Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1877-05-10

that the questions discussed and decided !
were fairly raised as between the parties to |
the litigation, and were necessarily consid- |
cred by the court, and are to be regarded as
deliberate conclusions of the whole court, |
and demonstrate, beyond doubt, what the
judgment of the court would have been if
the State had consented to become and had
been a party.
The legal profession needed no such ruling
in oroer to arrive at a like conclusion. The
well known principles and rules of law,
founded in justice and right, when honestly
applied to the facts and circumstances ex-
isting in the premises, inevitably fix the liza
bility of the State to pay those bonds, a
liability that courts Of justice would be COM
PEELED to enforce if the State would waive
her immunity and submit the matters in
controversy to the proper legal tribun ais.
The principal holder of these bonds, and
all others as far as heard from, are willing
to waive their legal rights, and have made to
the State a proposition in which they pro.
pose to abate a large portion of what is
claimed to be legally due. This proposition
comes from them and the questions consi-
dered by the Legislature were, first, as to
the reasonableness of the proposition, the
means to be provided for payment in case
of it's acceptance, and the time and manner
of submitting it to the people for accept
ance or rejection. That the proposition
was 4 favorable one for the State, a large
majority of the members conceded.
This Indebtedness we all felt confident
would be paid in whole or in part sometime.
The amount was rapidly and constantly in
creasing. We found that each of those
bonds by merely computing the interest
( upon the overdue. coupons without COM
pounding would amount up to June list,
1877, the time Of the proposed exchange, to
over So, 100, and the whole debt to more than
seven millions. The plan proposes that the
State shall give in entire satisfaction of the
old Z per cent. bonds when surrendered, new
6 per cent. bonds due 80 years hence, for
about one-half the amount actually due, and
appropriates the 500, 900 acres of Internal
Improvement Lands towards payment of
interest and principal of the new bonds
| when issued.
We found that provision could be made
to meet a considerable portion of the in
terest and provide a sinking fund for the
principal by applying the proceeds of the
sales of the 500, 900 acres of internal i'm
provement lands which the constitutional
amendment promulgated December 2, 1872,
had protected for this very purpose. We
ascertained by a communication of State
Auditor Whitcomb, bearing date Feby. s,
1877, that a fund had already accumulated
and invested on sale of some of these lands
of $82,229.O8. "That during the next
Twenty years it may reasonably be assumed
that all of the lands will he sold at an
"average of Sc per acre, which is about the
average OF school lands sold in the State
"during the last fifteen years, this would
make the aggregate receipts So, ZOO, 600.
eff reinvested from time to time for thir-
"ty years it would amount to SIS, 500, OOO,''
These lands were carefully selected, whilst
| the school lands are of course in sections 16
and SO.
The plan for adjustment you will find in
the act to provide for the payment of these
bonds, approved March LIST, 1877, to which
you are referred. 1t is provided that the
new bonds shall only bear interest at 6 per
cent, and that no bonds shall be issued or
any act done under the provisions of the act
until a majority of the electors at a special
! election to be held on the 18th of June.
1877, shall have adopted an amendment to
the constitution authorizing the appropria-
ton of the proceeds of the 500, 600 acres of
Internal Improvement lands to the payment
of the interest or principal or both of said
bonds.
AS a large majority of the holders of these
bonds have agreed to come in under the
proposed arrangement, there can be no just
ground to fear that all will not come in.
No future Legislature would for a moment
entertain any claim IN favor Of the non-ossent-
ing bondholders, if any there shall be.
This adjustment as agreed to is equitable
and just, and such nOn-assentiDg parties
would have no aid or c%ountenance given
them by the other bondholders or the people
of the State.
The plan of settlement provides for the
interest on the new bonds for two and a
halt years, SO that no money not already
provided will be required for interest prior
to January, 1880, and at that time the &C.
oprpnr~1.>k11 -~>-s-k- &C.,