Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1878-03-07

bonded debt Of South Carolina was about
$l5 100000. Take out the conversion bonds
and the results oil exactly agree.
lilo would 60 furthor and show that there
wore four investigations. The fourth invcsti-
gation was by the Legislature into tho con-
solidation act ITSELF The Taxpayers Con-
yentiou. composed Of oil tho gallant names of
South Carolina. had said that the debt was
sc, ,000,00 taking out the conversion bonds.
About &c 900, 900 was tho old bonded indebt-
edness, and the balance was relief of tho
'rreasury bonds and bills receivable bonds.
This was the debt which they had declared
valid, and pledged the people Of South Carol
lina to stand by. Now the Bond Commission
say that about S8,000.000 have been oousoi-
dated. and about S20OO,000 remain to be
funded. If the members would take the
pains to calculate the interest and add it to
the $9,000,000 recognized by the Taxpayers
Convention, identioally tho samo result would
be reached.
As to the Owens coupons, were they aus
thorized to be funded under tho act? The
terms Of the not so declared distinctly. The
| act itself in its second section said distinctly
to tho creditors that if they would come up
and compromise ut fifty ccEts on the dollar
the State Of South Carolina would give them
certain guarantees. What were tho gunran-
| tees2 1t was to levy special tax Of two mills
annually to pay the interest on this consoi-
dated debt, and further TINT tho coupons
themselves should be receivable for taxes.
How could the State avoid this obligation2
Only by repeating the net aud having every
court in the country to reverse its decisions
previously rendered..
MIR. Werner then went on to show that the
! compromise as affected under tho consolila-
| tlon net was the very best compromise that
could have been mado. Tho other side said
| thnt tho $3,000,0O0 which tho committee had
reported against should be thrown out. The
momont thcy did that they destroyed the
validity of tho entire not. They declared
invalid 81 000,0 of bonds Just 10 order that
members might gain little Junoombo and
como back into the legislative halls again
Tho gentleman from Anderson had cried the
poor people," the ''Poor people" IIe wus as
poor rs any man, and he had come down to
represent tho people according to his concep
tion of what was just and honest and right
The gentleman from Anderson had advanced
communistic principle that should not be
tolerated by an honest and honorable people.
Where were tho bloated bondholders? We're
they seen lobbying around the Legislative
halls' Not so. They. feeling secure in their
legal position, stood of and left the Lcgisla>
ture Of this State to determine for themselve
whether or not they would brand their State
with the stain Of reputation and dishonor,
There was upon the shield Of ''le State the
motto that the people of South Carolina woro
always ready and prepared with their minds
and money and resources to redeem thoir
pledges. Why was it that the people of
South Carolina bad always had unlimited
credit, but for the reason that they had strictly
adhered to the principles of honor and had
made their word as good as their bond 1t
now remains for tho present Legislature to
say whether they woufd uphold that credit
and that honor, or by repudiatng their
pledges aud their debts sink every man in the
State to level of degradation from which he
could never hope to rise.