The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1882-03-21

!: tions to tho Constitution. They arc shor
j. not only $l97,5OO TO tho School fund, ii
addition TO years interest, but they arr
Q short over $4,000 on account OF lust year.
S general appropriations, and in violation o
the Constitution they are preparing to ad
. journ without providing as reQuirct
by the Constitution for that deficiency
More than this, they have authorized an
other raid on the school fund. They art
determined to get more money out Of that
fund this current year under pretense oI
paying interest on il. Any intelligent
reader who will examine Sec. 4 Of Art. MI
will see that there is no power on the part
Of those charged with the guardianship and
Investment Of the school fund to loan It to
The State oil West Virginia in exchange,for
her promisory note. The State has no
power to manufacture such u note. The
language ofthe section referred to iorbidsit.
1t is provided that the moneys belonging
10 the irredpcible school fund shall be "ia.
vested under such regulations us may be
prescribed by law in the einterest bearingsc-
Curities ofthe United States, orofthis State,
or II such interest bearing securities can
not be obtained, then said school fund
shall be invested in such other solvent
interest bearing securities as shall be ap-
proved by the Governor, Superintendent
Of Free Schools, Auditor and Treasurer,
who are hereby constituted the Board OF
the School Fund, to manage the same
under such regulations as may be pre-
scribed by the Governor; aud he=interest
thereof shall be annually applied to he support
Of free schools throughout The State, and 10 no
other P,trpose trhdierer.'
The strict construction statesmen who
are now engineering fresh raid on the
school fund have set up the prctense that
they have the power to do SO under the
language OF the above quotation about
'other solvent interest bearing securities" !"
In order to see how thoroughly thin and
insincere this pretense is the reader has
only to turn to the 18th and 9TH sections Of
the 10th article OF the Constitution, and
sec at glance that this state cannot con-
tract such debt. 1t is prohibited from do
ing 80 in the most express and unmistak-
abletcrms, and the legislature iscommanded
to levy for its deficits forthwith, and not
carry them day longer than the money
can be raiscd by taxation. They must be
levied for Mt "the regular session held next
after the deficiency occurs" This shows
the utter hypocrisy Of any and
all pretenscs. that the Constitution
either contcmplates or permits the
creation Of interest bearing securities
wherein to invest the school fund. The
whole thing is dodge to cover up the fact
that the finances OF this State have been run
in the ground by the Bourbons, and that they
are ashamed and afraid to meet the people
at the coming elections with large de-
fciencies staring them in the face. Things
are going on from bad to worse in this
State and they know it. She appropriation
now pending in the legislature over
whelmingly exceeds the estimated re-
ceiPtS, as furnished by The auditor
last year, and will create another
and still larger deficit. And yet no pre-.
tense Of respecting or obeying the consti-
tutional mandate in regard to deficits is
even attempted. The school fund is to be
rAided in order to provide the money. This
| is Just what Democratic strict construction
Of the constitution amounts to. 1t means
to work their own sweet will blythe power
Of numbers, relying upon their party
majority in the State to curry them through
at the polls.
Not content with the expenses Of The
State as they stand to-day, in the face ol
past, present and prospective deficits, the
men who are running the Democratic ma
chine Nt the Capitol, and who above all
things arc bent on preserving Bourbon
supremacy in West Virginia, have turned
} in and manufactured new senatorial dis
trict, in order to give the party two more
Senators from the lower end Of the State,
thus unnecessarily increasing TO that ex'
tent the expense Of future legislation,
They have confined Brooke and Hancock
to one delegate, and cut off Il member in
Monongalin county, thus getting rid Of two
Republicans, and yet have added two
Democratic Senators from the Third dis,
trict; showing that their motto and their
only motto is, 'let those take who have the
power; let those hold who can"
--------------------