Maryland free press., 1863-02-06
tn the Manor of Haqerstoacn::

In rejecting on what l sta
ted last week, have concluded, that you
must have thought you was doing right, and
not wrong in signing these notes, because hard
as It is to believe that man of your oppor-
tunities could not know the law, it is still
to believe that one of your habits and profes-
sions, could be influenced to do what is
wrong.
Imay be mistaken in believing that you are
q conscientious man-that is possible, never
theless, will now proceed upon that persua-
sion.
The law says yo,t shall not do certain things
and you called Heaven, and Earth, and
He'll, to witness that you would preserve and
observe that law, and not do the things there
in prohibited. AS conscientious man, you
could not violate this law, nevertheless you
hare violated it-you a sworn officer, and
conscientious man. Some strange influence
must have been about you--some unusual and
uncommon delusion must have possessed you.
What were they? The answer is plain
You was seduced from the straight path OF
public and sworn duty, by your vanity-your
pride led you to pollute and deile your official
character.
You thought you would be great man
and that your name would 60 far and wide,
with your worthless issues. You were delu-
ded with the story of public distress, and your
vanity whispered, that you could become a
public benefactor.
You thought you could aid the finances of
the country. You never once dreamed you
was corrupting the currency. You was de
ccived into the persuasion that your name
would be associated with Chase, or some other
famous fnancer, and that long after you was
dead and buried, men would look back to
your official career with blessings and graft
tude.
Your fancy led you to suppose yourself to be
some General jackson taking "the response
bility," and relieving the country from great
financial embarrassment, and that like jack
son yoti would be quoted hereafter by every
official, who felt his vanity, his pride or ainbi-
ton getting the better of his conscience, his
public duty and his official oath. cannot
account in any other way than this, for the
violations of prohibitary laws, and solemn
oaths by a conscientious man.
But if your vanity was great, your thought
lessness, was cruel. You reasoned in this
wise: If no loss falls on the Town, what i:
the harm, and the Town will be the gainer.-
Because out of many hundreds of dollars is
sued, many hundreds will be lost Many o.
these notes will be lost-many will be torn
many defaced. One third, at least, will nevel
find their way back again for redemption, (yo,
knew you had appointed neither place or per-
son for their redemption.) Your reasoning
was true. The Town may gain by your lille
gal issues, but the people, must lose caac@!
chat the 7otcn gains. Have you any rieh
thus to speculate upon the peopley Your OF
fee of Mayor gives us you such power. Th,
Town may gain if the people are idiots enough
to take your unlawful currency. And who
pray, are the classes fpeople in whose hand
your illegal issues, will be torn, lost, defaced
and destroyed. Not your shop-keepers, anc
merchants, for whose benefit, and at who's
instance alone you have flooded the commu
nifty with your worthless issues. They are
like you, too shrewd and too "wide awake" fo
that. They don't mean to keep the trash--the,
only persuaded you to issue them for the con
venience of change to be put cf-not to be lai'
by. But the poor and the obscure, the unlet
tered, and uneducated, the day laboror, tn
poor seatnstress, the widow; the friendless ant
the neglected-thsse are they in whose hand
you expect your issues to die out; and from
their losses you reason the Town will gain.-
And YOU reasoned correctly. Deluded as 20,
was respecting your financial capasity; you We
knew enotigh to see that
You knew That your issues would find thei
way into cabins and novels, where the in
mates would treasure them, as currency-ant
that from thence they would never find Mei
,cdy to your redemption Office if ever you in
tended to have one, for you know you hav,
made no such provisions) until it was too late
You knew too that hundreds of your issue
would be pushed" out on the ignorant poor
who would be unable to present them in sum.
Of vfpe dollars for redemption. All this you
knew but tou cared nothing for Che hardshipl
this would bring home to them. will no
call it wickedness, but thoughtlessness, in YOU
when you cruelty resolved to take from thu
poor in order to enrich the town. The Town
may gain, but its gain, will be loss to the poor
the ignorant-the inmates of novels and cab.
ins.
shall here close. Next week will call
your attention to your issues as currency, and
show you how you have contributed to cor.
rupt the currency of the country.
"Loyaly," Yours,
SWAMP Fox.
The GREAT ADVANCES IN GOTTEN This
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