The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1879-07-24

r put the bonds up or down IN the market, a
q / their interest or the moment may sugges
' In my opinion, therefore, the public welfar
: demands that the question shall be settled
, A diversity of pursuits and interests ha
. | been the prolific source of dlssenslOn upO
this question. Our business men are inter
ested in sustaining credit, as they max
money by the use of credit, and hence as
rule they have warmly sustained ever
proposition looking to a settlement of tn
debt. While on the other hand, those en-
I gagged in agricultural and mechanical pur
suits have less interest in credit, and witt
no incentive other than the obligations o
honor and Justice to animate them, they
2 have as a rule antagonized every PROPOSE tioI
| looking to an adjustment that was not APP
{ parently founded in equity and Justice
] Hence the conflict. And now that plan oil
settlement is submitted TO the people which
has heretofore Teen deemed reasonable by
the representatives of the agricultural and
mechanical classes, it seems TO me that if il
| is defeated We will be thrown at once upon a
hazardous sea. l know that the people OF
/ Tennessee are utterly opposed to repudia-
| ton, and that they recognize it as a poison
which taints the whole history of a people
Now it seems 10 me that if we cannot unite
| upon the proposed adjustment that there is
| no other upon which which we can likely
unite, and therefore practical Reputation
] will be the inevitable result. A part of our
people oppose the adjustment because it Is
! too high and a part because it is too low
| If middle ground between the two ex-
| tremes cannot command the approval of the
| people, certainly neither extreme may do So.
1 Recent events have changed the whole
| complexion of this question and made this
! the last opportunity the State will ever have
] for favorable adjustment of the debt I'M
/ less my judgment is at fault. l will state
my reasons for this conclusion briefly. The
i 1H Inns
adopted by the Legislature but for the offer
made by the railroads, and they made the
| offer simply because they saw no adjustment
| would be made unless they undertook to
perform their part. Suits were pending
/ against them, and while the weight of legal
| opinion was in their favor, yet they prefer
/ red compromise rather than risk the re-
suit OF the suits. Suppose no settlement is
made and the suits are decided in their
! favor, is it not clear they will not pay a
dollar they can avoid? On the other hand,
If the suits are successfully prosecuted, the
great bulk of the debt will still be left for
the State to settle, while the railroad COM
panies whose property Is sold by the bond
holders viii be ClamOring and lobbying for
indemnity from the State. After the suits
now pending shall have been settled adverse
ly to the bondhOlders, all of them will be
willing to accept the adjustment proposed,
but there is something less than three
millions in bonds now outstanding issued
to the solvent roads, The holders OF these
particular bonds are profoundly in
terested in defeating any settlement until
the suits are decided. If they succeed in
successfully prosecuting their suits, the
amount they viii receive will exceed the
amount the State proposes to pay. ii they
tail IN their suits they expect TO partic pate
in the benefit OF any future settlement which
may be made. 1t is their policy, therefore
IN haI md To
Element. The proposed adjustment makes |
this line OF policy Imperative their part !
nee it provides that a day should be fixed |
limiting the privilege of funding under the
law, and they know if the adjustment is rat |
flied by the people that they will be put to |
an election as to whether they will rely upon /
the State or the railroads before their suits |
can possibly be decided. Consequently the |
bondholders will leave no stone unturned TO |
defeat the proposed adjustment. Their line |
OF policy Is clearly outlined in their recent /
published manifesto. In that they seek to /
encourage all holders of bonds issued to rail |
roads to believe that all the roads are good |
Tor the bonds outstanding, when the fact is /
well known that our branch roads cannot be /
operated as independent roads so as to make
them pay. As further induCement thew saw
the suits will be decided this summer, when il /
is known that this is impossible. They say to
the other bondhOlders that if this adjustment
Is defeated the State Will make a better one
in the future when all who know the facts
know it is not true. And finally to defeat
the settlement before the people they say
the submission Is not legal and attempt to
cOerce all holders of railroad bonds to CO.
operate with them by declaring that if thew
do not join in their suits and repudiate the |
adjustment they shall be barred of all ben
eft from their recovery. When they did !
this they drew a sword by which they must |
perish. The State has the same right to say
to them that if they fail to accept the ad-
justment in a given time that they shall be
barred, as they had to say to their fellow |
bondhOlders that if they failed to 5oin t8em
they should be barred. If we avail Cur
selves of this opportunity and the W Gle
debt is funded, the railroads will heip nav
1t. II, however, the holders of railroad |
bonds will not fund, then their debt will be
barred under the law, and the State will be |
excused as it gave them chance to accent
all the State should rightfully paw 1t thew |
pre- er to look to the roads let them abide
their choice. 1t seems to me, therefore, that
the oppOrtune moment for a settlement is |
now while the railroads and the bondhoId- |
ers by reason of the uncertainty of their
rights, are both willing to make concessions !
to the State. With the termination of the
suits the opportunity Will pass away.
Before attention was called to the oblioa- |
ton of the railroads they were processing IN |
to the common burden to q degree which II
offered at any time heretofore, would have
insured settlement. They failed for A long
time to do their duty, but now when thew
offer to perform 1t the State ought to respond |
to the offer. | have submitted to the Comm
troller, who is presumed to be better able
than any man in the State to know the facts
an inquiry as 10 the rate of taxation II will
require to meet the interest, and | submit
his reply.
After survey of the whole question it
seems TO me that the bondholders win he |
paid under the proposed adjustment all they |
are entitled to receive; it appears that tho !
of the debt and interest made Inv
the proposed adjustment is sufficient ~ |
exclude all the funded interest. and oi,,es
the taxpayers the benefit of their ao,7ities
against the debt; it appears that the rail
roads, by their offer, tender the State
substantial indemnity; it appears that The
taxpayers will be called upon To nav nor
50 much as they would have been reo,ired
to pay II the debt had been settled NJ the
last session at $50 cents with per cent in |
terest, since the railroads have assumed IN
pay 100000 annually; it appears thar NV
Including the payment to he made nv the /
railroads the adjustment is as low "A was
insisted upon by the member lowest in |
amount IN the former Legislature. if an, |
pears that 1t viii require less money from
the taxpayers 10 meet II than wouId have
been required to meet the adjustment in |
sisted upon by hVe-sixths of those who an
tagonized the proposition of the bOndbolders
IN the preceding session of the TegisIature
II appears that the proposed adjustment ~
lectS the FecelyabIiItv of the cou,,,,,,s for |