The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1878-01-09
COM PROMISE OF THE SUBSTANCE OF
THE PEOPLE.
Andi alterorn pa,.tera,

Audi dHer0Tn Da,ten.
Editor Demoerot-In your issue OF January
instant is an article on The Vexed Question"
signed L. The vexed question Is that OF the
city debt.
In your issue of January instant is another
The Consolidated Bonds" and purport ng to
come from the taxpayers, yet not signed by
The burden Of both these articles is compro-
mise.ths last resort Of the man who holds no
Legitimate caim against the purse of the peo
lators entice the people with husks as little
bows do the sparrows In time Of deep snow
What is now the stats of the case in d nut
/. The people Of this city really owe the con-
solidated debt principal and interest.
q. There l. little ii any of the so-calle1 debt
besides that they do owe.
g. There are mil ions on millions of the debt
besides tnat were picked on this people,in utter
violation Of both letter and spirit OF the strin-
gent laws that we're enacted to protect the legit-
innate debt and the people.
4. The people have been for years past taxed
TO utter ruin. by Councils pretending to repre-
sent the people In order to sustain the Illegal
burden placed upon them.
g. No man. or set Of men. could know better
than these same Councils that this burden was
illegal. and yet not one Of them has ever uues-
toned In the courts for the people the validity
OF the bonds they knew to be spurious.
claims presented against the people. the Coun-
Gil preceding the present one absolutely went
into venal and revolutionary Legislature and
had an act passed attempting to make valid
that which was spurious. and all on the specous
and ever ready plea OF him who has no title to
S ha h2assg o %
any. and they were. OF course. willing to com
promise" for half.
ers-together and take their vote on making
good half the face of their counterfeit bonds;
no. they sought the, ever kind and generous
Council and the venal Legislature, and through
enactment added
action OF Councils in order to give value to
what in any honorable court, would be- pro-
Z. What 10 the premium bond law?
1t is g law which disgracefully repudlated
one OF E, half u the legitimate dept (he cons2,datedl
millions that the city never owed Let US use
plain English. 1t is q law that basey robbed
possession Of him who holds 4 spuri BUS o1s one-a IN "a
law that robs every taxpayer to pay what he does
not owe. and IN akes him blush to meet the
wrong doing of our official agents. g.
8. This premium bond law possesses one fea:
ture that ought to damn 1t In the estimation OF
not lost to all sense Of liberty There Is clause
10 1t which creates q board Of control Il think
that :. i the namel. the individuals com 1905
-perpetuating body for the fifty years dur
ing. when the, premium scheme runs. Thus did
cratie.-of the people by the pc people for io the
people-go into venal Legislature and have
Hlaced over this people a money oligarchy for
9. In the course Of private individual Iitiga-
ton in the courts court of com petent jurisdic-
arg Pr9n OF the bonds bond
stricken with nullity"-not binding on the
people.
reform City Council % self-styled Democi attic
Council-a Council claiming to be OF the people,
by the people and for the people-went on fund
ing these wortnless bonds into premiums to
extent dollars
and they would have been still funding them II
the u after had not become public.
ion, TIE Council dared not fund any more OF
these bonds, they appeared in codrt. where
their validity was being again tested. and made
oath that the city was not responsible for them,
and on the very grounds that Judge Billings
had assumed when he condemned, them-thus
themselves and acknowledging that |
pie, had saddled debt ON this people, against |
which it was their official duty to shield them.
gies to the maintenance Of the unholy premium |
bond law, even to the extent Of funding Dor de |
pronounced invalid by. a competent court, has |
of the consolidated bonds Of the city the only |
claim against lhe taxpayer that is properly |
clothed wit authority OF law
13. Nearly the entire mass or SO-calied city |
debt, other than the consolidated debt. has been |
foisted on this people during reign of politi- |
ea m bn sdr ana I Iprogacy almost
b zen done amid the open exclamations and re-
monstrance of the sufferers 80 that there could
be no man. far or near, who could not hear the
same. The people protested against the pecu-
MARY murder, and cried out that every bond |
issued was but their life's bood-not for their
good, not as q Qlid pro quo but for their de-
struction-and yet spectators stuffed their
pockets with them. at such prices as they deem
ed best Had the proper spirit pervaded the
hearts OF men no purchasers could have been
found, and the schemes Of the highwaymen
would have been foled
And now, forsooth-now that the consolidated
bonds are appearing truly to be about the only
ones we do owe, and that the bottom is about |
to fall out Of the premium bond scheme now
your columns. and others. are graced with ap-
peals for compromise. as between these two |
classes OF 80. called creditnrsl The people are
to have nothing to say, but the bondholders are
to get together and arrange just how they can |
most securely pluck the taxpayer. 1t is not |
question OF VIII t bonds are really due by the
people. but how many bonds the holders can in
duce the city authorities to pay, regardless Of |
the commonest honesty and legal propriety. I |
have show that this Council have already. In |
the teeth of q decision OF a competent court, |
funded into premiums nearly two millions OF !
bonds stricken with nullity," and every think |
ing man knows that millions more Of about |
equal value have been funded by this body |
and yet the premium bond law self says that |
only those really due shall be funded
Perhaps it IL just as well for the compromis- |
ers and the Council to understand now that the |
taxpayers have begun to comprehend some