The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1882-01-08

The first message Of Governor CAMERON
sent TO the Legislature on Friday IS large
" devoted to q discussion OF the deps q"ss-
tIon. and may he considered as an a''eh'ir-
ed justification OF the position OF hts party
before the world. The new Governor IN
gcniously attempts 70 justify the repuan'-
ton OF some thirteen millions oil the st"e
debt by decision Of the Supreme Court Oh
the United States, in which. so ne claims
the Court held that two thirds OF the orr
ginal debt 4. the just share to be borne ny
virginia, and upon this two thirds the me-"
Governor says we should calculate interest
and deduct the payments made by VT
rinis. regardless az the bonds heretofore
given by the State.
The case referred TO by the Governor IS
that OF Hartman Us. Greenho,c, reported In
i02 United States Reports, page 6I2, ana
arose out of the question OF receiving for
taxes the coupons issued by Virginia under
the funding bin Of 1871, without deducting
the tax imposed.on the bonds by the Legis-
lature. The Court goes into the history oi
the State debt which eliminated in that act
The Court does not say that exactly one
third of the old debt should be assigned
70 West Virginia, but 1t says that
in the erection Of the State OF West
Virginia "ncarly one third OF mel
territory and people were taken from"
the old State, aud 1t held that the
debt OF the old State should be ratably APP
portioned smong the present States Sin
the adjustment OF liabilities between each
other" The Court did not go into the set
Element between the States, rs it had mel
fher occasion nor material for such settle
ment. A NEST material item in such set
Element Is the amount OF public stocks and
property held by the present State OF Nir-
GINA, which have been dedicated and very
largely applied to the two thirds OF the
debt assumed by Virginia without giving
West Virginia any credit therefor.
But the Supreme Court Of the United
States was required 10 pass upon the valid
ity Of the bonds and coupons given by the
State for the debt assumed by the act OF
1871, known as the funding act, which
fixed the debt OF the State at the
sum which the Conservative party has
eontended was binding upon the State, but
which Governor CAMERON now seeks to
reduce by nearly one half. As to the debt
thus fixed, and for which the State
issued her Obligations, the court in
the clearest language held her to be
liable. At page 679, FIELD, D., who de-
livered the opinion Of the court, said Of
the bonds and coupons issued under that
act: a contract was thus consummated
between the State and the holders Of the
new bonds and the holders Of the coupons,
from the obligation Of which she could not,
without their consent, release herself by
any subsequent legislation" And at page
ESQ, in speaking Of the act Of 1872, which
declared that State taxes should be only
payable in "gold or silver coin, United
States Treasury notes, or notes OF the ma
tional banks, the same Judge says: "This
act, az seen on its face, is in direct conflict
with the pledge Of the State Of the previous
year, and with the decisions OF this court
to which we have referred"
In the face OF this decision, which he
must be taken to have read, as he refers to
1t, and while he processes to take the Con-
stitution as his guide, the Governor recon-
mends the RDDLEBEEGER bill, which has
for Its object the getting rid of the obliga-
tons OF the State given under the act OF 1871
acithom the consent Of the creditors; and
as one way OF accomplishing that end, pro-
poses to forbid, under heavy penalties, the
taking Of anything but "gold or silver or
United States Treasury notes, or notes of
the national banks Of the United States"
for taxes and other public dues. Such is
the absurd contradiction into which the
new Governor plunges hea0long in his
effort to apologize to the world for his ex-
istence as Governor.