New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1879-09-13
VIII.
NDRTH CAROLINA.

NORTH CAROLINE.
N.x, On the hst Of Southern rcpudiating States
stands North Carolina. The debt Of that state al
Che beginning of tie war was S9C9y'ooO' besides
"prospcctivc Liabilities" on account OF pledges Oh
MD 10 internal improvement companies amounting
TO nearly s.. 600. 900 more. No iater,st was paid
during the war. in which period an additional debt
of about 81 GOO, 900 was contracted 70 AID the
Rebellion. The amount of overdue interest IN
1855 was estimated at $1.20O.OOO. In 1866 The
financial Chronicle estimated the " OLD debt" at
1919 SEQ. and the new debt, on account of bonds
issued by tho Provisional State Government 10 fund
past-lue interest, At 100000 The whole OF the
latter amount, although authorized, was not issued
Chat wear. the amount outstanding IN ISL Relng
5ut S24I7.OOO Another issue of funding bonds
as authorized in 1sGs. and the amount OF these
Outstanding in 1871 was Sl,72liOO. In 1867
Che Prov siOnal Government (which was Demo-
cratic authorized an issue of bonds to
nd in the building OF railroads; and the
amount Of these. together with other In
fernal improvement bonds, outstanding in
1865. was reported to be SlO2lO.5O0. According
g. the same authority the amount of this class of
bonds outstanding in 1850 was S14,339,500; in
aS7O il was $3.50 45: and in 1871 1t was
Sl2.7I2 200. In 1871, according to The fiRaRcidl
GhrOpi,le the whole debt amounted TO S2- 7l,6i5,
OF which $l1. 10000 consisted Of special tax
railroad bonds. IL should be observed, however,
that the above statement did not cover al the La
biltes of the State. sinking fund of $4,000,
which existed at the beginning Of the Rebellion,
with is accnmulatiOns of interest and railroad dlvl-
dcuds during the war, amounted 20 T2,3125OO.
1his was al lost 10y its investment in rebel bonds.
A literary fund Of $I.O17.OOO disappeared in the
game manner. 4 seminary fund of 100000 was
Lost by tine failure of the Bank of North Carolina
lo Ralal he tod
yurplns revenue fund deposited with the State in
1897. amounting to 81 $4,000, had also disap-
peared The total amount Of these funds wasted in
The Rebellion exceeded S5,000.000.
According to Governor CaldwelPs message. the
"r,cognizci" debt of the State in November. 1871.
was 3D.. ss7 iGi. of which amount Si,9s7,4l9
were arrcarages of interest. The only money paid
by the State on account of interest On the public
debt since the outbreak of the Rebellion ap-
pears 20 have been paid when the State admnistra
ZION WAS Republican. The amount was 1919, 900
Besides tlis there are 81 100000 of bonds issued
60 a railroad company. and which the company
has regularly paid interest. The overdue interest,
up te 500 was paid by the issue of si,12S, 500 of
funding bonds. North Carolina then ceased to be
as honest - Micawber and has since declined TO
issue bonds for interest which she could not or
would not pay. The amount of interest due 10
July l. 1879 at q per cent estimating the principal
of the debt Except 81. 500 O00l at S26019,O00 as
given by The Financial Chronicle. December 1873,
is SIG 39l $40.
IL the foregoing statements certain bonds which
appear TO have been trauduleutly or Illegally issued
md which were aftervard reclaimed by the State,
have not been included. All have been omitted
which do not appear 10 have been issued according
20 law, and for a consideration. Especial tax
bonds amounting to about Sl1 100000 are not
recognized" by the State but are included In
che total above given. Some of the internal i'm
provcmenf bonds issued after the are said TO
have been misapplied and the proceeds of them
sQuandcrcd. But the laws under which all the
bonds were issued received the support and
votes of Democrats in the Legislature, and
they were generally approved by the peo-
pie Of The State at the time they were passed The
Provisional Government which existed from
1865 10 1865 was Democratic. The Repuhli-
cans elected a Governor and Legislature in 1865 /;
IN 1870 the Legislature became Democratic by
- majority and from that time to this the Legisla
tive branch of the Government has been Democratic,
although Republican Governor elected in
1872. These facts are mentioned TO show that the
question of Voting aid to railroads has not been q
partisan one in North Carolina hut that Democrats
as well as Republicans assented TO and approved
that policy The State Constitution of Sos, which
was framed by Republican Convention. contained
the following clause:
To maintain the honor and good faith OF the State
tanished the public debt regularly contracted before
and the Rebellion shall be regarded as invlOldbe
ana shall never be questioned
This declaration was unpalatable TO the Demo-
crats and in the new Constitution made by them in
1876 it does not appear. All constitutional OBJ
stacles in the way of reputation the trainers Of
that instrument were careful TO remove. In his
message 10 the Legislature in January. 1879, Gov
erlor Vance reported the principal of the debt
10 be Sl6.9GO,O4J and the arrearsges OF interest
glO1GO,1s2. This, however. did not include the
special tax bonds outstanding. which, accord
ing 10 The Financial Chronicle of July
90. 1879, amounted to $11.3G6OO0. Neither
did il include $4,000 in penitentiary bonds,
81 i 80 900 internal Improvement bonds. found in
the statement of The Financial Chronicle Of Deem
ber lS77 and now dropped rs ignored" by the
State With these additions the total principal Of
She debt, recognized" "unrecomzcd" and
"ignored," Is 500. 800 900. The interest "A. per
cent on the "unrcc0gnized" aud Ignored debt Of
&I2 800 600 to July 1. 1879, is S7,4f6OOO. making
the total defauted interest 20 that date 600 6S3
A funding law WAS passed by North Carolina in
1873 but the bOndholders considered Its terms 50
onelous and the proposed robbery great that
they would have nothing tO do with u. The state
Treasurer found little prospect If The terms of
tie law being accepted that he did not ncur the
expense of getting bonds gravel and printed.
But in would have been money in the pockets of the
Stat.s creditors if thew had submitted that law
bad il was.
funding law which involves the reputation of
more than two-thiTds Of the debt was passed in
February. 1870. This law also repudiates all in
lsre,t accrued ~ July /, 1879, amounting ~