Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1881-12-24

Iuent to the war, however, the separation
# West Virginia took place, and in 1871
he Virginia Legislature passed what is
;alled the Consolidation Bond Act By
his Act one-third OF the debt then
to $40, 900, 00O) was shuffied OF |
IN to West Virginia Though no agreement
Of the kind had been made with the latter |
State, and as matter OF fact che has |
never done anything about the debt from
that day to this). The Act next provided
that holders of old State bonds should
receive new bonds of the State of Virginia
bearing PEI cent. interest, for two thirds
of their holdings, with certificate that
the remaining third was due and payable
from the State Of West Virginia. The
coupons of the new bonds were made
:. receivable for all taxes, dues, debts and
i" demands due the State" About $780,
O00, 600 of Consolidated Bonds were issued
in 1871 and 1872. leaving about sl5.o00,-
600 of the old bonds outstanding.
In March, 1872, the Legislature amended
the Consolidation Act by providing that
the coupons of the bonds to be issued for
the remaining Sl5, 900, 600 of the old debt
should not be received for taxes. Here
was distinct attempt to impair the obi
cations of a contract The Consolidation
Act has been declared binding by both the
Virginia Court of Appeals and the Supreme
Court of the United States. The amend
ment to the law made in 1872 was brought
before the State Supreme Court, when it
declared that the Consolidation Act was
contract which the Legislature could not
alter or repeal without the consent OF the
bondholders. The State Legislature made
another attempt to tax the bonds, and in
1880 the Supreme Court of the United
States declared the Consolidation Act "a
" contract with each and every bondholder,
g incapable of repeal or change by the
" Legislature" The opinion was written
by Justice Field, and is Enthusiastically
lucid and able.
We must, however, go back little. In
1879 the Mccullough Act was passed. This
provided for the refunding of the whole
debt of Virginia. The bonds were to bear
interest at the rate of three per cent per
annum for the first ten years, four per cent
for the next twenty years, and five per
cent for the last ten years before their ma
turity and the coupons of all the bonds
were to be receivable as taxes and other
dues to the State, and were to be exempt
from taxation. These are known as the
&c Ten Forty" bonds. No more than about
IS, 500, 900 Of these bonds have been is-
sued. The growth of the spirit of repudi-
alton led to the practical notification of
the law about the beginning of 1880. We
now come to the Riddleberger Malone
movement. The Riddleberger bill is based
upon the open Reputation of one-third of
the present funded debt of Virginia. 1t
declares that the people of Virginia will
never pay the interest accruing on the
public debt during the whole period of
the war and reconstruction. They re.
pudiate the obligations of nine years,
amounting to $l5.o00,000. 1t has
been alleged by writers ignorant of
the facts, or DESTROYS of misleading the
public, that what had been repudiated was
debt corruptly contracted during the re-
construction period. This is ridiculously
untrue. What has been repudiated is the
interest honestly and lawfully accruing on
a debt the entire validity of which was
never questioned until almost generation
after it was contracted. The Riddleberger
bill provides for the issue of new bonds in
exchange for all outstanding funded bonds
at from SO to 663 per cent. of their prin.
cipal. The original debt had been already
"scaled to the amount of $4,000, 900,
leaving residue of 500. 600, 900. This the
Riddleberger bill undertook to reduce to
1865, l76. Nor does it stop at this act
of square and defiant reputation, but it
proceeds to nullify the decisions of the
Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court
of the United States by providing, in the
teeth of the solemn contract embraced in
the Consolidation Act and the Mccullough
Act, that the coupons of these bonds shall
not be received for taxes.
1t is perfectly evident therefore that the
bill, which is the platform
of Malone and his party, involves double
act of the most audacious reputation. In
the first place it repudiates one-third of
the remaining principal of the whole debt,
ALREADY reduced one-third by the setting
off of fifteen millions for West Virginia's
accountl. In the second place it repudi.
ates the contract under which the original
bonds were issued, and the sacredness of
which contract has been affirmed by the
Supreme Court of the United States. The
truth is that, as we have before alleged,
the Malone Riddleberger bill is the most
shameless act of reputation known to
American history, and that no party can
become responsible Cor the infamy without
itself. 1t is indeed impossible to
pardon the men who went with their eyes
open into this most discreditable business,
and who put the whole Government in the
attitude of helping gang of thieves to
swindle the creditors of Virginia. The
whole episode shows to what length the
spoils system is capable of driving poll.
ticians, and how completely all principle
and honesty are lost sight of when faction
has the control of mems minds.
The HOUSE COMMITTEES.
Speaker Keller has made distribution
Of the House Committees which shows that
the Pennsylvania interest is determined