The Ouachita telegraph. [volume] (Monroe, La.) 1865-1889, 1879-06-06
rHEsTATE DEBT.
New Orleans Democrat. ]


State Debt, presented the following re-
port
To the Honorable President and men,
bers of the Constitutional Convention:
Your committee, to whom was re-
ferred the matter of the public debt of
the State, beg leave to submit the fol-
lowing report and ordinance
In the Investigation of the subject,
we deemed it our duty first to inquire
into the validity of the constitutional
amendments claimed TO have been
adopted In 1874. We have done SO,
and are unable to find any legal evil
dence in the Office of the Secretary OF
State to indicate that said amendments
were ever adopted by the people. 1t
is certain that said amendments were
never promulgated according to law,
and consequently form no part Of the
under this view, 1t then became duty
incumbent on us to examine all the
acts OF the Legislature, pledging the
faith of the State to the payment of
her obligations, aud to ascertain
whether or not adequate provisions for
their redemption at maturity and the
payment of interest, had been made
under the requirements of the consti-
tuition. This duty we have performed,
and herewith submit the result of our
Investigation, and respectfully recon-.
mend the adoption of the accompany
ing ordinance. The theory or princi-
pie upon which your committee have
prosecuted their inquiry and based
their recommendation is that no in
valid or fraudulent debt should be
that the valid and honest debt should
be paid. They are unable to concede
that the funding of any portion of the
debt has given it even greater validity
than it originally possessed, and on
the other hand, they do not admit
that the absolute reputation of 40 per
cent of the debt detracts in the least
from the validity of that which was
legal and honest.
Had your committee felt that the
State of Louisiana was in a condition
to be generous, they would probably
have not regarded it so incumbent
upon them to invoke q strict construc-
ton of the law and the constitution.
But the information given to your
committee from the members of this
pounded to them, reveals condition
of financial depression so universal
and so appalling throughout the State
that we find no pretext for quibbling
on the side Of generosity or sympathy.
Our sympathy for one comparatively
small class of individuals cannot and
should not induce us to adopt con-
vcnient views to the injury of a far
greater number of persons who are
equally entitled to all the sympathy
that human nature can bestow.
We exceedingly regret that any re-
commcndation of ours should neces-
sarily affect Geleteriously the interests
of any other than our own citizens.
We would greatly prefer that all the
ills that may arise from the final set
Element of the long-questioned debt
should be borne by our own people
alone. But may it not be in the order
of ssthe eternal fitness of things'' that
those who directly or indirectly (un-
Willingly it may boy aided to tear
down the basis of our former great
prosperity should share some of the
ills that have so long and so powerfully
borne upon tho once proud and
wealthy people of Louisiana?
e. Il. KIDD,
Chairman of Committee.
Tho following members of the COM
mittee concur in this report: H. II.
Lott, q. w. Munday, Jos. Henry, b.
II. Forman, Davidson Reid, II. d.
Bridger, J. M. Moore, John G. Vance,
Il. r. Jenkins, II. M. Favrot.
Here follows a number Of letters, land
the subcommittee report, which has
already been published, and then
comes the ordinance recommended by
the committee, as follows
An ordinance determining and pro.
vidins for the payment of the public
debt of tho State.
Article 1. The debt of the State o.
Louisiana, existing on the first of Jan.
uary, 1879, is hereby declared to be
$4,OS2, ass, incurred for and on account
of the following purposes and OBJ.
jccts, viz:
For the New Orleans and Nashville
Railroad Company, $45S,OOO.
For the relief of the State treasury
of 1858, $69S, 500.
For money due the FREQ school fund,
which was destroyed by act No: 81 OF
1872, 81, 100, 500.
For moneys due the Seminary fund
which was destroyed by act No. 81 OF
1872, $136, 900.
For the Louisiana State Penitentiary,
authorized by act No. 55 of 1869, $500,
600.
For valid unpaid warrants and certi-
nf ind