Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1876-03-30
LEDGER.
STATE CREDIT.

The more the State debt question il
discussed by the high-tax papers the
worse it is for the bondholders. The
people are disguised and outraged at
being called repudistionists when they
are paying all they are able, and their
temper is not improving. Since the open
ing Of this discussion bonds have gone
down steadily. The latest quotations
from New York are AZ for old and 80 for
new. This is the lowest point reached
yet. This will be produced as an evil
dence that the State has no credit at
home or abroad. The best contradiction
of such a charge is the fact that State
warrants have steadily gone up since
the act Of the last Legislature
authorizing the issue of half
a million at a time until now they are
worth just the same as %greenbscks. A
year or two ago State warrants we're
bought by taxpayers at about so cents
on the dellar, now they are at par and
never to DO found in our market at that
This is q practical test Of State credit,
Those who hold any of these warrants
can get them cashed at Nashville without
delay. This is q practical test of State
credit, not the market price of bonds,
which at best are under a cloud. The
Knoxville Age takes the right view of the
question. We make an extract from
q recent article
OF late we have heard a great deal
about reputation, as if somebody was
urging it. We would like to know who is
advocating so monstrous a proposition in
Tennessee. Will some one informed on
the subject let US known We exchange
with a good many papers, and if one has
ever advocated such a doctrine it has
escaped our attention. We do not be-
lieve there is a sane mar in the State
mean enough to do any such thing, and
yet there are some journals here and
there throwing out ominous hints that
some one or somebody-don't exactly
know who, or where be lives, or what his
name is-that is urging this monstrosity
with his might. 1t is high time to dry up
this senseless pirate, for such it is. The
people Of the great State Of Tennessee,
not n Of them, laying any claim to re
spectability and honest horse sense, are
in favor Of reputation.
1t is all true enough that there are
hundreds Of them who favor, upon equit-
able terms, a compromise Of our indebt-
edness with the bondholders. II our
creditors are willing to scale the debt in
any way, why should that aver smack of
repudiation2 1t is simply q transaction
in which both creditors and debtor con.
cur. This would not tarnish the honor
Of Tennessee. Not at all. If the bond.
holders are willing to effect such an ar.
rangement, certainly the Taxpayers Of
the State should not complain. They
are obliged to do this or submit to in
creased taxation, a matter some Of our
contemporaries make very light Of, but
which, we opine, they would think pretty
serious we're they to place themselves 10
the shoes Of the real taxpayers Of the
countryside farmers and w%orkingmeu
The light tax side has a valuable ae-
e%essionin the Knoxville Tribune. though
it will only cover about the same ground
on that question as the Press and Herald
did formerly. The Tribune argues that
the Democratic party is committed 10
the payment of the bonded debt OF the
State, yet argues in the same breath that
this is not a political question.