Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1867-09-03
A Radical Organ Against Paying
the Public Debf-Depreciatin
the Currency and Pretending
Love for. the Soldiers.

Love for the Soldiers.
The Journal, in opposing the payment of
the National Debt in the same kind of
money in which it was created, aud in
which by law of Congress, debts between
man and man are to be paid, has the fol-
lowing:
"The rule of the Democratic party has
81. Attack the credit of the Government,
so money could not be had to meet its
necessities, or if had at all had only un--
der conditions very favorable to the lem
der"
How the prompt payment, as it becomes
due, of the debts Off Government, is attack
ing its credit, is something new under the
sun. To our mind, the payment of the
debt, and the consequent reduction of the
taxes of the people, is the most certain way
of giving the Government credit and ena-
bling it to meet its necessities.
80. Prevent the Government, if possible,
| from paying its soldiers-so that they
would have neither bonnty nor other saw
| ings to to invest"
How would the paying of the debt of the
nation prevent the "paying its soldiers9"
We think it would give them chance OF
|
and increased pensions, which is necessary.
Besides this, it would save them from gov
ernment taxes, and decrease their State
taxes, for it would force on the tax dupli-
cate the millions of money invested in
bonds, paying no taxes, to school the
children, pay the State debt, support the
State government, build bridges, support
the poor, make roads, or pay the county,
township or corporation expenses.
SO. Flood the country with thousands of
millions of currency, so that it will really
be worth, as predicted by, them, fifty cents
cord; then pay off all pensions to soldiers
and soldiers widows with this worthless
currency. ,44-.
The idea that the payment of the war
debt of the Republic, in legal tender notes,
in which men could pay their honest debts,
just as in the better days of the Republic
they could pay them. in gold and silver,
would make these Greenbacks so cheap as
to be worth fifty cents per cord, is on a par
with the thousand and one other silly effu-
sions of the Journal. The faith of the Gov
ernment is solemnly pledged to redeem
every Greenback it has issued. Is the
credit of the Republic sunk SO low, that
fifty cents in money would buy "a pile of
Government promises, eight feet long, by
four feet high and four feet broad? Surely
the Journal although it knows. the inner
workings of its party in Washington, better
than, in the nature of things we possibly can
know, cannot intend to charge that the
Government is so utterly bankrupt as this?
If so, Greenbacks are fraud and cheat,
and the law that allows men to pay their
debts in it, is swindle on honest men.
The Journal ISLANDERS its own party-be-
fouls its own nest, like dirty bird. g
The people are taxed Neutrality-suspicious.
ly, to pay the interest on the National
debt. The debt was contracted in green
backs, the bond holders sold their gold at
premium, and bought bonds with the
greenbacks they received. Those who did
this in 1868, received, in round numbers,
three, dollars in paper for every dollar in
gold they sold. The man who sold his
gold when it ranged at 300, received three
thousand dollars in. greenbacks for one
thousand in gold. These three thousand
dollars he expended in bonds. costing him
thirty-three cents on a gold dollar. On
these, $4,000 7.3O in bonds was bought with
$1,000 in gold, he has received four years
interest, amounting to nearly as much in,
greenbacks as the amount originally paid
in gold. We cannot see any cause for hard
ship if the bond holder now, in addition to
the 1916 he has received in four years as
interest, he gets $4,000 more, amounting in
all to $3S76, for the one thousand dollars
in gold he invested in bonds four years
since.
After giving its three points against
those who would pay the debts of the Re-
public, the Journal thus explodes:
"This would rid the Democracy of
sight inexpressibly hateful to them-the
| sight of loyal soldiers, disabled in fighting
Southern Democrats, being cared for by
the government preserved through their
efforts; the sight of widows and orphans,
drawing from government scanty pen
sion as recognition of the obligations of
the government to their dead protectors"
AS President LINCOLN used to say, "this
reminds us of an incident" A tax was
levied upon the property OF the State to
care for the loyal soldiers disabled during
the war, and for the necessitous families of
those who were killed or died in the SER
vice. This money excited the cupidity of
the Fund Commissioners, and, aided by
the Negro Suffrageites in the Legis-
lature, against the positive require
ments of the Constitution, it was ex-
pended for another and a different
purpose for which it was created, and in
seventy counties of the State the County
Auditors report six hundred and seventy
two OF these "loyal soldiers" requiring
| SAG, ,391 for their support, and five thousand
three hundred and thirty soldiers families,
wanting for bread, requiring $497,s0 for
their support.
The men who thus, as it were, took the
last crust of bread from the mouths of the
widows and the orphans of the loyal SOL
diers, who fell in battle or died of disease
in the army, while serving their country,
| are now on the State Ticket of the Negro
| Suffrage party for reelection to the same
office, which enabled them to commit this
most inhuman of crimes, and the journal,
| in its s'forcible feeble" way supports them,
and justifes the Negro Suffrage acts of the
last Legislature, whose Republican major
| ity did their bidding in robbing thus the
crippled soldiers, the widows and the Or
phans of the money intended for their
support.
That sheet has no tears to shed for the
ssloyal soldiers disabled" in fighting, rob-
bed of the money raised for their support
land the ''sight of widows and orphans
cheated, swindled, nay absolutely robbed
for the wrongful taking of money from the
helpless is robbery-of the fund raised
for their support, excites no feeling of
pity for their starving condition, none of
Indignation against the perpetrators of the