Dodgeville chronicle. [volume] (Dodgeville, Wis.) 1862-current, 1868-08-28
d" BIOated BOndhOIders."

1T has always been trick Of the Dem
ocrats to invent some slanderous catch
word or phrase and seek to fasten it upon
their opponents. At one time they per-
sisted in styling those of the opposite faith,
Federalists." This was done long after
the old Federal party was dead, and not
withstanding some of the Democratic
chiefs, like Buchanan, had themselves
been the stiffest of Federalists
At another time it was the Democratic
cue always to speak of their opponents as
'sthe silk stocking gentry" Another of
their lying inventions was the charge of
having been bought up with British
gold" Daniel Webster was always being
bought up in this way, and as he was sup
posed to hold the Whig party in the hol-
low of his hand, the charge touched the
whole We we'll remember how Isaac
Hill, that noted Locofocoo Of by-gone years,
never wearied of ringing the changes in
his paper on these words of political
odium. These were the rounds of his
ladder by which he mounted from print
er's case, first to seat in the United
States Senate, and afterwards to a Gov
ernor's chair
For the present campaign the party Of
Seymour have invented the name of
"bloated- bondholder Every veteran and
every fedgling speaker of the party has it
on his tongue. For the next three months
no word will be spoken so often or so en-
phatically in Democratic discourse as this
alliterative phrase. In their use of the
phrase it is implied that all the bondhold-
ers are Republicans, and that all are
bloated" This last is the coloring word,
without which the other would be of little
signifcation. Now it is worth while to
inquire who these same bloated-bond-
holders in fact are. Let us look into the
vaults OF the savings banks. We shall
there find many millions Of dollars worth
of the bonds. They were bought with the
moneys that were deposited in those banks.
They were bought for the purpose of saw
ing dividends, the very purpose for which
the money was deposited. They are held
| by the banks in trust for the depositors;
they in fact belong to the depositors And
| the depositors are the widows and the
orphans, the Bridgets and the Johns, and
| all the persons of all savings an innumera-
BILE throng Bridget in the kitchen
| saved her wages, and put them into
| the bank, and 10! she has become
"bloated- bondholder. John in
| the shoe shop has been guilty of the same
villainy Our baby just bernhas received
b QOlidIo IL ODl lcA hio
name and it has been deposited, and now
his innocent head must bear the same re-
| proach. But there are bonds not in the
savings banks. They may be found in old
| pocket-books and secret drawers in the
| farm houses and in the dwellings Of me-
chanics all over the land. They represent
| the earnings and savings of honest industry
in all its branches The owners of these
bonds have not many of them, still they
are bloated bondholders; for it seems that
somehow, simply to be q bondholder is to
be "bloated." ~
Let us view the subject in another light.
The bonds represent the national debt
This debt was incurred in order to save
the life of the nation. In sore extremity
the Government lmplored each citizen to
loan his money. There was risk in so
doing, and many preferred to lend their
money on town notes at a lower rate.
There were many others, however, to
whom the appeal of patriotism was not
made in vain. They took the risk and
loaned their money andTeceived the bonds.
Thus it was that they became "bloated
bondholders" Really, then, in bloated
bondholder is one who was friend Of
his country in its hour of need. The sol
diers did much to save the Union, but the
bloated bondholder did something also
In this view of the case it would seem
also that the greater the bloat the greater
was the patriotic service. Here, for exam
pie, is one whose bonds are so abundant
that it takes him all day to cut off the
coupons A terrible bloat, undoubtedly;
but then observe of what noble and
abounding patriotism it furnishes the proof
A letter has just been published contain
ing the statement authorized by Mr.. Sey-
mour, that he does not own bond and
never did own one. That is to say, Mr..
Seymour is not ashamed to proclaim that
| from first to'last, all through the war and
down to the present time, he has had no
| confidence in the Union, true friend
ship for his country. He is rich, he has
plenty of money to invest but he viii not