Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1882-05-27
sonds Held BY the Peabody Institute.

| DOfuS Hcfd " tUt FeuOOuJ fHS0tHtCs
| Speaker Ramsey, of the Legisla-
ture, presented the following letter,
which was read and referred to the
joint committee on the State debt:
To the Honorable General Assembly OF the
| State of Tennessee:
PEABODY INSTITUTE OF THE
CITY OF BALTIMORE, baltimore,
May 18.-In 1869, Mr.. George Pea
body, of London, founder of this
Institute, gave to its trustees $780,
900 in per cent. Tennessee bonds
for the purpose of completing the
building, then partially built. These
bonds were issued before the war,
and l have reason to believe We're
issued to pay for the construction of
public buildings, turnpikes, rail-
roads, etc., for the people of the
State-works which have been of
great benefit to them. In making
this gift, Mr.. Peabody expressed his
perfect confidence in the great
wealth of the State and the integri-
ty of its people, and advise his
trustees not to sell these bonds at a
discount, but to dispose OF. other Sc
curitie5 for the purpose of building,
and retain these bonds till they
should be paid, principal and in
terest, which he was confident
would be done in a very few years.
Other bonds were accordingly sold ;
the building was completed, and IN
it large provision was made for a
school of Art, which the reduced
income of the Institute has rendered
utterly useless and a standing visi-
bic reproach to the State of Tennes-
see, should it not make provision
for the payment of this just debt.
All departments of the Institute
have been and are crippled in their
work from the same cause, and
this great Institute must prove
failure if this debt is not paid. One
half of its funds al e now invested in
these bonds, and the accrued inter-
est upon them; and, by the failure
Of the State to pay this interest, the
Institute is deprived of one half of
the income Mr.. Peabody supposed
he had provided for it.
At the time Mr.. Peabody presen-
ted these bonds to the Trustees for
the purpose of this Institute, he de-
voted a very much larger sum to
the support of educational lnstitu-
tions in the Southern States. From
that fund the State of Tennessee
received, down to 1881, $247 $50.
cannot think that State, which
has been the recipient of this large
bounty from Mr.. Peabody-a free
gift to its peopie-Would willingly
or knowingly destroy or injure an
institution, which he had greatly at
heart, by a refusal or failure to pay
to that institution its just dues.
/ understand. that the State of
Tennessee protects its own educa-
tional institutions, making in its
settlement, with its creditors, an
exception in, their favor; and it
seems but Just that the Peabody In
stitute, which is educational in all
its operations, should be included
in the same provision OF law, eSpec-
tally since the State has already re-
ceived from Mr.. Peabody's educa-
tional fund, sum nearly equal to.
the original debt due this s-lnstitute.
would urge you then, in the in
terest of justice, in the interest OF
reciprocity towards good man,
from whom you have received great
benefits and are yearly to receive
them in the future, in the interest
of benevolence, to prevent great
institution, once amply endowed,
from becoming reproach to Its
founder, or as the public are already
saying, from becoming marble
mausoleum of dead promises" to
pay the interest on these bonds, or
in their place to give US other bonds
which shall include principal and
back interest in full at 6 per cent.
interest.
After this plain statement l have
no doubt the Trustees of the Pea
body Institute of the city of Balti-
more will receive any sum you may
see proper to pay.
ENOCH PRATT,
Treas. Peabody Institute, City of Balti- |
more.
p. S.-We have three hundred
and sixty-four thousand 6 per cent. |
bonds, with interest due from July |
/, 1875.