Clearfield Republican. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1851-1937, 1866-08-08

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"Therc is nothing 80 insidious as
financial difficulty IL approaches
first with smiles and caresses, and Isl
ike the cub of the lioness taken into
the house of the hunter, iawning upon
his children when young, but spread
ing destruction around when it ar
rived at its full maturity" Such was
the language used the other day by
the English Chancellor of the Exche-
quer, when OBTAINING the financial
condition of Government to-the peo
pie Of Great Britain. There could not
be better Illustration of the peculiar
relation debt bears to a nation than
that Of the destructive, blood-thirsty
and trcacherous animal, playful
kitten when young, but savage de-
stroyer when at maturity, carried in
its harmless infancy into the family,
domesticated with them, only to tasten
its fangs into their vitals ere it leaves
them, and rend them to pieces
The minds Of the peopleo of the Uni
ted States have been debauched upon
the subject of national debts. 1t is
humiliating spectacle to see millions
of intelligent men who know that
debt to them Individually would be a
positive curse, subscribe to the abom-
Unable doctrines of the Jay Cooke
family Of the country, that public
debt is public blessing Every sane
man knows that private Indebtedness
is one Of the most heart-crushing in
flictions that was ever visited upon a
human being, unless the said human
being is as abtuse on the subject Of
moral obligation as q highwayman.
Who first thus attempted TO poison
the minds of the masses regarding the
character of great national debtl
The capitalists Of the present party
inpower. They saw that their schemes
would impoverish the people at large,
that the prostration ofthe South would
finally contract the property creating
power of the country. They understood
the condition of England's people--a
few very rich and a huge mass very
poor The national debt of England
had solidified to poverty the produe-
ing classes, and strengthened the con
solidation of wealth. 1t had fiXedthe
status of the workingman,poor to-day,
poor and ignorant for all time; but 1t
had insured the growth of the rich,
who, as time rolls on, must grow still
richer In order to soothe the rest
less and chafed spirit Of English work
ingmen, in order to induce them to
carry the debt Of four thousand mill
ions of dollars on their shoulders, the
"blessings' of that burden was con-
stanlly held up to them, and when 1t
was necessary to burden this country
with anational curse oflike character,
the same hypocritcal cant was used
to befool the ignorant but honest toll
ers and wealth-creators here. ga
national debt is national blessing.
This blessing came in the shape OF
extra privations, no luXuries, less
comforts, huge taXation on the little
store which might be laid at the end
of the year through heroic selfdenial
of the necessities of life
The Jay Cooke family throughout
the country found the debta blessing
indeed, to them. They were enabled
to heap up riches with rapidity un-
parallel in the history of wealth-ge
ting, and the faster they increased in
wealth the poorer the wealth produc.
ers grew. All the taxes collected in
this country arc placed to the manu-
factured cost of the articles produced
and the poorer classes, who are the
great majority Of the people, have to
pay them Those who are taxed di.
rectly have the means of recovering
their taxes. The manufacturers charge
the merchant, and the merchant
charges the consumer. The capital.
lists of the country control the produc
tions. The few sell to the many the
goods loaded with taxes, and the
many stagger under the load, while
the privileged few escape tits this few
who are preaching up the blessings
of the great debt, in order to keep the
many from ascertaining exactly the
source of all the privations they suffer
from to-day.
The workingmen are restless and
complaining; their money does not
hold out as of old; their weeks wages
though twice as high as ever before
does not balance expenses. They can
not make both ends meet, and insteaC
of ascertaining the true cause of thoii
condition, and recognizing the futility
of "strikes' and demand for "highel
pay, they are resortng to the latter ex
pedienes, which only tendto aggrovatC
the evils of their present condition
and are blind to the truth that it is tn,
inevitable workings of the "blcssng'
which have rendered their position 50
unfortunate. Strikes for higher pay
can bring no relief, as higher pay only
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