Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1878-09-24
SPEAKER ALLEN.

A u NTON 81
SPEAKER ALLEN.
THE TALL SYCAMORE OF SHENANDOAH.
HIS VIEWS ON THE STATE DEBT-THE SAME OLD
TRAcK-A SMALL CROWD AND NO ENTHUs1-
AsM.
There wa !. considerable interest felt among
our citizens, generally, yesterday. about the
speech of Henry C. Allen. Speaker of the House
of Representatives, which was announced in the
Virginian Of last week. Whether his views CO.
incide with those Of that journal we do not
know. but that was the only paper which her
aided his coming.
About o'clock Judge Hendren adjourned
the County Court, and Mr.. Speaker Allen took
the stand.
The attendance was rather slim, and thinned
out onsiderably before the speech Of this dis.
tinguished orator was finished.
He opened his remarks with the assertion
that he was here to speak on the public debt
Of Virginia. q subject which onr people had
heard discussed time and time again, and this
may, in some degree, account for the fiatness
W
This subject Of the State debt. he said. was one
little information.
He would at once enter into the facts OF the
creation of the debt Of Virginia. which. he said
was created between the years 1s4O and $780,
The debt of Virginia in 1910 was about So 900 GEO.
but at that time Virginia entered upon sys-
tenn of internal improvement and develop
ment of her material resources, which increas-
ed her Indebtedness in 1860 to $32,700,0s0. and
in 1861 it was S3S 900, exclusive of the Sink
ing and the Literary funds.
The war came on, and One-half of the taxable
values of the State were destroyed. In 1850 the
State owned 100000 in internal improve
ments now, she has $500, 900 or $500 900 in sew
eral railroads. These losses were entailed upon
Virginia by the war, besides the individual
losses to which her citizens were subjected.
From this point, the speaker reviewed the
legislation of the State upon the subject Of the
State debt down to the present time. claiming
that the Legislature of 1865p66 passed the first
forcible REIMBURSEMENT bill; that this Legislature
was called the best Legislature in Virginia that
had met since the war by all Of the papers
throughout the State opposed to his views.
He did not question the honesty or earnest
| ness of these old Virginians in their efforts to
| sustain the honor of their State But how were
| they deceived in her recources? The tax hi ii
| they passed shows it-fourteen cents on the one
hundred dollars, which would only yield $500,
Co., when the interest on the debt was s. 400 900.
These men recognized their mistake when
they returned in 1861. when the smoke OF
| war had lifted and they realized the losses
| which Virginia had sustained, and they pass
ed an act torcitiy readjusting the debt Of the
State.
| He then read from the act passed in 1868 pro-
viding for the payment of per cent interest on
bonds of the State excluding the bonds for &C
crued interest until a settlement should be had
with West Virginia. These Statesman. and
Statesman he admitted they were. would
| pay 10 interest on the accrued interest, and
only per cent on the principal debt, until a
settlement was had with West Virginia.
When he was called a repudiationist he could
| only point to Col. Baldwin, Joseph a. Waddell
and VIM. T. Joynes. whom from the bottom OF
| his heart be recognizedas honest and upright
| Statesman.
| He then briefly reviewed the action Of the
Legislature of 1869 & 20 which passed the Fund
ing Bill, under the representations of Cover
nor Walker, and funding the whole debt left
Virginia after setting aside one-third to West
Virginia owing as much as she did in 1850. By
this act Virginia constituted herself q guardi-
an of the Yankee and English bond-holders
and compounded the interest. Twas not the
interest due and unpaid p He claimed that
the funding bill was an act Of forcible readjust-
ment 1--WE have always thought that it was an
| offer to the creditors which they accepted and
therefore binding upon both parties to thecon-
| traGtl
He spoke of the decision of the Supreme
Court, which decided that the Coupons on the
funded bonds were bound to be received in pay
| ment of taxes, and but for want of time would
have combated that decision.
| Then referring to the conference held with
| the bondholders, he quoted at length from the
| address of Governor Kemper in which he stat
| ed that an increase of taxation would amount
| to virtual confiscation. At this point solid
debt paying citizen entered, and said "the hit
would, Gov. Kemper is not Virgin1a,"]
| He also quoted from speech of Hon. John
| w. Daniel to show that Virginia was ip no bet
ter position to-day to stand an increased taxa
ton than she was at the time of Kempers ad-
dress to the bondholders; that our resources
1 for taxation were less to-day than they were
| in 1874, and that an increase of taxation woulc
amount to confscation.
He claimed that Gov. Holiday, before hi.
election, had represented himself as opposed t.
increased taxation; that Hon. A. II. H. Stuar
had voted against it in the Legislature; tina
Gen. FitZ Lee now says and publishes that tn,
people can stand no increase of taxes; tina
Hon. John T. Harris, the Representatives. Con
gress from this district, says the same thing
Hunton takes up the cry. and from all over thu
1 State all representative men are of one min(
on this subject.
Even the convention of 1877 said the peopl
could stand no increase of taxation, and OIL
this platform Gov. Holiday was elected. Ant
he maintained that if Gov. Holiday could no
carry out the principles Of this platform h
ought never to have accepted an election at tn,
hands of the people.
He admitted that the counties of Shenandoah
and Augusta, being out of debt, could stant
an increased taxation, but he had listened t,
the cry from the counties of East virgini,
and yielded to the voice of a majority OF tn
people of his State.
: If the Yankee and the English creditor failet
! to receive their pay in Confederate money, h
! did not think they were entitled to any pa,
now. Those at the North who cry out for pay
ment of their bonds are those who have beer
through the bankrupt court q dozen times
: I'VE have always understood that man couls
not claim the benefit Of the bankrupt act o sec
, ond time until he had paid up all he owed wher
he first availed himself Of its provisions.]
He reviewed the Barbour Bill and explained
it, as it has been done time out OF mind to ou
readers.
} He argued that ten cents increase OF ia xatior
: would not be sufficient to relieve the State o
her obligations; itwould take at least TWEEN
ty-flve cents on the one hundred dollars If no
: fifty as he really believed it would.
} He reviewed the present financial condition
OF the State and claimed that at the end of tn
present fiscal year the deficit would amount t,
s., 100000. He claimed that the tax from tn
, Moffett Punch was very uncertain and not t,
be relied on as 1t was opposed both by tn
liquor men and by the temperance men. H
did not think it could be depended upon for an,
I great number Of years,
AT the close ofCol. Aliens remarks there wer
cries for Skinner.
In response Col. Skinner stated that it wa
unfair to call upon gentleman, totally unpre
pared to reply to a carefully prepared argu