The Manitowoc tribune. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1866-1878, 1867-03-28
The ssHumble Individual, on Repudi-
Pa Es alton.

from the Madison Journal, though rather
lengthy, will be read at this time with
peculiar interest It is well known the
South has but few of our bonds, and of
course the champion of that section feels
bad oyer it. Read the whole article:
President Johson has been talking
with Gen. aalpine (''Miles OReilley''4;
editor of the New York Citizen, upon the
subject Of the National debt, and Gen.
Halpine has written out the President
talk and published it. From this report
we learn that the President substantially
re-echoes, in his conversation, the utter
ances of such copperhead and rebel prints
as the New York Day Book and the Chi
cago Times. He speaks of those who
have invested their money in national Sc
curities as ''bond aristecrats s'The
aristocracy based on negro property dis
appears at the southern end of the line,
says the humble individual, repeating a
favorite figure, s'but only to reappear in
an oligarchy Of bonds and national secu-
rites in the States which suppressed the
rebellion" The language Implies that
it was not the fact of holding human be- 4
ings as slaves which constituted the wrong
and odium of slavery in the estimation
of Mr.. johnson, but the fact that slave
owners We're generally wealthy It is the
circumstances of wealth to which he OBJ
jects. The possessor of five hundred dol
lars is an aristocrat in the opinion of the
president, and is equally odious whether
he has invested his property in national
securities Or in the purchase of human
beings. The president furthermore in
culcates the opinion that our national Sc
curities are mostly held in the Eastern
States, and it consequently occurs to him
as a natural consequence that the people
OF the South and West, viii, by and by, |
unite and repudiate these pecuniary OBJ I
legations. He does not say that he IA /
vors such a course, but his expressions
and arguments are just such as a man of
Intellectual calibre would employ in
LIS = TO persuade the people to
attempting ut distinctly committing
ADOPT It, Wltio frss applies to the
.iimself TO 1t. lie a term odious
holders of national bona them as
to the pe.,rle, charaoterizins hat of
osastoc,ucies. He MT declares .. :
all aristocracy, that of a mo. wealth 4
the most oaious, rapacious and ty,.-nnl- it
cal, and further says that such 6 an n
aris4ocracy existing on the annual inte- ur
rest of !. n..stional debt the people are on
" of value in proportion to their docility so
and power of patiently bleeding golden to
blood under the tax-gatherers thumb a.
screws 1t is not easy to characterize ri,
with sufficient force Of expression the IN wi
fanny Of such language as this applied to ha
the national debt That debt was con u
tracted in defending the existence of the 81
g,ataon The people of al classes who CT
were loyal to the Republic, contributed GO e
their means to carry on the war. Not IL
only the wealthy but the poorer classes 10
entrusted their money in proportion to he
their means to the government IN the =
hour. of It's peril and received Its bonds f
in return. They did this when tories and re
copperheads were declaring the war q d'
failure and the securities of the govern :,
nlent worthless Those securities are still Il
held by almost every class of the COM al
munity. OF course more are held by the
rich than the poor, but throughout the "
country there is hardly a person able to g
save a small surplus Of means who has Il
not some of these securities, and who i
does not consequently belong to what Mr.. b
johnson calls an ''oligarchy of bonds. 4" a
Without the means advanced to the +
Government by those who purchasedthese ST
securities and thus became what DIR. Ii
johnson calls ''bond aristocrats,' our ar D
mics could not have been clothed and led, !,
and she Republic of the United States t
would have ceased to exist. Why did I
not Mr.. johnson enter his protest against
the creation of a national debt during the |
war instead of waiting until this late pc {
Rod, and now substantially recommend
ing Reputation by melting Jealousy and
hatred against those who have shown
their confidence in the Government by :
investing in its securities? The reason,
doubtless, is that Mr.. johnson was then
active with the patriotic portion Of the
American people; he was opposing re- |
bells and sustaining the war TO maintain
the supremacy of the flag; and TO de-
nounec the creation of national debt +
then would have been to advocate sur
render to jeff. Davis government. Now
he is the recognized leader Of the rebel
and copperhead forces, he has Swung
round the cilcle, he is fighting at the
other end of the line, " and he is conse
duently the enemy of the creditors OF the
Government and ready TO instigate repu-
diation.
1t is fortunate that the American peo-
pie are so thoroughly cognizant of MIR. |
Johnson true character aud present as
sociations that these utteranees of his can
produce little mischief in financial circles
in this country Their effect may be
greater abroad In Europe the value of
his opinions is not so well understood,
andhis DEMONSTRATIONS may operate unfa-
yorably upon the price of our securities
abroad 1t certainly would not be sur
pris;ng if Europeans, on learning that
the President of the United States holds
mn the possessors of United States bonds