Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1864-03-30
'''7' PRINTED AND PUBLISHED BY u
The Ohio Statesman Company,
TERMS. n
INVARIABLY IN ADvANoE.)
.srsi sb. SPEECH OF Ho,L |
GENERAL GEORGE W. MORGAN.

GENERAL GEORGE W. MORGAN.
At the late Democratic Convention of
Knox county, General MORGAN was called
out for a speech. He came forward and
spoke substantially as follows: His remarks
will be read with more than ordinary in
terest: 'd s.r
SPEECH OF GEN. MORGAN.
Mr.. President and Fellotc- Citizens:
The annals of the world do not record the
history Of a political contest, so full of mo-
mentous consequences, rs the one we are
about to enter upon. Our Great Republic
Is in imminent peril: the Constitution lies
crushed beneath the armed heel of Presi-
dent Lincoln; and the war commenced to
preserve the Constitution and the Union,
has been made the wicked pretext of an
attempt to destroy both. Regardless of the
advice of his constitutional advisers: pitt
less to the wall of death which rises like a
dirge from. .blighted fire sides; remorseless
as to the million dead of our heroic armies,
whose bleached bones, if gathered together,
would form a pyramid whose summit would
be lost among the clouds; Indifferent to the
will be equal to the assessed value OF all
the real estate and all the personal property
of all the States, and all the Territories
from Nova Scotia to the Rio Grande and
from the Atlantic to the Pacific, Mr.. Lin
coin In his car of Juggernaut rolls on crush
ing States, and cOmmonwealths and popula-
tions as he moves forward in his path of
desolation. '--
My friends, this is no idle dream; no
sketch of fancy; but a stern and dread reali-
ty. If the war continues, the liquidated
national debt will, at a low estimate, amount
to two thousand five hundred million dol
lars, by the 30th of June, 1865. Not one
of you can measure In your minds the size
of that monstrous debt! When you think
of 1t, it is like trying to fathom eternity!
But what will you say, when tell you that
that debt of twenty-five hundred million
dollars, will only be the liquidated, that is,
the settled debt of the Nation; while there
will be an outstanding debt of ten thou
sand million dollars? Which, added to the
1iquidated debt, will make an aggregate of
twelve thousand five hundred million dol
lars. TWELVE THOUSAND FIVE HUNDRED
MILLION DOLLARS. But how will you esti-
mate; how can you understand what that
sum means? will tell you. Turn to page
194 of the Preliminary Report on the
Eighth Census, and you will there find that
the assessed value Of all the real estate and
personal property In all the States, and all
the Territories, amounted in 1860, to twelve
thousand and eighty -four million, six hun
dred and forty thousand and five dollars
From which It follows that IL the war con-
tlnues until June 30, 1866, and If on that
day all the lands and all the personal prop
erty In all the States and all the Territories,
including all you own-all your houses and
all your lands; all your stock and all your
grain, were sold, we would still be in debt
four hundred and twenty-six million dol
lars : yi71fna--.ilo % .a 'tF,i
But how do we know the debt will be so
great? At the close of the wars with En-
land and Mexico, it was found that the out
standing debt was nearly double the settled
debt and you all remember that the Mexi-
can war was limited In It's proportions-it
only lasted two years and we had only fifty
thousand men; while this war will have
continued more than four years by the time
! have named, and we have ain army of a
million of men. You will see, therefore,
that IL Is reasonable to suppose that the out
standing debt at the close of this war, will
be, proportionately. twice as large as was
the outstanding debt of the war with Mex
leo & 4aHt ~ iTti'.ll3
l do not tell you these facts to appal but
! to arouse you to thought and action. Men
] who deserve to be free will not be intimida-
ted by difficulties and dangers. Weare sur
rounded by both. Anattempt Is being made
to build, up an aristocracy more dangerous
aud more powerful than that of Great Brit
ain. And there, with population of more
than thirty millions, every foot of land in
the kingdom is owned by thirty thousand
men. Thirty million Of people and only
thirty thousand land owners! The causes
Of that untold wealth Of the few, and Of the
untold misery of the many, are the law of
'priniogeniture, and the huge national debt
OF Great Britain. tgss
oto0ur own crushing debt Is now being re-
dueed to bonds, which are exempt from tax
ation, and the interest OH which is paid in |
gold. The rich have already invested hun
'dreds of millions In these bonds, to avoid |
bearing their share of tho burthens of gov
ernmen5 and after paying your own taxes,
you will be taxed TO pay their usury i'm |
gold, and then you will be taxed to pay
the taxes of the rich, who have thrown
their burthens ON your shoulders. @0 IA j
Think of what 1,tell You, and act if you
would remain free. What is your remedy?
Union-harmony--concert of action. CIV
cry thing for the cause-7nothing for men,"
Regard him as a. secret enemy, who de-
clares that the country is lost. Be suspi-
cioi,s Of him, who, claiming to be a Demo-
erat, tells You that the Democracy had bet
ter be defeated, provided this or that man
is not the nominee of the Chicago Conven-
ton, The great, Philip declared, that he
had conquered more cities with gold than
with steel. And let US beware that green
backs do not become as fatal to our iiber-
Ties. as was gold to the liberties OF Greece.
Let VS. act together with good faith, and in
harmony yTlet US petition Congress tor re-