Nashville union and dispatch. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1866-1868, 1867-07-28
j. EoUALTrY BEroRE THE LAVE,

. Ecu Atty BEFORE THE LAW
This is one Of the dimsy catchwords
used by the Radical party to begpile and
betray the people The country is bur-
dened with public debtofs 50, 500. 100000,
the annual interest on which is between
Sl50,000,000 and $2OO,0O0,0OO The
bonds in which this debt is funded are
exempt from taxation. These bonds are
held chiefly by capitalists in large
amounts. The mass of the people are
taxed heavily to sustain the current ex-
penses Of government, and in addition
pay tribute to this bonded debt The
/ public mind is heaying with the question
of the national debt, and the disposition
to be made oft The people cannot un>
derstand that sort Of equality before the
law" which requires the poor man to
support by the sweat of his brow, the
burden of costly government, pay the
rieh mans taxes, and heavy rate of in
terest to maintain soulIess aristocracy.
This subject is soon to engross all others,
and we append as pertinent, an extract
relative to it from a conversation reported
few months since to have been held by
the President:
We have all read history, and is it not
certain that of all aristocracies, that of
mere wealth is the most odious, rapacious,
and tyrannical? It goes for the last dollar
the poor and helpless have got; and with
such vast machine az the government
under its control that dollar will be fetched.
1t is an aristocracy that can see in the peo-
pie only prey for extortiOn. 1t has no
political or military relations with them,
such as the old feudal system created be-
tween liege lord and vassal it has no init
mate social and domestic ties, and no such
strong bond of self-intercst with the people
az existed of necessity between the extinct
shareholders of our country and their slaves.
To an aristocracy existing on the annual
interest of national debt the people are
only of value in proportion to their docility
and power of patiently bleeding golden
blood under the tax tax CATERERS thumb
screw.
"To the people the national debt is a
thing Of debt, to be paid but to the sris-
tocracy of bonds and national securities, it |
is property of more than two thousand !
five hundred millions, from which a reve- |
nue. of one hundred and eighty millions a |
year is to be received into their pockets. |
So we now find that an aristocracy of the |
South, based on three thousand missions of |
dollars in negroes-who were productive |
class-has disappeared; and their place in |
political control of the country is assumed |
by an aristocracy based on nearly three |
thousand millions of national debt-a |
thing which is not producing anything,
but which goes on steadily every year and |
must go on for all time until the debt is
paid, absorbing and taxing at the rate of |
SIX or seven per cent year for every hun |
dred-dollar bond that is represented in its |
aggregation.
Just think of the annual tax of one |
hundred and eighty millions for payment |
of interest on our national debt This |
government we have, with its enormous |
machinery, is a pretty hefty business in it,
self, costing more per capita to the people |
than the government of England, which |
We always heretofore regarded as the most |
tax-deyouring on earth. But over and be- |
yond the expenses of this government pro-
per, as it should stand in the scale of peace |
at about six millions year, we have, in /
the one hundred and eighty million of in
terest paid yearly on our national debt, |
enough to support three such governments |
as this, with all their vast machinery and |
disbursements We have not only, under
the present system, one government for
the people to support, but, over and beyond |
this, We ave to raise, by taxation from the
people, Efficient TO support three similar
establishments every year,