The Valley Virginian. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1865-1895, 1885-04-02

resort for the protection Of the rights of
persons and property. They. however,
were not given the opportunity to make
the canvass ON this line, with any hope OF
success, but were driven to decide which
they would support of the two tickets and
platforms-the one in opposition to every
proposition they had presented. and the
| other in accord with them on every issue
except the debt, and on that distinct and
positive in its purpose tomake provision
to pay what was ascertained and believed
to be Justly and fairly due to the creditors.
Forced to this extremity we entered upon
careful examination of the Riddleberger
bill, and after patient invest lgatlon we
reached the conclusion. that taking the
subject de moro, and leaving out of the
question the funding bills of 1871 and 1879,
| the debt as stated in that measure was all
that the State honestly owed The obJec-
tion we found to it was the rate OF inter
! est it provided for-3 per cent.-When The
original bonds called for 6 per cent. That
was to our mind then, and. 1T is to our
mind now, the questionable feature IN the
measure. Had it stipulated for per cent.
the Riddleberger bill would have been
proof against assault, as an equitable
statement of Virginia's portion OF the
debt. and free from any imputation of
unfairness. as an original.proposition
That was justified. however, III the ar
gument adduced in its support by It's
trainers, by the losses of the State and the
impoverished condition of the people It
was argued that it would be better for the
creditors to have sum in the principal
and interest stated that the State could
and would pay rather than stipulate for an
amount that the revenues of the State did
not give assurance Of paying. BY prompt
payment of interest, as provided in the
bill, the bonds would soon reach par, If
not premium and in that way prove both
a be nefit to the creditor and relief to the
State.
These were the several positions OF the
parties in 1881. Since then the Democrats
all of its details. and publicly pro-
claimed that it is not only the meas
ure of the ability Of the people to pay,
but it is all they ought to pay. In the
United States Supreme Court, the other
day, Judge Staples. who is one OF the lead
ing lights of that party. and spoken OF
prominently as candidate for Governor
this year, not only defended the Riddleber-
ger bill as at least embracing all the State
owes, but adduced figures to show that it
stipulated for about $10,000,0 900 more than
was Justly due from her. There may have
been adeeper meaning in this than appears
upon the surface 1t may be the basis of
the Democratic canvass in the fall election
"a notice to the creditors, that having de
layed in funding in the Riddleberger bonds,
they will be furnished with a recast OF the
debt statement, and compelled to accept
either the original Massey figures or moth
ing at all. Having accepted Massey, why
not his figures And this is the debt
| paying party, which has been posing be-
fore the country as the guardian OF the
State honor and the especial depository
of all the decency and integrity OF the
Commonwealth.
Let party names be discarded and the
facts as presented considered, and we are
perfectly willing to submit to the country
for verdict to be rendered, as they are
known of all men acquainted with the re-
cent political history of Virginia. No
people have ever been so grossly and out
rageously slandered-no State has ever
been so Indignantly assailed and misrep-
resented. as have the people and State of
Virginia, in order that party pretending
!. to be Democratic, without the first claim
to any measure of true Democracy might
pose before the country as rejecting the
higher aspirations and nobler ambitions
ola brave and chiyalrous, but long-Suffer
ing people. And no association of men
have ever been So persistently and cruelty
maligned and villilied as those constitut-
ing the Republican party OF Virginia, at
the same time that their assailants have
acknowledged at least their equal devotion
, to the State, with the Democrats. by en-
dorsing and accepting every measure
, the Republicans have instituted and
enacted and substantially repudiating eve
nv measure they. the Democrats. have sug-
, gested.
, The iliad of Virginia's woes was the
funding bill of 1871, conceived in sin and
; born in iniquity- predicated upon false
! estimate of taxable values acted upon
, without regard to the condition of the
State, or the disposition of the real credi
! tors; engineered by spectators and bro
b, kers, alien to the Commonwealth, and
, consummated through agencies and meth
| DDS disreputable and dishonest. Having,
however, become law and sanctioned as a
7 contract with the creditors, no adequate
provisions were made in the tax bill to
meet its demands. The Conservatives, or
Democrats, held undsputed control of
) every department of the State govern
ment, yet the courage was not manifested
to stand up to their own work. The tax
receivable coupons absorbed the revenues
before they reached the treasury the
, schools were impoverished /: the charita-
, BILE institutions deprived of their annui-
ties; the treasury practically bankrupt,
; and the State credit impaired to such an
extent that a small loan could not be nego-
tiated upon the faith of the Common
wealth to meet current demands.
Notwithstanding this pitiable and de-
plorable condition of public affairs, no eff
} fort was made to rescue the State from
the fearful consequences threatened. In
!, every State contest the debt question was
r ignored, and appeals made to race and Sec
} tional prejudlces, in order to perpetuate
: Conservative power. When Republicans
pointed to the ruin that was pressing year
by year upon the people-that reputation
must follow the policy that augmented the
/ debt each year nearly a million dollars in
, defaulted interest, they were met by de-
nunciations, villifcations and SANDERS
) akin to the mouthings which have found
} iftterance in Washington recently in re-
, gard to them. In 1877 they determined to
put stop to this fearful wrong. and to
7 bring the condition of the State before
tha naOpla liVaStn1 nf all avcnOo 10 o,,oJo