New-York daily tribune., 1843-01-28
state Reputation .


See Last Psge.
State Reputation.
Of all knaves, the canting hypocrite is the basest
Your bold open, dashing hghwayman, who frankly
svows he gets his living the easies; way he knows,
and risks the consequences has often q good
streak in him. he may be kind to bis horse, tender
10 his wife and faithful TO his comrades but the
demure, sneaking knave who noralizes and preach
es with one hand in your pocket-one eye rolled
up 10 Heaven and the other fixed your watch
guard look out for! Even though he be foile'l in
his purpose Of robbery, he will spoil Your appetite
by losthing, and ruffle your temper by impatient
disgust Avoid him
This contrast essentially, runs through the con-
duct of the delinquent States with regard to their
Public Debts. First came forward Mississippi
snd Michigan. and. in mincing phrase, with no
contemplate ahectation of honesty, say" Mes
-sieura Creditors, we won't pay you True, you
Il hold our Bonds, issued and signed by our Gov
.ernors, under authority ofsuccessive Legislatures
but then our agents either cheated US or were
cheated in selling them, took less than our limit
for them, or sold on credit for bad paper; and
though qou knew nothing at all of this, and have
paid sad ight more than their worth for every
bond of ours you hold, that makes no difference
we decide that we won't pay you, and you can
compel us, so help yourselves - This is bold,
cool, and pertinent; you understand exactly what
it meens. Darlington Augustus Tomlinsen
might have been proud of the conclusion, though
little sheepish with regard to the logic I,s force
lies in its directness The master Of this school is
Wordsworth's Rob Roy:
For why! because the good old rule,
.Suiceth tbem-the simple plan,
That they should take who have the power,
And they should keep who cam
But behind these crouch and creep another class
of timorous imitators, with knavish hearts, but
semitender consciences, no are robbers wthou,
the manhood Of the profession, and incur the guilt
of crime without enjoying its intoxcation; lily
hvered cheats,
Letting ] dare not wnit upon would,
snd swindling so cowardly as to feel the re.
lief of having done but booming themselves to ex-
uerience the sensation and the fear OF crime not
quite perpennted for ever.
This class begin with solemn
sResoiyed That our Public Debt soemnly binding upon
our aud its People until its u,ermos fraction be paid
Very we'll; every body knew this before; you
are going on of course to make provision for it.
payment--O no the next word is the knaye's,
the felon's entering wedge to an apology" Bat
But what You acknowledge you owe your
creditors are in pressing need of the interest on
the amount Of their dues, and this is all they ask
Of you at present. Why do you hesitate 7 STAN,
msr out your apology!
But we cannot pay part Of this interest now,
though we mean 10 10 whenever it is convenient" ~
Out on your craven treachery to all honor and
faith Your lew filchng of the of widow
reticules and children's dinner.baskets! If you
owe and won't pay, say so, and not be frightened
at your own shiverng shadows Knavery is rot
thing so unhsard-of that you need tumble over i,
SO faltsringly. There were rogues before you,
and probably will be after you. But this plesdng
sbject poverty to evade the payment of the bare
interest on your debt isa disgrace even to knavsy
itself.
just look st this: Here is the State OF Indiana,
with Population Of over Seven Hundred Thou
sand Inhabitants-all free, and embracing Il very
large proportion of Young Men, in the vigor and
prime oflife Probably there is no other community
ON the face of the earth which contains so large a
proportional population of Free Males between the
age of2O and 40 We; this young, vigorous,
thrifty community, nearly all producers of wealth
for few are above the necessity, still fewer lack
the ability to lsbor-owe Public Debt Of Fifteen
Millions, on which there accrues annual interes,
Of Eight Hundred Thousand Dellurs, And this
they say, they are unable to pay! With Property
worth Two Hundred Millions, they cannot pay
even the interest on Debt Of Fifteen Millions
Ii paid entirely by Direct Tax, their total State
Taxes need not exceed One Million per annum
while this City with less than half the Population
int time of great Commercial depression, pays
Two Millions OF Dollars in Taxes this year!
This whole sub,erfuge of inability is nonsense.
Indiana spends every year in Intoxicating Liquors
and ia Iohacco-articles which are an unmi,ieated
curse to her-far more than the interest of her
Debt. In costly fripperics of dress, and gewsaws
Of fashion and luxury, her outlay is still heavier.
What ahsardity, then, to talk of her inability 10
bear taxation! Suppose it rcsrencbed the CON.
sumption of some of these pernicious supe,aui,;es
what harm3 ANY truly honest man mus, prefer 70
est one meal less per day through the year, rather
rhaa see his State proclaim herself a swindliDp
baakrap,. Depend uponit, itwuuld be far cheaper
30 pay than to neglect payment, even as matter
OF selfish policy. Where one man would hesitate
TO purchase property in heavily taxed State ten
uprigh, men viii shrink from casting in their 10,
with the People of dishonest one.
4 -. .h..kl