The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1879-03-30
THE STATE DIET.
The Consent of Public Creditors Not Eeces-
sary for am Adjustment.
New Orleans Bee.

The Consent of Public Creditors Not keCes~
sary for an AsjustmeDt.
New Orleans Beel
The newspapers and the citizens who put
themselves up MS champions Of the interests
OF the public creditors make the great mis-
take Of taking a position which cannot be
held. In their wish to fOrtfy the case oil their
clients, they pretend that their rights are un-
assalable; that the contract of 1874 irrsyoca-
bly, binds the people of the State to tho end
Of centuries, and that the right Of she cred-
itors is authentic, admitted, ratified, indorsed,
without prescription and upon which there Is
no coming back
When II Is then mentioned to them that IL
is impossible for the State TO meet It's obliga-
tions, as they cannot deny the evidence they
admit the fact but see no further remedy
than 10 beg Of the creditors to consent TO q
reduction OF interest The voluntary consent
OF the creditors is, therefore, according to
these champions Of tho debt, n condition In
dlspensable to an adjustment. But, II the
right Of the creditors Is as unassailable as 1t
Is pretended, we ask why the creditors should
consent to reduction even Of iUtereStP 1t
would therefore be from purely generous mo-
tives. Wedo not believe Ia this style II TEN
der feelings in transactions between indi-
| viduals q creditor can remit to his debtor q
portion Of the debt In order to give him the
| means Of working to pay the other portion.
| It is not generally through motives OF gen.
eroslty that creditor acts thus; 1t Is through
| Interested motives, because he may fear to
lose everything, either by the bankruptcy or
| the death pf his debtor, the law having wisely
| permitted o the heirs to Iiberate themselves
| by renunciation
| But II the State cannot go into bankruptcy,
| II neither the present nor future generations
can thrust from their shoulders the weight
| which IL has pleased governments i'm posed by
| bayonetS to load them with, the public cred.
1 itors would be simple and artess indeed to
| renounce their rights and not To patiently
| walt till an Improvement In the situation
should make IL possible that they be paid In
| full.
| Tho public creditor, considered as an irnper~
| Bonal being, never consents to u conversion
| or q reduction. He submits only when he
| sees that he cannot do otherwise, or when he
| believes that Ii is profitable for him TO ae~
cePt
| at 60 per cent for tho purpose OF funding a
vast amount Of illegal and fraudulent bonds
and warrants, did he ask for the voluntary
consent OF the holders either OF legal or illegal
boDds2
We still have before us the protests, print
| ed In pamphlet form, Of the English credit
ors who organized themselves into an asso-
citation to resist, and who later, realizing the
imDosslbility Of forcing the State to pay them,
resignedly accepted the conversion. Did not
| the holders Of ante-bellum bonds possess as
solid II not stronger titles, as the holders OF
| the bonds OF 1B74i
Why therefore consider the bonds Of 1874 ag
more sacred and inviolable than ordinary ev-
licences OF public iDdebteduess2 Is It not
ce,,,crs ~ r;sot III r5csit;ne ~ aSias VIZ
,ne,,.5 '" io'eo' ah p'opooisoio u e''u7c
"ipn Hnnni,,, yor o,,r s,o+e al tho ,re,,,roav,..
WHICH ars uaed IN favor ~ III tbe .i in,astpItvos
tie nnntpa"+ n9 1911 resf "nI, m sa ~ ~
is a nc Mi Di h, a., vi t. stt
dht 4, n,,r etmdies on tha sai, ~
Whnn wa uili haue m ooto hljah'.d tba s,o. tha+
the ori1;n III the conaodatn9 hnnds 10 tointss
with s,snjeion that frsndIent and = ,IIsns1
aa well "a legal debta haze heen ccnuertad
under the fu1dino at and that Yrnyo N. ttaa
standpoint of the nolitical iav ~ The land the
DublIe oreditors have no means of legal coer. ar
cion to obtain navment. we have no dnnht
| that the creditors will hs more ,giliinn ta az
cent The naw a1inatmapt ,ghiob "s ,nilfs ~ " ~ ~
| nneed To them '-ON "1 ~ pAV
| Their lawyers and advocates will mt yoy.
ward all the ARGUMENTS which are yeneraIia
/ invoked AGAINST renndiatinn and we viii IN,
them in s1stainino That Il is rigbt to uive sV to
the navment oY the deht ali the ~ resIuros2 ~
hcb yiii ha lei, artar tbo 'e ocas1.i. ~ ~
novernment Will ba ve haen nrnvided sor ~ ''i3 f3
sill he hut eimne mater ~ = gfs,,rs ~ AZ.
cnaa in tskioa aa bsSis tba rsoaa.t oa,s urs
| future ufa1n ~ Tho raao1,roaa ~ ~ h,s,ss.1 e