Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1878-03-09
WANTED TO BAG $4,000.


WANTED TO BAG $4,000.
If there was anything lacking to demon
strate the wisdom of the opponents of
the Appleton Merrill Donnelly grab, it was
found in the attempt of that ring Thursday
night to gobble $4,000 out of the State
Treasury. The GLOBE has persistently as
serted that the object of the legislation
asked for was to enable the contractor to OBJ
tain capital from tho State to execute his
contract. AS Mr.. Donnelly graphically ex-
planned on the floor of the Senate, it was the
fund the ring were after. Accordingly
within three hours after the so-called
supplementary bill had passed, Mr.. Donnelly
presented the following joint resolution in
the Senate:
joint resolution providing for borrowing
money to carry out the provisions of school
text book law:
Be it enacted by the Legislature Of the State
of Minnesota:
SECTION l. WHEREAS, There is no money in
the State treasury to the credit of the revenue
dollars ($55, OO0), there being over sixty thou
sand dollars of outstanding warrants drawn
against said fund, these amounts with current
expenses OF the State government will more
than exhaust the accumulation of said fund
during the present year, therefore, in order to
make the school text book law operative, be it
ItesotUcd, by the Legislature of the State of
Minnesota that the State treasurer be, and
IS hereby authorized and empowered to
make arrangements with one or more banks
of city of St. Paul, whereby such bank or
banks shall redeem State auditors warrants to
,,,,% - L
thousand dollars $780, O0), drawn on the reve-
nue. fund, and hold the same until such times
as the accumulation of the said revenue fund
shall be sufficient to redeem the same in part
or entire; and it shall be lawful for said treas
urer to allow and pay from receipts from inter-
under the provisions of chapter eleven of the
general laws of one Thousand eight hundred
and seventy-four, such bank or banks interest
| at rate not to exceed eight(9 per cent. per
annum on the amounts of such warrants so
held, until such time as it shall be competent
to pay such warrants or portions thereof from
the revenue fund.
Sec. 2 This act shall take effect and be in
force from and after it's passage.
No sooner had the secretary read the reso-
luton than it occurred to Mr.. Donnelly that
the cloven foot was q little too apparent, and
he amended the title striking out the refer
ence to the text book law and making il
read that the money was to be borrowed
to s'meet the demands on the revenue
fund.-" The words at the end of the pre-
amble, Sin order to make the school text
book law operative, we're also stricken out,
| the rate of interest to be paid reduced to
seven per cent, and in that shape the reso-
luton promptly passed the Senate.
The grab was not sufficiently sugar-coated
for the House, and when it was proposed
to put it through that branch
it was killed very dead, some
of the most strenuous advocates of the
supplementary bill opposing this attempt to
take $4,000 from the tax payers to give the
wealthy firm of D. Appleton & Co., Of New
York, capital with which to engage in bust
ness. business, too, which conflicts with
| the business interests of hundreds of our
own citizens. Not only was it proposed to
pluck the barren treasury, but to put the
State of Minnesota upon the street as Dor
rover, the people to have the interest as well az
the principal, to meet Ordinary business
firms furnish their own capital or at least do
their own borrowing, but in this instance,
the public are to be plucked in the name of
| the 'sdear people,"
AS time rolls on we shall have occasion to
| refer at length to this little game, but we
record it now as a complete justification fol-
every opponent of this vicious measure. II
is the clinching argument which silences all
honest but mistaken advocates of this most
unjust and oppressive legislation.