The weekly Floridian. [volume] (Tallahassee, Fla.) 1867-19??, 1884-10-14

them, o. pledge their faith, for the ase
and bsne4s OF private corporations Itis
enot neoessasy for the purposes Of this ar
eticle to gave the amount, II any. af these
lb"nds which may hate been redeemed or
|S,Ancelled by the corporations in whose aid
Sthay were issued.
|, In the year 1870, the Legislature of
FLORIDA attempted to authorize the Gov
isrnor to is>ue, in exchange for the bonds
sof certain railroad company, -, ,OOO,O
s,f bonds bearing eight per cent. interest.
:rhe Governor issued the bonds in ex-
'hany~ for like amount Of railroad
bonds.
1ity and elsewhere, by citizens Of Flor
ila, that these four million honds were
i-sn,d without competent authority.
ALL ch.llense of their validity pre-
sented their negotiation in New York,
but part Of this issue was afterwards
fegotiated abroad.
!: The annual interest upon $4,000, ,0o0 at
i per cent is es2O,OO0 To meet this
aharge would have required the levy by
the State Of . tax Of more than L mills
epon all the property Of the people, the
total valuation of READ aud personai prop
%rty in the State at that time being less
than thirty millions of dollars. The ne
C'rssity for this enormous tax rate should
ia itself have been sufficient warning to in
vestors to prevent the negotiation Of these
lson'is at any price, as we must presume
tost the ability, as well as the disposition,
y people to pay their debts, would be
first consider d by persons seeking invest
rsents, after satisfying themselves of the
regularity and legality Of the security.
Il, this connection we might add that the
lTterest upon these four million dollars
made tax Of about one dollar and sew
es&y-6ve cents, by population, upon each
adopting the figures for this eAtimate
from the United States census of 1870.
In confirmation of the accuracy of the
views entertained by large number of
tht citizens of Florida, at the time the pub
liz. notice above referred to was given in
Nav York and elsewhere, and which pre-
veated the negotiation of the bonds in
Naw York, have only to cite the action
ofthe Supreme Court of Florida in the
care of Holland Va. The State OF FIori,ls
et'i Is Vol.me of Florida Reports, jan
uar6 Term, 1875. In this case the court
DECLARED lhese bonds null and void, hold
ing, the act OF the Legislature to be III
cotdlict with the Constitution. The Con
still sltion of 1868, Section I, Article IL,
authorized the Legislature to provide for
issstng bonds of the State, bearing inter
esk,a for securing the debt of the State,
anE for the erection Of State buildings,
suvpnrt Of State institutions, and perfect
ing the public works"
The Supreme Court in the caSe above
referred 10 says: The Legislature must
be held TO some limitation in the matter;
and looking to the executive, legislative
and: judicial history of the State, it is
toe CLEAR for doubt, that q line of road
frohg Quincy to Mobile cannot be held To
be m public work within the meaning Of
the Constitution, IA it has been defined
by the Justices of this court The bonds
he issued arc CT he5s SSSHhSEzd TO
The power of the Legislature Is limited
iu $kis respect, and the bond here sane
tiu!teI is not embraced Within the l!mlta
ton One of the consequences of this is,
thai tieither the State nor her people are
nocSnl for the bonds now in tho hands OF
tho:e who hold them" The Supreme
Court, while holding these bonds uncon-
1titu6onal and not binding upon thu 81 IL,
lru{ar,.s TN, "thc Stale holds the lien
up the ,nad a. trustee for thu hold -rs,''
thus subjeoting che road, in aid OF which
the bonds were issued, to their payment
Subsequently this lien was enforced by a
decyee of the United States Supreme
CoErl Railroad Company vs.. Schntte.
l3tu tstto lle, and the Jacksonville, Pen
sac,le and Mobile Railroad, with its
brauohrs, about ;wo hundred aud forty
miit:s IN all, was sold to satisfy the claim
Of the bondhoiders
Mr. Hume says TIE grounds on
whie'l she repudiating States, excep. MIN
nestt&, have sought sympathy and Oh
tai,sad II, have been their supposed poverty,
and tie alleged wrongful issue of bonds
toy = cgrpet-bag governments"
FLORIDA does not claim sympathy on
thest Or any other grounds She has paid
or is psyiug every dollar of her carpet
bag . debt which was created III conform
i,y to.,he organic law, even though this
orgssisc law was framed and adopted by y
! minority which did not represent the
! property or the intelligence of her people.
! Her debt was increased duriug the eight
/ wears Of . carpet-bag administr .tion Of
! her affairs, nearly if not quite three hun
ired per ceut. !; and no part of this in
cceaye, was for public works. In the eight
! years since her property has Increased
! from; Sa 9, 900 900 TO a65, ,OO0, 900, and her
| tax cage has been decreased from 1922 to
miis. Her debt has been reduced by
! payraent at least 25 per cent, her bonds
have appreciated from SO cents on he
| dollar to ll5 aud 1870, aud she expends
| for the eduostlon Of the children of the
! State: ia proportion to her property valu-
ton, much more than many Of the older
aud more populous States of the North,
East and West.
If ehs right of q people exists To pro-
,ect themselves in legal way trom the
reckless, fraudulent or unwise acts OF
their agents, when such acts are outside
oi ADD, beyond the authority conferred
epon them, then Florida has never repu
4tate<3, scaled, rea4j1sssd or detaulted any
part sf hel public debt, either principal
OF inter rest If this right doe not exist
she uxs form u part Of nation of ras
ca.s. HENRY A. L'ENGLE,
State Treasurer of Florida
--tyeterai Perry satisfied all who were
permlteed 70 bear his speech in this
place, in Thursday, that he is a man OF
brain. Sf generous impulses, aud noble
bearisz vi hightoned and chivalrous