The people's journal. (Pickens, S.C.) 1891-1903, 1896-07-02
Evans Before:
His Judges
His STATEMENT ABOUT THE BOND DEAL,

Ills STATEMENT ABOUT The BOND DEAL.
ASNARIsATIVE OF EVENTS WITH
WHICH HE WAS CONNECTED.
The fottowng il tho dcfoncc and OK
planatioh OF Governor Evans at the
opening or the campaign in Manning,
as reportcd'in the State:
Governor. Evans could look into the
eyes OF these people and sec they were
honest and that they knew an honest
man when they saw one. For the first
time In his career he was called on to
make a statement. He had not made
1t m the newspapers the governor Of
South Carolina was above noticing
anonymous scribbers. But the peo-
ple had aa'ight to hear from him. The
governor did not know that he had
gotten any fattcr since hc visited this
town before. If he had stolen $40, 600.
1T made very poor show. If Tillman
had it, he made poor show. Poor fell
low, ali that keeps him from being the
next President Is that he has not got
the money; but we are going to make
flight any way at Chicago" (Cheers.) J
Evans, or an insinuatioi for it was
not an open charge over signature,
that Dr. Bates, Ben Tillman and him.
self had been bribcd in allowing q
syndicate to take the State bonds. In
regard to that, he wished to make the
following statement:
In 1889 an act was passed by the
Legislature providing for the rcdemp-
tiOn of that part Of the State debt
known as the Brown consol bonds by
the issuing OF now + per cent. bonds.
10 ,hhf xlx>l
ing the governor and treasurer, who
were charged with the transaction, to
pay a commission Of $50, 600, and the
entire sinking fund then accumulated
amounting to $37 900. This act was
introduced by Mr.. Zimmerman in the
Senate, Of which boly was then not a
member.
In 1892, after the failure of the
governor and treasurer to refund the
debt at 1 80" ""--., another act was
passed changing the rate to i! per
cent, providing for a sinking fund and
tho retirement Of the debt In 20 or 40
years Under this act the debt was
refunded. 1t has been insnuated that
| passedithtse acts through the Lagis-
lature while acting as counsel for Mr.,
Rhind. This is false. | did not in
troducc one Of them, nor did | offer an
amendment to any Of them. The first
act was introduced by Conservative
lawyers. The last act was prepared,
as is testified to, bS Mr.. Lancaster, bv
members Of their syndicate in New
man anu he sent the following ex-
ccutivc message in ,'egard to it.
COLUMBIA, 5. c., December, 1892.
Gentlemen Of the General Assembly:
The rcfunding of the brown consols
which lall duo July next is the most
important question with which the
State government has to deal at this
time. AS you know, our predecessors
in Office provided for the issue of !
per cent. bonds to be exchanged for
the q per cents, but up to the end of
$33, 12G Of fOurs have been issued under
this act and our efforts to place the
new bonds in New York at a salts
factory price failed. 1t is not hard to
give the reasons for this and show
what acts Of the State government in
the past and what men and interests
vt this time are in ombination to pre-.
vent the State placing her bonds at
that rate Of interest Suffice to saw
that it cannot be done and we must
meet the emergency which has arisen
credit and build it up until South
Carolina can borrow money at as low. q
rate as any Of her sister States.
The State could have placed the +
per cent. bonds at par in spite Of the
errors of the past had our own capita-
lists lent their aid. We can place a.
4 without their help if the General
Assembly will provide a sinking fund
with which to begin the gradual an
nual payment Of the debt and mort
gage the phosphate beds as collateral
After q careful consideration of the
past had our own capitalists lent State
treasurer and chairman Of the finance
committees Of both houses, bill has
been prepared which | submit here
with that will enable us to meet our
obligations at maturity and so build
up our credit as to refund the debt in
20 years at as low rate as any State
can obtain. The practical result of
the scheme will be:
Frst-That the interest charges to
be met annually will be say $4,000
less but this sum will not 60 to the
reduction of taxes, but nearly all Of it
to the payment and reduction of the
Cebt itself.
Second-That this will, in my judg-
mcnt. enable us in 20 years to float II
3 ORB! bond, SO that in the long run
the total amount saved the State will
be more than If we now placed 45-
year per cent bond.
As the bill itself will explain the
whole matter in detail. and the reasons
must appear to any intelligent mind,
| submit it to you without further
argument or comment, and urge it's
passage as soon as possible.
b. II. TILLMAN, Governor.
1t was reported upon favorably by
Senator w. d. Evans who was at that
timo chairman of the finance COM
mittce OF the Senate. The act was
passed without 81 dissenting vote and
was the best that could have then
\ been done for the taxpayers Of the
State.
will not relate here the dastardly
attempts made by some of the news
papers OF the State and by some of the
Charleston bankers nd brokers to
defeat the governor aid treasurer in
their efforts to refund tho debt at +
per cent. under tho first act PrOmi-
ncnt South Carolinians in Now York
who had boon highly honorcl by the