Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1867-08-09
VOL. .XXXV.A-zsR.1Eo

the price of liberty, he is ever going to re-
store the country to that liberty and secu-A
IIrity riy which have characterized it in years
/ CAS- fitting prelude to the examination
of the present condition of the country, L
propose for q moment to institute q con-
trast, looking at the country as it was be-
fore the accession of the party now in
power, and as 1t now is.l- What upon earth
was there in the character of our institu-
tions,orin the history of this country down
to the advent of the present party, that
should have made-any mortal soul within
| its borders dissatisfied with the great eX-
| pertinent offree government that had been
made. Assuredly, down to that time we
were the freest people upon earth. AS
through a career of prosperity surh as no
people on the earth had enjoyed. Assured
/ ly, down to that time the protection eX'
| tended to all the interests of American
citizens was greater than the protection
extended to the citizenssor subjects of any
other country upon the face of the earth.
We hadrgone on IN material prosperity in
an unexampled manner. Starting with
thirteen small colonies on the seaboard, we
had seen the tide of population pass over
/ the continent and finally settle down upon
/ the Pacific Ocean. Over all this vast ex-
tent of country no poor man made his way,
| to the borders and settled upon a piece of
public lands, but the protecting Agis Of the
Constitution was over him., to secure to
him the fullfruits of his labor, and afford him,
the largest liberty and security. The sound
of the gatherer's feet for the support of
the Federal Government was hardly known
| in all our borders. When did you ever
see, down to the advent of these gentle
men, who now control the destinies of the
couhtry-when did you see the sax-gather-
efd vending his way from house to house
anbSj from hamlet to- hamlet, making
i 4 "a
| for the purpose of having you registered
ndstaxedp p Never. The money necessa-
| ry to be raised for an economical admins
| tratiOn of the Federal Government was
altogether derived from light duties on i'm
ports, and that was sufficient, under Demo,
cratic administrations, and Wing admin
| istrations, to run the Government success
fully and to protect American citizens. in
everything that was dear to them. Now
| look at it as it is to-day. But few years
have elapsed, and instead of an undivided
country, one-third, nearly, of the entire
area of the land is now discovered from all
political connection with the balance-I
4 mean by that, the political connection
which grows out of the Union of States
provided for by the Constitutions. In all
your borders the x-gatherer is found
collecting, rs best he may, the proceeds of
i your industry. lea, so numerous. have
they become, that, like the frogs OF Egypt,
and very much like the frogs of Egypt,
they are in. all you kneading troughs.-
!. Applause -fi-, 7-rz.- s-7 7.-. .al
e. FelIow-citizens, do not wish to say to
you any thing that would seem unjustila-
bly, harsh or severe, but do say to you that
the two leading characteristics of the party
in power are corruption and partisan vio-
lence. [Applause.l l will state to you
facts upon which make this assertion, and,
if the history of this country is ever fairly
written. that will be the way it will appear
upon the pages OF history. do not mean
history written by those pensioned hire
lings who, every week of the year, are
} sending out into the world lying accounts
of the operations of this party, and the
government of the country under it.
want it should be fairly written, as history
should be written, and whenever it is, it
will Justify, any man in affirming what
. have already affirmed, that the two great
J leading characteristics of this, party are
: corruption and violence-7partisany violence.
: Now, my fellow-citiZens, OF all things that
cDrrpde republican institutions and over
J ride civil liberty, no one of the various
agencies is so competent in free government
; as that of corruption. Unless you can have
} purity in the administration of public af-
fairs, and when the taxes are paid you can
have some assurances that they will be ap-
, piled to the object for which the money
is raised, all confidence in the country
ceases. And corruption does not stop with
its effect upon the government officers, but
: its corrodfng effect pervades society en-
/ tire, and we see its manifestations in every
quarter. Now, / say to you that no party
ever in power in this country has con-
: sumed so much ofthe substance of the peo-
II pie and wasted it upon favorites and Office
u holders, as the party now in power. 1t, is
strue we cannot say how this and that man
} has enriched himself at the expense of the
n v,d fell off Uo
!; cannot track it out. We can only Judge of
! ftby the effects. The American people at
: this time are very much in the condition
of the boy. who-went to mil. He was not
, accused of being very smart, and the mil
Ter interrogated him on some points. The
i anecdote is attributed to Doctor franklin,
and think was, first published in the
Almanac of Poor Richard. The miller said
: to the boy, some people say you are fool
, and some say you are not. Well said the
: boy, know some things and some don't
Well what do you know, said the miller
Why said the boy, 1 know Tint the miller's
hogs grow fat. Well, and what don't you
: know, said the miller. Why don't know
whose corn it is that fattens them, said the
e boy. [Laughter.l When we see these
5 Office holders and attaches of the Govern
t ment-these loyal gentlemen everywhere
5 rolling in wealth in the midst of civil war
t and after the civil war is over, we may be
r very sure that they grow fat; but we can
! not as we'll tell whose corn they have beer
? fed upen,ia and the only way in Which we
, can solve that problem, and correct the evil
} too, is to look at the amount of corn these
t gentlemen have had the handling of and
4 see, If we can, what became of it. In the
: first place. then, there was collected by the
: Federal Government from tie people of the
! country, for the fiscal year ending June 30
: 1866 five hundred and fifty-eignt million.
5 of dollars of revenue. That, as matter o
L.. -<~I 8 81,
= officers of the Government, and was al
i manipulated by some one or more of them
Y How much toll they took from this grist
!, know not. How much of it fell short o
e the amount collected, by the time it reach
: ed the Treasury-hew much OF it stuck tc
n the fingers of the office holders connectet
o with the collections OF the revenue, i do no
o undertake to affirm, But can say to yol
t that where the carcass Is, there will tn
q eagles be gathered. think it should real
: buzzards in this case. 1 can say to you tina
d this Governments cannot continue for an in
Y definite time in the future to collect sucl
y an enormous revenue and bring it into tn
e Golfers at Washington without being one o
II the most corrupt Governments on the fac
! OF the earth. We must collect less money
t We must retreiich and make every dolla
o collected Indispensable to meeting the ex
n I'penses of the Government, and the sum du
Z, TO the public creditori Then we shall b
{, better able to tell what is done. If there i
$, anything lost from it we shall be able T.
y see and appreciate the loss AS it is now
% with the vast appropriations made and'th
st vast revenues levied, tits seivasb a sum tina
ltl many men may enriehthemselves upon
II without us common people being able T.
k say that the money has been taken at all.
,rl And this is only. oone OF the many ele
ID ments of corruption. There is clustered
1t around the Government at Washington
y depending upon it fer it's enormous profits
tel the vast manufacturing interests of thi
h country, largely located in the Easter