The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1885-04-30
The Confederate Bond Mystery.

The Confederate Bond Mystery.
COLUMBIA, April 2O.-The unsolved
enigma of this decade has been the mo-
tive inducing the demand in England for
certain Confederate bonds. Conjectures
have been numerous, but none pointed
to a logical reason for the fact that worth.
less Confederate obligations, which had
for fifteen years filled dusty chests and
trunks in Europe and in the South, sud.
denly commanded from close. mouthed
speculators price equalling several per
centum of their par value.
Chance has Just afforded me an expla-
nation of the whole business-an expla.
nation which I can announce with con.
fdence, because it is complete and logi-
cal and consistent with every phase of
the bond speculation, but chiefly because
it comes authoritatively from one of the
few men in the United States who have
been from the first cognizant of the facts
and of the meaning of the so.called
"craze." He has been closely connected
with the bond operations, but now that
they have been completed he gives me
the facts, with the understanding that his
name be withheld from publication.
Judah P. Benjamin, Secretary of State
of the Confederacy from 1862 until its
collapse, was the originator of the plan
b5 which q demand was created for the
bonds, and to his shrewdness is attribu-
table the complete success of the project.
Several departments of the Confeder.
ate government-such as the ordnance,
quartermaster's and medical purveyor's
had special funds deposited with Euro.
pean bankers for the purchase of sup
plies which could only be obtained in
Europe. This was we'll known, tand the
members of these departments and their
agents were also known, so that when the
United States government succeeded to
the assets of the Confederacy the rem.
nants of funds we're surrendered to it by
those who held them. There was one
fund, however, which escaped surrender
because Of the mystery enveloping it,
and this was the secret service fund of
the Confederate department of State.
at different times the Confederate Con.
greas, in secret session, voted large sums
for the secret service, the intention be-
ing, of course, to apply this money in
foreign securities so as to aid the Con.
federacy and embarrass its adversary.
The members of the secret service
we're not known to the public. have
been shown list Of the principal ones,
but am not permitted to print it. Sew
eral were very prominent men identified
with Confederate diplomacy, and bore
high characters. Others / had never
heard of before. London and Paris were
the chief points of secret service activity.
There was an agent at Brownsville, Texas,
on the Mexican border. The principal
deposits of secret service money were in
London aud Paris banks. The funas
we're placed to the credit Of citizens Of
Great Britain and France, who were
friendly to the South. The understand.
ing with them was that they would
assume no responsibility, but would
honor drafts to the extent of the money
in bank. At the close of the war there
we're large unexpended balances Of
secret service money to the credit Of these
parties. The total balance due the Con-
federate government at the time of its
fall was about five million and eighty
thousand dollars.
The men who had this money deposi-
ted in their names were honest. They
did not make way with the assets of the
dead Confederacy, but they were puzzled
to know what to do with them. Mr..
Benjamin, as Secretary of State of the
Confsderacy, knew these agents, and
during his residence in England consult
ed with them as to the disposition Of the
money. It was agreed that it should not
be surrendered to the United States.
The question was then, how to disburse
the money so as best to benefit those en-.
titled to it.. It was concluded that the
people who had given their means to the.
Confederacy for its bonds were entitled
to these (the Confederacy's) assets.
The aggregate of the funds was ascer-
tanned, and calculation was made as to
how far it would go in paying the inter
est on the bonds, because, of course, 1T
was impracticable to declare dividend
on the principal. Publicity was to be
avoided. Secrecy was indispensable. It
was decided to pay off the unhonored
coupons, beginning with those last due
by the Confederacy during its existence.
These were the coupons falling due Jan.
lat, 1865. Then the balance was to be
applied to the payment of the next cou'
pons falling due. The bonds were ad:
vertised for. To cover the real object Of
the movement it was limited that the
bonds were to be held by spectators, and
that suit was to be instituted against the
United States for their payment. This
amusing idea gained great prevalence:
The bonds were readily obtained, and
all of the January, 1865, coupons were
paid, simply by the purchase of the bonds
for The amount of these coupons and
their subsequent destruction. The re-.
mainder of the fund was absorbed by
the partial payment Of the coupons next
due, in the order of their presentation.
Very few of the men who dealt in the
bonds knew what was the object of the
purchase. The circle managing the
scheme was quite small. Mr.. Benja-
Minis master mind conceived it and se'
cured its fulflment. He handled none
of the money and none was paid to bis
order. Nobody in the secret made mon
ey out of it. The purpose was simply to
return to the creditors of the dead Con.
federacy part of their money.
The whole transaction: is now closed,
as all the Confederate assets have been
disbursed. Confederate bonds are no
longer in demand.-Ne,us and Courier.
The Mule.
The mule is a miracle of patience.