Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1900-06-07
Wall Street and the Debt.

All thinking men see the importance
of preventing useless debt agitation
like Virginia went through. The scheme
represented by the Virginia Debt Com
missioners is total departure from the
proposition and program | and others OF
this State and Virginia requested Brown
Bros. to take up, and total departure
from the memorial presented to our last
Legislature. If this subject is ventilated
the Petersburg Convention will re-
affirm the Edmiston resolution OF 1898,
which throttled the scheme then repre-
sented by these same Virginia Debt
Commissioners. The resolution should
be:
Resolved, The Democratic party re-
afjrms its position taken by the resolu-
ton offered by the Hon. Andrew Edmis-
ton in the Legislature of 1895, and this
Convention says that West Virginia
should decline TO negotiate with Com
missoners acting under such resolution
as the General Assembly Of Virginia has
passed respecting the socalled DEBT OF
this State.
Very briefly. Twenty years ago some
of the brainiest men OF this State, with
no motive except her welfare, after eX-
haustive discussion agreed as TO what
West Virginia ought, could and would
do about the Virginia debt if the subject
was properly explained to voters. Inc
views, then reached, were published in
the Intelligencer of January Is, 1883,
and a pamphlet was scattered over the
State few months later That pamph-
let was endorsed by the influential part
of the press, and never heard an intel
lipent man dissent from its views. III
was decided that, to avoid useless deot
agitation, West Virginia should refuse
TO consider any proposition until the
Wall street holders of the fifteen million
certificates were educated TO under
stand. 1st That they had no claim on
West Virginia except for the amount
fixed on her by the ordinance under
which she separated from Virginia ana
ID That neither State ought to act I'M
til the certificates were deposited under
a contract to accept whatever resulted
from an equitable settlement. After
infinite la Dor and much expense drought
il about that majority of the certificate
holders accepted these views. AT this
point nv undertaking was taken away
from me by Wall Street promoter, who
converted it into a helterSkelter, specu-
lative scheme, lacking every element OF
success. Under his leadership it finally
drifted into the crazy scheme of having
Virginia Debt Commissioners, ostensi-
bly, acting for Virginia, but in fact rep
resenting and paid by a wall street
syndicate, and these Commissioners
were to adjust West Nirginia's debt on
the basis that her share Of the Virginia
debt was one-third, or fifteen millions
with interest. This silly scheme was
disastrously exploited by the Edmiston
resolution Of 1895.
Subsequently, in 1897, some OF the
best men of Virginia and this State, at
nv instance, requested Brown Bros. TO
take up the matter on the same basis
proposed in 1883, and the program then
proposed was to be carried out by me.
After Brown Bros. had consented to be-
friend holders, associated Wall Street
promoter number 2, and did so only on
his explicit assurance that he would
never make the mistake of taking the
control out of my hands. Before any
commitments, he and his partner fully
understood that was obligated to carry
out particular program. After SUI
ficient number Of holders had co-opera-
ted to ensure the cooperation OF the
balance, this promoter, number Z, IN
gross violation Of his contract, took the
management from me, and under his
unsagacious leadership the undertaking
drifted precisely as the first undertaking
drifted under the leadership of promo
ter number one. 1t drifted to the crazy
scheme of resurrecting the Virginia
Debt Commissioners who had been in
partnership with promoter number one,
and with whom this State had refused
TO negotiate,
And these Virginia Commissioners
now expect to open debt agitation by
seducing our Legislature into discus
sion with then. All the publications of
the Brown Bros. Committee were writ
ten by me, but none of the Committee
give sufficient thought 10 observe that
this deal with the Virginia Debt Com
mission is a total departure from all the
publications signed by the Committee.
None give sufficient thought to observe
that Promoter number two has drifted
back to the impracticable scheme, pro-
posed by Promoter number one, OF Nir-
ginia Commissioners, protesting TO rep
resent Virginia but paid by Wall street
clients.
The Brown Bros. Committee are I'M
der a blissful delusion that the recent
Virginia law authorizes her Commits
sioners to bring suit, and none give suf-
fcient thought to observe that said law
was blunder Briefly The certificates
are deposited under contract between
holders and Committee Of New York
bankers. The Virginia law was based
on the erroneous assumption that the
New York bankers could give the Com
mission control of the certificates. Of
course the New York Bankers are will
ing to give the Commissioners any con.
troll they wish. To facilitate its passage
the Virginia law prohibits any action
unless the certificates are under the
control Of the Commissioners. Their
having control is condition precedent
to any authority vesting in the Commits
sion. But Judge Johnson'S opinion in
the Wheeling Register, Of the 10th, is
conclusive that nothing which the New
York bankers may do will give the Com
mission control of the certificates, and
unless they have control they have no
authority to act. In view of Judge john
sons opinion, which has been concurred
in by the profession, it would insult in
telligence for the Virginia Commission
ers to profess to think that the New
York Committee can give them control
Of the certificates, But the persistency
of these Commissioners in 1895 indicates
that they underrate either the Intelli
gence or integrity of our Legislature,
and thew NAV make another effort next
winter. The danger lies in the fact that
certain gentlemen, eminent for integri-
ty, who do not understand the situation,
may advise the Legislature to receive
communication from the Virginia Com
mission and thereby, unwittingly, fur
nish an entering wedge to a useless debt
agitation. This danger, as well as the
danger of secret lobbyists, will be avoid
ed by planting the party firmly on the
Edmiston resolution, 1t is the only safe
course
The undertaking 10 which Brown
D.oc ,yo,o t.,I land thain