Not all of the bonds which were repudiated or scaled down, however,
belonged to this class. Many were undoubtedly valid obligations on the
part of the States. The repudiation of these bonds was excused on the
ground that they were generally issued to aid railroads which had been
practically seized by the Confederate or the United States governments
and had been worn out for their benefit; that interest could not be paid
during the war; and that war and the Reconstruction Acts had so reduced
property values that payment of the full amount was impossible. The last
reason is true of some States, though not of all. The prompt payment of
interest on the reduced indebtedness has done much to restore the credit
of the South, and the bonds of some States now sell above par.
Extravagance had helped to overthrow the carpetbag regime. The new
governments were necessarily forced to be economical. Expenditures of
all kinds were lessened. Government was reduced to its lowest terms, and
the salaries of state officers were fixed at ridiculously small figures.
Inadequate school taxes were levied; the asylums for the insane, though
kept alive, could not take care of all who should have been admitted;
appropriations for higher education, if made at all, were small; there
was little or no social legislation.
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