The Dallas weekly herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1885, 1881-02-03


lor l1ans from tns iprrial schOul ftipd, may
avoid the safe ~ LIS railroad nor Mo nDn-pay-
msnt OF the principal or lntsrest by me my.
ment into the i,easuryof the ate, on the nrst
dny OF NovofnUsr, 1870, ol six months intor-
est on the aggregate amount Oh account OF aaid
iOaus, principal and Interest, ~ anid aggregate
amount stood on the ilrsst day OF MAY is'g. an1
by the pnymentin addition on said first day OF
NOvsm bcr ofone per cent, on ,said aggregate
amount, tobs applied toward the sinking furd
provided for by existing laws la respect to SAID
loans and By continuing to ray Into tne trSas-
ury OF the state six month"; interest and one per
cent on account OF said sinklnRiuhu sem l-an-
nually thereafter, to-wit: ou the ilrSt dsy OF
May ard November OF each year,"-(Geueral
Laws of 1870 pase 81
BY fection 8 Of said act three other beneficial
concessions wers made 20 said Companies, one
oiwhich was tina as long as ihese pa ihShts,
as prescribed In section L. we're paid, the state
would nos demand the principal smother,
that they could nay the whole of the principal
at any tme, upon giving The governor thlriy
days notice, ana another that the lien OF me
state should not attach TO any extension OF us
| existing road Thereafter constructed
Attention Is now calico 10 The expression In
section ], abova quoted SSH months inter-
| est on the aggregate amount due on account OF
said loans pi inclph 8, Il interest - SAID az
greg alta amount stood on The firstday OF hlSy
1870" Il, by the use of these words the Iegis-
laturssntended TO fix the aggrega Ion OF prinei-
pal and interest on that day 10 be Thereafter
the principal by the account as 1t stood on that
DAY In the record books or the comptroller's
Office, such legislative intention Woulu nave
bsen, so far as the legislature has power 10 40
it, a recognition of the payments made in
| state treasury warrants, as It Is plainly TO be
seen in tho entries up to that tins, IN toe
comics set out from ledgers. b. q. and ID.
The words do not literally import such az in
tention by a reference to the account in the book
of the comptrelle IS eflice, but may wen nsar
the construction that the amount legally due
on account of the loans, principal and 1nterseI
should be aggregated az 1t existed me nrst OF
May, 1870, that is, strengthened by the mem
orsndum found in the letter book Ia the comp,
trollsr's Office previously exhibited, 1narked
exhibit A, which is an estimate OF principaI
and interest .dus on the frat OF March, 1910,
leaving out the payments In state treasury
warrants, and as it must have been Tor s0ne
practical purpose, it may have been MADE by
Tho direction of the Hon. A. Bleds9e,
comptroller, TO give information to- the lesls,
lsturs preparatory to the passage of the act OF
the 18Th OF August, 1870
It Ia but just, however, to refer TO a fact
which may lead to q different construction OF
on this part of the law by the comptroller,
A Rlsdsoe, which is an expression in
an other Law passed by the sfms le2lsiAture,
Qf indeed il was passed into .sw, when ,ya a1
thst session, with an erplanatian py tne
then secretary Of state of hsw 1t came lnto
his office sttsr the and Of the session, pnr-
| porting to hays bSSn passed over Ine
governors veto in the house
IF representatives en- the 9th and
| In the senate on the 18th OF Angus, lS7O.-(See
|
Thi, law Is entitled "Ap act for the relief Of
| Houston & Texas Central railroad company. "
| IL consolidAtes and merges the Washibg ton
| county railroad into tho Houston & Texas
| Central railway company, and authorizes its
| extension to Aus in. 1t authorized an eX-
| a nnge of the loan bonds Of The special school
| fund given by said TWO companies, 10 the
| amount due frst OF July, 1870, for the SEVEN
| per csn. land grant sinking fond hrst mort
| gage gold interest-benring honda of said COM
| Ig-naao inrlg \
IN the same section it is provided that Gin
| making the settlement herein provided for, Inc
| Houston g Texas Central railway company
| shali be allowed credit for the sums pfld In
| treasury warrants OF ths state curing the years
| 1854 and 1866 by the said company, ana by Vie
| Waahi gtontou county railroad company, upon
| th@ accounts on which said sums were respect
| lively paid by aaid companies, the said sn1is
| amounting in the aggregate TO Sl52,-
s64 55." This act was certainly be-
| fore the two houses of the legis-
lstnrsat The same time the one was that is
| first referred to, which was approved on the
| 18th of August 1870, IS IL may be inferred from
| the time 1t was vetoed by the governor anu
| passed by the two houses over the governor Is
An examination of the proceedings of both
houses at that session has been made. and 1t
| is found that, az the record of them appears,
| this act did pass both houses over the govern
or's veto during the ses sion of the legislature.
The exchange of bonds was never made, ana
the reason 1t was not does not appear nom any
| +. cords in the comptroller's Office, or any
where else so far us / know or am Informed.
| At the tims l was informed by the comp
troller (November 18th, 1S70 of the default 10
pay the interest and sinking fund by the
Houston & Texas Central railway company
due from the Washington county railroai
company 1.-THE accounts having been kept
separately, there had been DO decision of the
supreme court upon the validity of, or exis-
tence of this act as 8laws
Since that time during the late Term OF the
supreme court at AustiP, the sxistence of thai
act as being law did arise in the case
OF the Houston Texas Centrsl rail
way company VS.. ID. Nj oaom, simply involv'
ing the I light to extend the road into the city
of Au.tin Tor some sach question: and not re-
lating its validity as an ACT 10 chssge tut
securities of the school loan, or TO nx The
/, | amount of Indebtedness OF the company 30 sale
furd. In that case she supreme court says
'sphe court below admitted the act 20 se rea6
from the published special laws certified 10 by
! the secretary ~ state, aud 80 i steins con
cluded fact that the Journals shcN Is pa6ssg'
, required 'two-ihlrds Of the menb, r pressn
/ of each house. IL IS not material Va 'fher /
YVES prouerly csTiiitd or nol."
This cnse only 81 rved ito eXi.tcuce IS
law upon the t'- nCsu fact, " nd ~
tvaidify TO Rur~5iz ~ ttfr = "a OF tn
rosd 10 tue cts % ladn, aii' : Is WEI
eatablishtd that u avt 4N DE NJ ~ part
and not Naltu iVI az qua poo. l44~d " "
land therefore IT. competency 20 chnnge ~
securities Of the scheei fand loan, ana TO ~
the amount Of the debt Of the cora any, unde
| the act OF the 18th OF August, 1870 In tn
general laws, has not yet been dets rmined y.
the supr, me cout
have deemed il proper 10 bring plainly ans
: fully 10 tine view of the legislature. ali OF IA
factsrecords, and laws pertaining 20 this oontro
. | versy, 60 far as have been enabled TO ascer
. tain them, nrst,to show why did not belieye
for The interest of tfle etate for me to sndertsk
. | an advertisement and sale of the road, an'
secondly, foi such legislative action - may b
! teemei proper 70 bring this long-confinue'
Disagreement TO satisfactory cJnelnsion, !
Tne smount OF this default i. small com
: pared TO the whole amouUt INVOLVED In IN
auestioH, that being over one.halfh nilliO
Of doIlsrs, principal and Interest Of the sehoo
fund, oving from that and other railros'
e con paniefs
IN the at,empt had been made TO edvtrtie
aud sell the road. there are grounds that cqul
A and woeia have boen sufficiently plausible I
! have obtained an injunction restraining N
. saIe, whicf would have been moet rrohabl
= rhtafnsd from the federal court, and \ cal.
= uuder sli Of the clcu ls ovsrhanging this MAJ
. ter bfcked by sach an Injunction, wooid nav
. sacrificed Whatever Interest the school iun
4 | ~. in the loan de on the road
Had fhe governor bought in the road Tor "
n ercusilv of the fund, - permitted y the w
: / AMI auf,ointed q receiver, without any appfo
!. hi stioa 10 defray the expenses 81 ana employ
= ! Inert on parsors running the rcsd, IL Woul
y ir.ve been iInbractlcsble TO use it 70 any Brol
n itab purpose- ....-- -.,-,-,s.
4 it.lero,l satiori drinG the amonut of the debt
- go nnrnIIlv ar fIlarnIfl