Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1866-09-17
SEPTEMBER II, 1866

Your wages are higher than before the
war; Let me ask you, do you live as well
as you did before the war? Do you not
find it harder TO buy-all the necessarles of
life, than YOU did before the war? How is
it? The North has conquered, the North
is wealthy! How is it that you are not
succeeding as well as you did Of old? How
is it that the rich are growing richer, while
the poor are growing poorer? Let us see
how this is. / will tell you. We in the
North are very much in the condition of a
smart young man who has come into pos
session of nice property, and kept on
spending a little more than the income of
it, and borrowing until he finds it remarka-
bly, hard to pay even the interest on all he
has borrowed. Now do you see why you
cannot live as well as you did before? l
will tell you. Everything you eat, every
thing You drink, everything you put on
you, is taxed over and over again. Why is
it taxed? In order to pay interest on the
enormous debt that we have contracted to
raise funds to carry on the war. a -. ..
e. HOW THE MONEY WAS SPENT.
The principal is all gone-is invested in
shot and shell, and bayOnetS, in destroying
cities, railways. and laying waste the valu-
able lands of the South, but the working
men have to pay the interest of this debt.
For come what will, 1t must BE- paid. DO
not suppose that it is the wealthy merchant
that pays the taxes do not suppose that it
is the men that are Investing heavy sums
OF money and getting great profit, that pay
the taxes. No, taxes are always paid by
the masses-the great working people, who
are the great consuming class Of the land.
Let me ask you, working men of the Nofth,
East and West, do you desire to pay all the
taxes necessary to pay all the interest on
I the $l000,000, 900 of debt, which now hangs
over the United Statcs? Ifyou do, crush
down the South. If you want to pay all,
stop the South from being able TO work,
and by its labor helping to pay any. If
you want to pay all, prevent capital from
circulating in the South. If you want TO
pay all, keep hanging over the South that
sullen cloud of insecurity that always pre-
vents man from setting his shoulder Wig
Orously to work. Ifyou want TO pay all
taxes and meet the whole burden of the
interest of the national debt, then, my re-
spected fellow citizens, the working men of
the North East and West, follow the guild
ance of Mr.. Stevens and MIR. Sumner slam
the door of fCOngressi in the face of the South
ern Representatives, and tell them to tell
their people, when they 90 back, that they
have no hone of any real union with the
North, the East and the West. But If, on
the other hand, YOU havea glmmer of COM
mon sense and know you have, because
the people always can see rightly if the
issue is fairly presented to them; they may
be set wrong by some wild orators, by some
wild idea; they may be deluded, but their
sober econd-thOught, when they have
time to take it, is always right.
WHAT REMAINS TO BE DONE NOW.
If you wish to get the South to pay part
of the taxes and take part OF the burden of
your shoulders, say to the South: Fellow
citizens Qor you see we won't allow you
to separate from us), we have been for four
years quarreling with one another; we
have been for four years destroying your
cities, smashing up your railways, burpins
your fences, destroying your land--you are
defeated, aud you admit yOur defeat-all
this is over nOw-cOme, staud up, take your
spade in your hand, 90 to work, we will
stand by you, and see that you shall have
fair play to repair the ruin of war and to
earn Tor yourselves prosperous and hon
est future; we will see that you have all
your rights under the Constitution If you
will faithfully perform your duties you
shall have your Representatives in Con-
gress, 50 that your wants may be known
and respected. Do not fear the North; it
will hire no army to keep you down, and
take your property from you when you
have earned it. Go to work fearlessly, con-
tidentlv, and secure in the justice aud mag
nanimity of the Northern people, and be
assured that while they fought you face to
face like men, and beat you, they have not
forgotten that you are their brothers, speak
ing the same language, sprung from the
same races, adoring the same Col, and hav-
ing really the same purposes and the same
Ia ~ na arti
have to choOsebetween. These are the Two
issues before you-Disunion or Union. Dis
union by keeping Representatives out of
Congress; Union by welcoming them in.
Disunion by violating ths Constitution and
the laws; Union by standing by the Consti-
tuition and the laws. Which will you take,
my fellow citizens 2? Which side did the
people ever take, bnt the Constitution, the
laws and the Republic? Fellow citz ms,
tell you that eXpediency, common sense,
magnanimity, mercy and Christianity de-
mand that you shall do this, aud will tell
you more-the very safety of the Republic
requires 1t. .... ..t .....
REAL DANGER OF THE REPUBLIC.
Can any one shut his eyes to the fact that
In all these sad years that have passed by,
the tendency to centralize power has been
a the time increasing. This is the great
danger of republics? When you look to
what remains of the Congress of the, Unit
ed States, you find that the government OF
that Congress has got into the hands OF
some five or six individuals. If you look
at the ideas of these five or six individuals,
as evinced by their act, you viii find that
one of them believes the nation TO consist
only of the manufactures of Massachusetts; /;
another believes the nation to consist only
of the marble 0IIarries Of Vermont. and
another believes the nation to consist only
of the iron foundries of Pennsylvania.
Yon see, in fact, that little oligarchy, a
few men are getting together in a little
committee, and gradually gathering all the
power of the Government into their hands.
Now, are you disposed to leave the Govern
ment in the hands of that oligarchy {? Are
you disposed to say TO these gentlemen
ave are satisfied with all you have done,
and we will leave You to govern the United
States foreverlu Because, iirmlylbelie
thatif you allow the power tn remain in
the hands of these few Radical eaders, tel-
low-citizens, tell you, cahdidly and sor-
rowfully, but from my heart, II you do, Il
believe this Republic will not have % years
of life in it. What is to be done? Follow
the guidance of your, Constitution. .r.
HOW THE RADICALS TALK. , %; .t,.
am a Democrat. i respect the princi-
Piles of the Democratic party, because they
are the principles of the Constitution and
in support Of these principles we ask all
citizens of all parties to give us their aid.
There is one great issue. Let us settle that
issue now. Let us go on with party quar-
rels If we wish them, afterwards. am a
Democrat pledged to the principles OF
DemOcracV: butII will stand bv every man.