Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1875-03-26
,.s az SUBSCRIPTION
VEE$ETY Y-COssissE E@-
susOAs. ACTION sN Is I'D AL ID 30
-rC LAND SC4sP FUND.

TIE LAND SC4sP FUND.
Since the pub licstiou of our article
IN reference to the action Of the HOu 7t
of Representatives upon the report OF
tba Committee on Education and La
Dor, made in obedience to resolution
of that body passed I'd of February
1874. directing said Committee "io
.uanire into the condition and maj
agement of the agricultural and other
colleges which have received grants
from the United States under the act
OF 2nd Of July, 1862 Ne have receiy-
ed through the kindness of Senat or
RANSOM copy of the report III ques-
ton.
For the principal facts contained III
orr former articles we were indebted,
AZ We stated, to the New York E,,ening
Post Nor were we lothe to produce
al authority SO worthy of most serious
consld ration upon such subjects III
support Of the correctness of the con-
clus1ons OF the Committee. The
authority of the EUeni,eg Post and
Of It's venerable and accomplished
Editor WILLIAM CULLEN BRYANT viii
scarcely be questioned among any
English speaking people no mattef
what may be the warmth Of the cline
in Which they live.
This morning, however, we are not
compelled to rely upon auy secondary
authority for we have the report itself.
Upon the eighth page OF thatreport We
ind the following:
Attention is next called to the Glass
OF 5Gstess happily few III number, ia
which the Contract with the govern
meut has been grossly v1Oistcd anu It's
bounty almost wholly wasted.
Iu North CaroiIna O fund Of S125, coo
WAS invested 10 200 State bonds, nonil-
nsIly of 81 ,UOU each. The largest por-
tlou OF them we're "speclal-tax bonds.
Hey are now substantially galueless,
and DO not appear to have been re-
gxfded as worth much at the time
they were bought. II is sufficient 20
Say that, Of the whole amount, not one
dollar OF either principal or interest is
now available for the purpose Of edu-
caElUn.
A report which has been forwa rded to
from the officers OF the University Of
North Carolina, after stating that the
money when received was deposited
IN a Northern bank, adds: ''In 1869
tie new Loard Of trustees received the
amount thus deposited by the former
board, and Invested IL in State bonds.
these bonds were soon made value
less, and no income has been derived
theretrOM.
Another report, received from the
Superintendent OF Public Instruction,
IL reply to the question whether tue
cCndltiOus Of the law under which the
grant was made have been fulfilled,
tnus mildly desert es the manuer III
which the money was disposed Of:
1--WE think that hone of the conditions
have been performed, for the reason
that mistake was made by the trus-
tees when they invested the proceeds
OF the lsnd-scrip in North Carolina
State bonds, which are now ,t1a0Ud5ta-
Die for the purpose of raising revenue
10 support the Agricultural and Me-
chauical College,
The com mi.tee have not the meane
at hand of determini! e the share of
individuals III the responsibility for
this discreditable transaction. Nor is
1t essential to the present purpose
that this should be done. These per
sons are responsible to the State of
North Carolina. whose agents they
were. The State is responsible to the
National Government. The State is
the only party known to us IN the con-
tract under which the grant was con-
veyed-a contract which it has utterly
failed to keep"
At the conclusion of the report we
fad the following:
The committee recommend the
aeoption of the following resolutions:
Re8OLCed, That the Attorney Gen
efal be requested to report to tie
House what measures, If any, should
be taken by the United States to Sc
cure from any State the fulhimeut OF
Its contract to preserve undlmiulshed
the principal of the fund derived from
the grant of land made by the United
States for the support of colleges OF
agflculture and the mechanic arts, aud
whether, in his judgment, the p,Ovis-
Ions OF existing law are sufficient to af-
ford remedy IN the premises.
We repeat therefore the question
asked IN our former article, can the
Legislature, in view of all the circum-
Stances, refuse to give to the bill now
pending before the Senate the sanction
necessary to make it a law? We
think not. Indeed it seems to us It
would be an insult as welt to the com
mon sense as to the patriotism of Ser
at3rs to suppose for moment that
they could bring themselves to vote