Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly volume 11.djvu/442

 412 F. G. Young The statistical abstract of this ' 'Oregon War Debt Bonds" issue follows : OREGON WAR DEBT BONDS Authorized October 25, 1880 Date of Report Amount of Debt at Beginning of Period Debt Reduction During Period Interest Payment During Period Total Payments 1882 1885 1887 $4,812.50 8,785.00 5,302.50 $ 4,812.50 23,785.00 50,302.50 $60,000.00 45,000.00 $15,000.00 45,000.00 It has no doubt been noted that on the different occasions when it was necessary to incur public defense indebtedness a strong predilection was shown by the state for tendering its creditors what amounted to an interest bearing warrant, the payment of which was deferred for a term of years. This was the invariable practice down to 1880. If these so-called "bonds" had found the recipients of them in position to hold these long term credits until maturity this policy would no doubt have been salutary. But the creditor, who was more commonly a volunteer, had neg- lected his farm and crops for the service of the state and when on returning home he received in hand a deferred payment order, his need of cash was most urgent. The inevitable hap- pened. He had to subject himself to the tender mercies of the bond broker. He had risked his life and property to pro- tect the public, but it shirked its fair responsibility of protecting him from the bond speculator. The state surely would have been in a much better position to drive a good bargain with him than the individual claimant of a sum due for services or supplies furnished during an Indian war. This regular pro- cedure in connection with the first four war-debt bond issues smacks strongly of the usual lame ultra-individualistic atti- tude and methods that have characterized the state's activities throughout. That the bonds of these several issues that went directly to the individual creditors were regularly sold to bond brokers