The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1867-03-11
Immsdinte ResumptIon.

FiOm the Herald.
The "on to Richmond" party were the same
men who now cry out just as ignorantly and
with equal danger to the country On to specie
payments. In fact, they are impractcable
radical theorists in everything and are always
crying on to something that leads to disaster.
Mr. Chase and the radical party of which he
is a prominent chief were the original infa-
tionists, for they flooded the country with
paper money. Now they turn round, after
doing all the mischief, and demand immediate
resumption of specie payments. But their
inconsistency is still more garing from the
fact that, while they urge contraction of the
currency with a view to force resumption,
they are the advocates of the National Bank
system under which three hundred millions
OF circulation is added to the currency. They
support a monstrous monopoly, which Is not
only useless and unnecessary as q banking
system, but is positively dangerous to the
country and injurious to the material interests
of the mass of the people. While protesting
TO be par excellence the friends Of the industri-
ous classes. the whole tendency of their theo-
ries and policy is in favor of the few. They
talk about the general welfare, at the same
time they support only monopOlies and par
ticular classes. They are the most earnest
high tariff men, and they use all their infu-
enCe to sustain the national banks and every
other monopoly whereby the many are made
to suffer for the benefit of few.
Now, if these radical theorists were not gov
erned by corrupt political motives or not
incurably inconsistent, they might reach their
object of bringing about immediate resump-
tion by breaking up their pet national bank
system. If they be sincere and in such q
hurry to force specie payments, why not ex-
tinguish the national bank circulation? Three
hundred millions OF currency withdrawn from
circulation would, according to their own
theory, soon bring us to specie payments.
This is bringing the matter to a practical test.
Are these original infationists prepared to
hurry up resumption in this practical way?
We think not; for it would damage their
friends, the few capitalists and monOpolists
who own the national banks. We do not
think they are prepared to give up the profits
of three hundred millions of circulation for the
good of the country.
But apart from this enormous privilege,
worth twenty millions or more a year, the
National Banks were established by these
very men as a gigantic political machine,
through which they expected to make Presi-
dents and Congresses and control the destinies
of the republic. a financial and political
monopoly like this, which will absorb all the
profits Of industry and control the affairs of
the country, cannot be overthrown without the
most earnest and persistent efforts. In making
the attempt, the greatest difficulty will be found
in the hypocritical hostility Of the Chase radi-
cal party who established the banks, who
flooded the country with paper money, and
who now clamor for immediate resumption for
the special benefit of the bondholders and a
few capitalists. We must not expect to find
consistency in such men nor in the crazy radi-
cal journals that support them.