The commonwealth. (Greenwood, Miss.) 1896-1923, 1904-10-08
.VARDAMAN VIGOROUS
ON STATE BOND DEAL
Gives Inside Information About At.
tempt to Damage State.

administration and discredit the State
abroad
To the Public-There has been so
much error and criminal misinformation
published regarding the sale OF State
bonds that deem 1t due to the public
and to me to give the facts in the case.
The cause OF the delay was due, first,
to the extraordinary provisions Of the
law authorizing the issue. 1t required
the money to be paid into the treasury
before the bonds we're issued by the
Governor. The foreign purchasers OBJ
jected to that provision. They very
frankly told me that they would not and
could not buy bonds until they We're in
existence, assigning the very good rea-
son that should anything happen to the
governor, or in the event that he should,
for any cause, refuse to issue bonds
promptly, they could not force him to
do so, nor withdraw their money from
the treasury, and, therefore, would lose
the use OF it. Now, when we consider
the fact that the interest on $500, 900 for
even n week would involve a loss of
$500 or $400-when you consider that, |
repeat, there are nc grounds for censur-
ing the bond dealers for refusing to
make the purchase under those condi-
tions.
The second reason was that every
thing was done by a little coterie of
~nalcontents who infest the body polite
OF our good old State to discredit me,
and inspire the proposed purchasers of
the States bonds with want of conf
dence, and to depreciate the States Sc
curity. Some malicious person went to
the extreme Of writing an anonymous
letter to N. W. Harris & Co., which let
ter was mailed on the Natchez & Jack
son train, in which he warned N. W.
Harris & Co. against purchasing the
States bonds, saying to them that Gov.
wac iuioC Il IGpuulSd llOIlSU |
that Writ Adams, the revenue agent,
was only waiting to bring suit to pro-
hibit the payment Of the bonds, and
that the Supreme Court was absolutely
under the control Of Writ Adams. Or
dinarily, men of business would not pay
any attention to such cowardly com
mnnications, but this being an invest
ment o fgreat magnitude, the proposed
purchasers OF the bonds, N. W. Harris
& Co., took the %precsution to write to
Gen. Adams and to me, personally, to
get our opinion Of the legality of the
issue and the value Of the bonds as an
investment for trust funds. | thought
1t strange that these letters should
have been written to Gen. Adams and
me, but after l was shown the anony-
nous letter above referred to, the ex-
PLANTATION was given. In addition to
thrusts Of that character, a great many
damaging statements, such as the
following, were sent from this city to
the press Of the entire country:
"But 20c in Treasury of State Of Mis-
sissippi. Press dispatch to the Public
Ledger.'9 jackson, Miss, Sept. o.
Some days ago the announcement was
made that the treasury of the State of
Mississippi contained only 81 cents.
On Wednesday 1t was learned that the
States ready money amounted to 20
cents. The coins are two dimes. Bank
ers of this country are refusing to buy
Mississippi bonds"
All such stuff as the above was sent
out for the purpose of embarrassing me.
Its craven author was willing to bring
dishonor upon the States credit, in |
convenience and loss to the citizens Of
the State, in order that he might, as he
aoped, worry me. Such pusillanimity
would disgrace a felon's stripes and
cause the cheek of infamy to mantle
with shame. Statements of this cbarac-
Ger, from however unreliable sources, !
would also very naturally cause the {
bond purchasers to be on their guard
and to make a very thorough investiga-
ton Of all the facts connected with the I
matter and having relation to it. I
That, Of course, consumed a great
deal Of time, But, thank God, the deal {
has be, n closed, the bonds were sold at
par, and the money is now in the treas
ury. The expense of lringing it fcom
Chicago was paid by me out OF the
contingent fund. | could make the
deal upon no other terms, and thought {
It better to spend a few hundred dollars
In that way than to have the treasury ,
remain in a bankrupt condition for
ninety days longer, and call the lcgisla- {
ture together at an expense Of $4,000
or $4,000 to the taxpayers. The de-
pleteA condition Of the treasury has
caused me a great deal OF anxiety.
know the inconvenience and expense
suffered by those who held the States
paper, but it was not my fault. The de-
felt came as a legacy to mo from my
predecessor, and / have made the best
Of a most ~disagreeable situation. That
which l have done has been done with
eye single to the public good. !
trust 1t may prove so. These facts are