New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1875-06-19

appointed historiographer of the imam,
-. that the Chevalier Nordhoff be detailed 8
, ; Speeia! commissioner to work up the fac,
and the record, and present them to Ii
world.
GOVERNOR KBLlOGG'S LETTER TO III
:. CHICAGO TIMES.
Tie letter recently addressed 20 h
Chicago Times by the Governor, in repl
! 70 an article in that journal of the fit
.ns:an; ezaggerating the deb. ofthe State
has been pretty generally copied or com
mented upon by the Northern press.
! !he offending journal itself publishe,
tie letter entire. and let itself down a.
easily as possible in the following style:
Nc. Kellogg claims that The Times ha.
| o'.3stated The amount of Louisiana's load
AID says that instead of fifty millions il i:
: pat little more than twenty-pne millions 81
dollars. The Governor assumes. however
! TIA: The funding Of the debt, by which
! about twenty millions of debt is PRACTICAL Y
, 'epudiated, .s an accomplished fact and
Geducts the amount SO repudiated tron. the
! obligations Of the State. The constitution.
a'ify OF the funding &C: has not yet been
affirmed, and although some O: the bond.
. holders have accepted the compromise.
! others still hold out, and If they shall sue
! .eed il upsettirg the lava not improba.
bic event-the State will be holden :cr the
tut amount.
This may be the right SOY. OF chat! with
which TO stuff a Democr.tic politician of
average intelligence. but lawyers will
smile sardonically at the idea OF upsetting
a constitutional sanction Of I. State in the
Union and holding it for any amount it
does 10: wish TO pay. Attempts have
been made and failed to hold Mississippi,
Pennsylvania, and We believe Illinois itself
% legal string. The plaintiffs in all
cases were dismissed with costs. So much
70. tie excuse offered, which is really no
better than none But the Times fell into
d pitfal!. and would have dragged its
readers with it had not some one with
more knowledge and sense come to the
rescue.
The article in the Times was the result
OF nisappre hending the tail which was
sewsd or TO the repor. of a join: commit
tee 70 investigate the books Of tae State
Auditor and Treasurer. An elaborate
s!a:emen: was prepared by ore Of the
clerks Q; the committee for the os,ensible
purpose Of showing the origin Of the State !
debt. I: was at best bat piece Of post
'ncrtem history. and had about as much |
connection with the subject under consid-
Grafton as would be the pointing out Of a !
to o weary traveller to show him
wh... : big obstacle he would have en-.
,o.n:eced if lie had no: gone around II.
Long before the original figures were CONF
piled two years ago from the old State
archives and the imagination OF the COM
pliers. the debt had been definitely limited
@ s25,o00.ooc, and subsequently to
SIS, 900, coo, which is now the maximum.
!: was superluous and unnecessary. if not
absolutely injurious, to attach such a
TO the repor: Of q legislative
committee whose province it was to in.
.uire into entirely differen: matters. But
S everybody ct home and, as was sup.
csed, abroad understood the question. it
Eas though. it would do no harm. and so
Exhibit W. was app ended after the
lain report had been presented to and
dopted by the two houses.
We can not find that the article Of the
hicago Times has inflicted any serious
Jury upon the State credit. Perhaps
Re market may have weakened for day !
: two under the frs: influence, but it
rcmp:ly rallied. and now stands at least /,
T.nty points above city bonds. though ,
.e latter is sustained by twenty-five :
III! tax agains: fourteen for the State.
]! the city is under q Demo cratic adj
Illustration. Three years ago State
0rds sold Ak about fifty cents on the
2Ilar. while city bonds readily command
!: from seventy-fve to ninety.
Governor Kellogg's financial policy. so
: IS tie public debt is concerned. is +
access beyond any question. The State a
held for Sl5,o00.000, and can no: be a
ade 70 pay dollar more. Bondholders c
e bringing in their old bonds for the I
~ ones every day. and the stubborn I,
-.icners have decided to surrende. at a
s.. "
The Chicago l..er-J:ecn. IL noticing
g Governors letter. remarks. rather e.
,:a:edly: ~
4 Chicago newspaper Of the fifth instant | e.
ntaiBed grossly false statements in regard | "
the State debt OF Louisiana. tits stated. | -
substance. that legislative committee
: discovered. from examination Of the !
ATE Auditors accounts. that the State |
h reaches the sum of $50, 80. .3.,
Governor Kellogg has addressed letter
The journal in question, in which he /!
ows that the statements OF the article are
SO in general and particular. He shows: O.,
That no legislative committee has re- 80
:tei upon the State deb: since he has been ~
Office. >. That in 1873 he appointed com. %
tte-. consistin of ''Old and prominent cit;- | y.
as" which reported that the State debt
IS then S2i ,l2s3 $50. ;. That the committee on
md still! on the statute books wha. was IN
lei a contingent debt amounting 20
.c9o. 800. 4. That the com mittee found that | No
contIa gent ueos was Dased upon many vi
acts of successive Legislatures. cover. FIR
many years. which provided that GER ito
= liabilities. snch as the Endorsement BY to
State of second mortgage bonds on rail
dis when built, etc. might accrue on GER :
"A Conditions" ). That none Of the con. -
ions had been complied with. Governor
llogg then shows that all the acts ere.
1g these contingent liabilities were re- r..
Ieo U! tue iunuine Ulll, approved Janu- | CAT
"a. Is. l. and adds: And TODAY there | VT
ot a dollar of this con gent debt in ca
uai or possible existence