The Morristown gazette. [volume] (Morristown, Tenn.) 1867-1920, 1879-01-29

: Wy laeu prevented pEoHF, anu COuse
quently stopped interest, which is in
lieu Of profit" 1t need not be af
: armed that the general calamity .
then, is not comparable to the gen
: eral calamity Of Tennessee resulting
> from the late war.
The next fatal step was the issue
of additional bonds to the insolvent
, roads. 1t was done under the pre-
tence that it was necessary to en-
able those roads to meet the interest
upon their ante-war bonds, and thus
protect the taxpayer, All of these
bonds were pretended, to be issued
under varions amendments to the
Act of 1872. The amount issued
was $10,68S,000.00, There were
: honest men in the Legislative bodies
, which authorized this fraud, but
their efforts to protect the State
were unavailiDg. But their manly
protests exhibit the shameful meth
DDS employed in the perpetration OF
this vast fraud. The facts subse.
quently officially developed, ir con-
} nection with the Journals of the two
Houses. show that appropriations
we're refused unless the members
were paid to make them. 1t appears
that bonds were sold at large dis
count TO raise money to pay mem
bers to vote further appropriations.
1t appears that with the proceeds of
bonds so sold, a minister of the Cos
pei was employed to manipulate
members of the Legislature, and
that when he reached the Capitol,
bill authorizing the issuance of bonds
had been rejected by DECIDED ma
jority. In the morning he opened
the proceedings with prayer before
night the vote was RECONSTRUCTED. and
the next day the bill passed with
but two dissenting votes. This bill
| appropriated $4,000, 10000 to the in
solvent roads. 1t appears that rela-
tives Of high officials were paid mon
ey, the proceeds of bonds, to induce
favorable action in the further issu-
ance of bonds. 1t appears that bonds
were sold at large discount to pay
| interest in order to conceal delin-
quencies. That the proceeds we're
used to pay high salaries to railroad
! officials; to pay exorbitant lawyers
fees; to pay old de BITS, and in short,
applied TO an infinite variety of 9TH
eF unlawful purposes. 1t appears
that the Governor, who was clothed
with the power to decide when the
law was complied with, delegated
his power to issue bonds, and that
many of them were signed aud Is
sued by one of his subordinates in
the city Of New York, The prodigal
waste of his vast sum can be appre-
ciated, when it is stated that before
the war the State had appropriated
bonds to the insolvent roads of East
Tennessee To The amount of e471,.
100000. That after the war, for the
alleged purpose Of protecting the
taxpayers from paying interest on
the $471, 100000, there were issued
to the insolvent roads of East Ten
nessee $4,s57.OoO0O. That when
they were sold they brought. in de-
preciated bonds, $768, 900 90, worth
not more than $3.50. 10000 in cur
rency. The same disastrous policy
was pursued in dealing with the de-
linquent roads of Middle apd West
Tannsssse.
BY an examination of the uDani-
nous report of the Joint Judiciary
Committee of both houses of the
Legislature Of 486a-70, composed of
soae of the best lawyers in the State,
in relation to the validity of the
bonds issued to the Tennessee & Pa.
cihc road, it will be found that the
principle is affirmed that unless the
conditions and limitations Axed by
law were complied With, in the mode
prescribed, that the Governor had
no power to issue bonds, and if is
sued without such compliance they
are voidr The same committee, in
its report in relation TO the Mineral
Home road, dscl-- 1910
mat if the law was f:audulently COM
piled with, and the purchas ers ofthe
bonds purchased at less than the par
value of the bond, he and purchasers
from him were affected with notice,
aud the bond void. In his message
of 1875, Gov Brown declared the
principle. in discussing the liability
of the State upon the endorsement
on the bonds of the Memphis & Lit.
tie Rock road, that il the purchaser
paid full price. yet if It's Governor
| who issued the bonds did not comply
i with the law, the bonds are void
Upon this point he said "The exc
cution Of these mortgages and pro.
viding of a sinking fund we're condi-
tions precedent to the right and pow.