darkest days of the national struggle
TO stop the sharks who were slaughter
ing its bonds and currency by their
gold gambling.
The popular odium that attaches to |
Dondholders is directed exclusively to |
he third class of investors. No one
desires to punish the widowed family |
whose provident head pinned the sus-
,enance of his surviving loved ones to |
he credit and good faith of Tennessee.
No one means by bloated bondholders
he educational institutions whose |
ounders and directors invested their |
funds IN Tennessee Bonds
IS a sure sourceof semi-annual income.
IN the other hand, the feeling against
has not reached such a
itch among us that any large class
ppose their liquidating the State
laims against them on the best terms
hey can. The interest of these
wo classes are antagonistic, and
be course of the UNION AND AMERI-
AN has been to urge the straight for
ard policy of paying our debts, no
natter whom it helped or hurt. There
hight be some plausible excuse In en-
ancing the value of the bonds for the
eneft of permanent investors, but
lere would be little excuse In depreci-
ting them for the benefit of railroads,
specially when weremember that a few
ears ago these roads might have
rained their credit In other directions
buy up the bonds at Brownlow prices
i'd reduce the debt immensely. As to
lie class whom most people mean by
the speculative gamblers
Wall Street, they viii con-
nue. to gamble and make their
-ofts off the dupes that frequent
eir dens, whether our State legisla- ;
IN tends to enhance or depress the
'nds. The one way to stop their
,uble game is to give the bonds fixed
luation by the regular payment of =
terest, when they will settle down at :
e current price of all other six per .
Mt investments. This is all that b
yislation can do to prevent the fuctu- !
ions on which Shylocks thrive. The
ice still remains subject to the ups !
d downs of an irredcemable national p
rrency, and the fluctuations of an i
sy or stringent money market. a
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