The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1866-09-28

the mon who are responsible Tor L1lS
debt. They made IL, and the RESPONSE
bility rests with them and not with you
and me.
Well, now, my friends, this debt was
WHO loaned the money to
the GOvcrnmcnt2 WasHi it the Copper
head leaders of Madison county, or of
any other county i'll the State? "A
voice, "Not much."l Didn't they go to
tho patriotic men OF Indiana and say,
"DOn't lend your money to this Gov
crnmont." Didn't they take IL deep in
terest in you all mt once, and exhort you
not to lend your money to put down the
rebellion2 No, gentlemen, these men
did not furnish the money; but it was
tho men who believed in the Govern
ment-the members of the great Union
party. They snid, eve believe in this
nothing to live for; and, therefore, the
Government shall have our money"
But, this debt has been contracted,
and now we want to say that it shall
not DO ropudinted. We know that in
the course of time changes in parties
mny take place, and thatif these rebels
should over come into power i'll COnneC-
ton with the Northern Democratic pol
iticians. they would not pay the inter
est on that debt, nor would they pay
the principal. Therefore, we want to
write it down in the Constitution that
this debt thus protected, shall be sacred
ly paid, and cannot be repudiated by
any party.
Then we want to do another thing.
In view of the fact that these rebels
may some time get into power, in con-
nectiOn with their Northern friends and
SympNthiZerS, we want to say that the
rebel war debt shall never be paid. We
want to put it in the Constitution.
Now, ] want TO ask the same question
These Southern men have lost every
thing. They loaned their money to tho
Confederate government. a great
many sold out their plantations, ne
grOes and property of every kind, and
took stock i'll the Confederate govern
ment. Administrators and guardians
of wards put their money into Contvd-
invested their money in them. Now
bring that party into power. Do you
believe that if they get control of tho
Government, they will vote to tax them
selves along with you and me to pay
the interest on our debt? AS the Sena-
tor said, human nature is the same
North and South, in every place and in
every age of tho world. II you expect
that when these rebels come into power
i'll connection with the Northern cop
perheads, they will voluntarily vote to
tax themselves To pay the interest on
our debt and lenVe no provision for
theirs, you are more stupid than take
you to be. tell you they won't do it.
Every man knows it, therefore to pre-
vent them from putting their debt on
an equality with ours, we want to put
the prohibition i'll the Constitution OF
the United States. that the rebel war
debt shall never be paid.
] tell you, my old Democratic friends,
you are just as much interested i'll that
AS we are. If We are to be taxed to pay
the rebel war debt, You are to be taxed
with us. Therefore, l call upon men
OF all parties, without regard to names,
to throw aside all paltry prejudices ana
partisan feelings, to come up and es-
tnblish this in the Constitution ns II
thing demanded by patriotism and true
loyalty. If you have no feeling but
your interest; if you don't care for your
country; if you love rebel as well as
yOu do II Union mMn-in that cnse
don't appeal to anything but your in
tereSts. Have you lOuned your money
to the Government? Are you interest
ed i'll the Northern debt? Then l ask
you to come up and vote for this, be-
Cnuse tell you that whenever our Gov
ernmcnt assumes the rebel war debt,
ana piles that on top of our own debt,
it is going to break the whole thing
down, and all will be lost. In that case
there will be repudiatiOn, and il will
come from all parts of the country.
Therefore you are interest ed in our debt,
and by every consideration that can
control men, ask you to come forward
and help us to put this provision in the
Constitution.
SHALL WE PAY FOR THE SLAVES OF
REBELS-AS IMPORrAST STATEMENT.
But here is another thing. In regard
to payment for their slaves. That is
one thing they have not given up, and
which they will not give up. They in
tend, when they come into power, to
make us pay for their slaves. l want
to call your attention to one thing
which was done at this Philadelphia
Convention. The Southern men in that
Convention did not care very much
about what was put into the plat
form. They knew that they could do
nothing unless they got into power.
You may sNy just about what you
please. We want power, and to get
power we must defeat the North; to de-
feat the North, we must divide the
Union party; and you may, therefore,
take AS much of the Union platform as
you wish. But there is one thing you
shall not say. You shall not saY that
we shall never be- paid for our slaves
Now, in this fourth clause of the con-
stitutionHl amendment, we have three
things: First, that our own debt shall
DO sacred; second, that the rebel war
debt shall never be paid; and third, that
the rebels shall mover receive cOlnpon-
sntiOn for their slaves.
In the Philadelphia Convention, they
came forth and agreed to two of these
provisions, but not to the third. [Here
the Governor read from the Philndel-
phia platform to prove his pOSitiun.1
They refer to two of these thingS-the
payment of our debt, and the non pay
ment of the rebel war debt; butthey are
silent as to being paid for their slaves.
The history OF ii is this: That i'll their
conversation ut the Convention, and ut
the hotels, they said: 1--WE don't care
much what you say, but there is one
point upon which we are sensitive, and
that is the subject of being paid tor our
slaves. We Will not be committed now
or at amy future time against sucI: pay-
ment. You must therefore leave that
out of the PLATFORM"
A FEW WORDS ABOUT THE PIIILADEL-
PHlA CONVENTION AND PRESIDENT
JOHSSON-IF THE LOYAL STATES CAM
NOT MAKE A LEGAL CONGRESS THEY
CANNOT MAKE a LEGAL PRESIDENT.
Now, 1 want to say one thing further
i'll regard to thnt Convention, and am
done. AS said before, we have II right
to keep these men out. We begged
them not to go; We implorcd them to
stand by that Old Union which our
fathers had framed; but they went out.
They went out with curses on their lips;
they formed n now government, and
plunged us into war. They got whip
but we say, "nlthough we have right
to confiscnte your property, and take
your lives, we will let you come back
when you comply with these four con
ditiOns." I trust in God that the peo-
PIE of the North will stand firm and