The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1896-06-17
THE BOND DEAL.
AN ALLEGED HISTORY oFTRESoUTi
CAROLINA REFUNDING.
sone CHARGES Made Against Senator iill-
man, Governor Exams and state treas
ursr Bates In New York Newspaper.

prs- Bates in a New York Newspaper.
B,Lrmogs, June 3.-Senator Till
man of South Carolina has been very
free with his criticisms Of the national
administration for its manner o. con-
ductiuy boni operations, and IN the
recklessness Of his rhetorical frenzy
has not hesitated to impute improper
motives to the President aud oecreta-
ry Carlisle. In view Of these facts a
little history OF oa9 o. his own bond
deals is instructive aud interesting.
About s5,259,000 Of South Carolina &
per cent. bonds fell d2e July l, 1898.
Tillman was Governor Of the State
then. John Gary Evans, the Senator's
closest political and personal friend,
and said to be slated as his colleague
10 the Senate, was administration lead
er in the Legislature, aud DR.. Bates
was State Treasurer
The Legislature, at lis session IN
1891. adopted refanding bill, sug
eested by Governor Tillmau. This
provided for an issue o; S6 900, 900 /
Der cent. bonds to fuod the outstand-
ing per cents, and Treasurer Bates
and the Governor was appointed Com
missioners to manage the matter IN
behalf of the State. The acts Of Mes
srs. Tillman, Bates and Evans are out
lined in the evidence in a suit devel-
oped in this city for the division of the
commission involved IN the transac-
ton; the brokers and the syndicate
which took the bonds having quarrel
ed. The action was brought here be
cause the funds involved were held by
Baltimore trust company.
The evidence shows that one OF The
FIRST steps taken by the Commissioners
was to gi.e m' n)lol = OF the entire
transacLon to q Mr.. Rhlno, a broker
of Augusta, Ga, whose name does rot
even appear in the commercial reports.
Mr.. Rhind testified that early in 1892
he was approached by Mr.. Evans, now
Governor, and asked to place the
South Carolina 4 per cents. He OBJ.
tained the exclusive option on the en-
tire transaction from Governor Till
man late in May, the contract being
that he was to receive a com mission OF
5 per cent. on the $4,000, ,000-a mat
ter of $3OO,00O Mr.. Rhind failed to
make the trade, however, and IN Oc-
tober surrendered his option. Then
Governor Tillman ana Treasurer
Bates took turn at it. They visited
New York and roamed through Wall
street. On returning home, they de-
clared that a per cent. South Caro-
lima bond would not sell at95, attrib-
uting the States poor credit to the
course of Charleston bankers and other
political opponents Of the State ad-
ministration.
Mr.. Rhind again was called in to
take the job in November, 1892. He
managed to interest a New York
broker in it, after having exhausted
all his own efforts and influence. And
here the curious fact may be noted
that Mr.. Rhind testified that ne at
first did not approach this broker on
the subject, although making head
quarters in his Office, regarding him
IS too small an operator to undertake
so big trade. YET this broker is rated
hign in the reports, while Mr.. Rhind,
who controlled the option, and was
trying 10 use it, is not rated at all.
With the assistance of the New York
man syndicate was formed, headed
by the late F. O. French of the Man
-s~hatten Trust Company, which agreed
to take $5,250,000 of A per cent.
South Carolina bonds on a nominal
basis of par fat. This arrangement
fell through when Mr.. French died.
The New York broker then enlisted
the aid of a Richmond broker, and the
two again went to work, the LegiSia.
ture having met in the meantime and
started its machinery to passa new re-
funding bill, which, it now appears
by the evidence of the persons inter-
ested, was suggested by the brokers.
through Rhind, to Tillman and Evans.
Mr.. Evans was not only the admins
tration representative and leader in the
Legislature, but he was at the same
time the attorney of Rhind, having
been engaged in that capacity, accord
ing to mis- own sworn statement, when
Rhind was appointed fiscal agent 1t
!. is, therefore, established by undoubted
and unchallenged testimony that
Governor Tillman not only let out
the job Of selling the bonds of his
own State exclusively to one man
months before the time OF sale, but
permitted brokers in Wall street and
elsewhere to dictate legislation to his
Legislature and allowed a paid attor-
ney of the purchasing parties to con
struct and steer through the Legisla-
ture the Act under which the bonds
were to be issued.
The Act provided for $3.50, 900 Il
per cent. bonds, to run twenty and
forty years. These bonds were to be
dated and issued July l, 1898, but they
were to begin to bear interest from
January 1, 1898. In other words a
bonus of six months interest, or p
per cent, amounting to $11S,000 was
offered to whoever would take the
bonds and pay dollar for dollar for
them. The syndicate organized by
the New York and Richmond brokers
agreed to take the bonds at par and to
accept three-fourths of one per cent. of
the bonus, amounting to 1000, max
ing the net cost of the bonds to its
members about 9911. The remaing II
per cent. of SIS, 900, ostensibly went
to Mr.. Rhind, the man who had been
chosen by Mr. Evans, the administra-
ton leader in the Legislature; the
man who had employed Mr.. Evans
and Major W. T. Gary, Mr.. Evans
uncle, as his attorneys, and who had
the option on the entire bond issue be.
fore it had been provided for by the
Legislature.
It does not appear that Mr.. Rhind
took any active part in the organiza-
ton of the syndicate. It is IN evi-
dence that he borrowed $500 from the
New York broker, with which to meet
his travelling expenses. There is
nothing in the testimony to show
what services Major Gary, who is
cifizao OF Ganrcia ,,arfnrne6 hut the