The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1884-01-23
Will Street ard the West virginia Ger.

ID. .HN.. "a. e'hCRtCts
In the memorial to the Legislature Of
Virginia, elsewhere given, the "power
behind the throne" 10 not hard to detect.
Tho thing Is tho scheme Of MIR. James NJ.
Mason, wire' puller for the Wall street syndi'
cate Of 80 called West Virginia certificate
holders, and by the grace Of Governor Jack
son, chief engineer Of the Yves! Virginia
Tax Commission. The memorial Is very
peculiar production. The memorialis,s
plead with Virginia to do that as "high.
cst obligation" which, prima facle, it would
Eeem that she ought to BIO only too glad to
do-to promote the settlement" OF tho long
standing debt question. Virginia has al!
ways protested to be DESTROYS Of settle.
ment, but It Is notorious that she has most
earnestly desired no settlement and at all
tlmes eyaded the issue, for tho sufficient
reason tina! she had all to lose and nothing
to gain. She has always known that Yves.
Virginia will never pay SlJ.000.000 with
interest, or any considerable part Of that
sum, and she has been more ready to re-.
pudate old obligations than to assume oh.
legations In sense new.
Virginia has known that settlement day
meant judgment day for her; that she
would a, once become liable for the differ
ence between our equitable proportion and
the arbitrary proportion which she 80
promptly allotted 10 us. So it comes to pas
that this State, always 30 eager, has to be
importuned and bcsought as matter Of
common justice" not to "refuse to make
that settlement for the benefit Of those
whose trustee she has undertaken 10 be,
and the payment Ct whose claims are en-
tirely dependent thereon" From this it Is
plain that Wall street has taken the correct
measure of Virginia and knows that she
will dodge il che can.
1t is pointed out by the petitioners TINT
the Riddleberger bill provides for all
classes oil the State debt except these cer-
tilicates." The party now in power in the
Virginia Legislature, though it opposed
and bitterly denounced that measure be.
fore and after its passage, now holds that
1t is the final settlement Of the debt ques-
ton. Unless tina. party can be yeered
around once more it will decline TO open
the question.
The petitioners ask the State to move at
once Tor settlement with West Virginia,
and to remove the obstacle which has
stood in the way through all these years
The certificate holders agree to release the
Slate itom all liability on account Of the
settlement. That is to say, the syndicate
will tsko what it can get from West Viz
glnia and lot Virginia go free. If in
addition to this the syndicate will indem-
niiy the proud old commonwealth against
all incidental expenses it may DO that the
arrangement. can be effected up to that
point.
Nothing is said about suit in the Su-
Pfeu'e Oourt Of the United states, but that
was thu central idea Of the scheme when it
was lirstadvanccd several months ago. The
lSTELLldEScEE was curious then aud is now
to see how the syndicate will handle It's
case before the Supreme Court-how it
will get it there, how it will keep it there,
and what it will do with it il it ever gets
there. The iact tina. Virginia will have no
interest III the euit may Or may not be re-.
gardcd by tho Wall street syndicate as TAX.
ing something from the market value Of
the alleged "securities."
On this side Of the line we can afford 10
take friendly interest in the matter With
out becoming violently excited over it.