The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1879-03-19
THE STATE DEBT.
VIEWS or THE COUNTRY PRESS UPON
THE sUBJECT or TseE
STATE nEBr.
tRichland Bsaeop.t

This will bs one OF the most difficult and
Important subjects that will demand the at
tention Of the constitutional convention; fol
something must be done by that body to re
lieve the people ~ this State Of the enormous
burden that is weighing them down, para
lyzng the arm Of Industry and impeding
progress. That the rate oil interest on ouI
bonded debt must be reduced, we believe. II
agreed by all-even the bondholders- for nt
one has The tsmsrity TO assert that per cent
is not too latge. no other government, We
presume, pays such rate Of Interest on its
debt, and no government on earth can afford
TO DO SO and prosper; But sornething more more
besides this must be done to relieve the State
from financial embarrassment and the people
from the crushing weight Of unjust taxation
II Ia positively asserted that o large por-
tien Of tho debt Is fraudulent, that the State
never received any benefit thsrefrorn; that II
wasincurred by Irresponsible officials. through
corruption and for corrupt purposes, and that
much Of 1t is a barefaeed and transparent
stimulation. II this be true, then Of course
such portion should not DO paid. No indl-
vidual Ia required to pay Fraudulent debt,
and of course the State should not Tho re-
p,idiatlpn Of such debts cannot possibly be n
betrayal Of trust or want Of good faith.
| The honor Of the State cannot be tarnlsbedby
refusing to pay what 1t does not Justly owe
no question OF honor can possibly be In
volved~ because IL is not n debt OF honor. No
| mans credit IL impaired by his refusing 10
pay debt incurred through corruption. by a
dishonest agent without his consent, then
how can that Of State be inn aired by doing
the same thing
But. IL fs said, IL works an Injury to third
parties who have honestly come in possession
| Of these evidences Of indebtedness against the
State. We doubt very much II any innocent
| third parties have obtained possession Of
these bonds, believing them to DO honest and
lust debts: but we think they bought them
Tor speculation, ut their own risk, at least
having doubts as TO their business, and taking
| e.. I,,xit-
lose them. II will only prove that they have
made mistake, rs oil spectators are liable
to do, aud have failed to reap rich harvest
nff their venture. But even If any have bought
them IN good faith, that 10 no reason that the
State should pay them II 1t does not justly
owe them. n A should purchase forged
| note on y, no ono would accuse II Of acting In
bad faith for refusing to pay The note, nor
| could II be accused OF working an injurylte a.
The forger alone would have wrought the In
| Jury.
The people must be relieved Of oil fraudu-
| lent claims against them. no matter III they
have been approved and bonded by the board.
They cannot be so mxed up, as 1t Is said, with
the honest debts that they cannot DO distin-
gulshed from them. They must DO sought
out and rejected.
IN our opinion the best way out Of this DIFF
fioulty Ii for the State to assume that II owes
no debt until 1t Is proven to be just and hon
est beyond all possible doubt and II n creditor
IL unable tO produce this evidence II Is his
own misfortune Let the burthen Of proving
the debt rest with the Grfsiitor To this end
lot the convention provide for the appoint
ment or election OF court OF claims before
whom oil claims must be presented and prov
en- requiring the holder To prove for what
par ticuiar purpose the bond or warrant was
issued and whether tho consideration for
which II WINS issued has been complied with
and lot this court be authorized to allow AMI
order paid all just claims aud to reject all that
are not strictly Just We think that by this
means justice can be done all parties.
And finally let tho convention reduce the
rate Of interest 70 4, Or ut least per cent.
Washington News.l
The question OF the State debt Is probably
the knottiest that will come up for cOn5idera-
ton before our constitutional convention. 1t Is
one, the solution Of which Is Of the gravest
moment TO tho taxpayers as well rs the
creditors Of tho State. That the State does
owe bone ilde debt is beyond oubt-to es
tnblish this we have only 10 say that there
were several millions OF outstanding bonds
when the war commenced. That the greater
part OF the debt we are now paying taxea to
meet Interest OD was contracted by parties
who had no real authority under the form of
government under which we live to contract
such obligations we have only to say, that II
was contracted by authority OF tho Warmoth
and Kellogg government. Not by Louisiana
| Legislatures by revolutionary and usur-
patory bodieS-bodies brought into power
not by the FREQ suffrage Of ths people Of this
State. but by fraud and United States bay
onets.
| Apart from the legality or lllegalty OF tho
present debt, experiences has taught US that
II Ia a physical impossibllity to pay even the
interest at present rates without sure and
certain ruin to the whole people Of the State,
and that, too, In the near future. Then,
what remains for the convention to do; either
repudiate the whole debt, or arrange 1t in
such manner. BY reducing principal and
interest. 10 that q reasonable Tax will meet
the one annually and ultimately pay the
other.
For relief from these burdens that have
| been so ruthleSSly and villainOusly imposed
upon the good people Of this State, there Is q
simultaneous and universal cry throughout
the length and breadth of the land The
debt must be put In such u shape that the in
terest can be met and the principal eventually
| paid, or tho muCh-abuSed and oft-aliuded-to
| honor OF tho State Is gone. When she Is not
able even to pay the interest due what credit
to her is left2 Does any sane man believe for
n moment that the poverty and wretchedness
OF her people, brought about by a blind and
We may say stupid, desire or effort to ac-
complish an mpossblity, will be sufficient
vi1dication Of her honor to continue or re-
establish her credit We think not Then,
what will be the duty Of the convention under
the circumstances? We think it will be to at
least take up all the bonds Of the State at
their present value say forty or forty-five
cents on the dollar, and issue other bonds for
this amount bearing interest at or per
centum, and TO limit the amount that any
single Legislature can make the State re-
sponsibe for in the future to such sum as
Will make 1t impossible for this condition OF
things ever again to occur.
GMarksviie Bulletin.l
The fact can no longer be disguised that
the settlement Of the public debt by the com
ing convention Is the principle issue Of the
approaching election. All other matters are
secondary when compared to this one. 1t is
well understood that however well, widely
and deeply may be applied the pruning knife,
no real or substantial relief can be obtained
unless the public debt Is more thoroug hly
sifted and reduced to an honest basis. The
bondhoders may cry out that 1t is dishonora-
bic To repudiate; that the credit and the repu-
tation of the State must be impaired and suf-
fer greatly If this Is done. The people upon
whom this heavy burden Is resting, answer
back that they are not regulators yet are
unwilling to be taxed that a dishonest portion
OF the public debt may be liquidated With
them the theory holds good that 1t is as dis
honorable to pay dishonest public debt as
| 1t IS creditable to settle an honest public
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