Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1868-08-27

the purchaser should pay when b
pleased, but in the meantime should pa
six per cent interest He waited ii
cold was two hundred and fifty. He too
| his $4,000 10 gold aud bought $50, 900 !
legal tender, paid $4,000 to the sellel
invested $4,000 in Five.twenty bond
has drawn $500 in gold year interes
and new Is the most loyal patriot and tn
loudsst clamorer for payment Of III
bonds in gold, of all my acquaintance
l(Applause. he is a reasonably goo
man they say. He is Christian mar
and they say that every night rs ,
goes to bed he prays God that b
may do 10 other men as he would hav
other men do TO him, and when b
raises his hand in prayer, that God ma,
deliver him from all his enemies, b
prays especially that he may be save'
from that public enemy who wants 4
nav the five-twenty bonds in greenback
-(loud laughter and applause land
hear II said this system will depreciat'
| the currency, and cheat labor OF its jus
rewards. Not at all. Every dollar 0
the public debt which is in this way pait
will relieve the property Of the country
from the mortgage which islupon it, and
by making the greenbacks more certain
Of redemption, will increase their value
No, gentlemen, pay these fve-twenties in
legal tender notes the moment they
become redeemable, and you will reduce
the debt, you will save the interest, you
will relieve labor from its burdens.
(Applause. Couple with this the taxa
ton of capital to the same extent as you
tax labor, stop the excessive contraction
of the currency, expand it If necessary
to recover the business OF the country
from the prostration it nov feels, and
Won will make capital profitable; you
will make industry contented. Your
shipyards will be alive again. Our
fertile fields will yield bountiful
harvest. Labor viii perform its accus-
toned work, and bowling its cheerful
head to burthen which is always heavy,
will push forward with higher courage
and ioftier STEP [Cheers] Do not mis-
understand me. l did not vote for the
Legal Tender law. / opposed it L
thought it very wrong. Twas then, | am
now, a hard-money man. / foresaw the
evils of an expanded and deprecated
currency; but the law was passed. The
evils were contracted; they have been
endured by the people; and am now IN
favor Of extracting from the system all
the good which can be gotten out Of it.
Applause. i have no hostility to the
They are, doubtless, worthy
and estimable gentlemen. | would do them
exact Justice. Where promised gold l
would pay gold where Ipromised paper
| would pay paper. l beg Of them now
to be inst and wise. Iwould not threaten,
but they may 90 further and fare worse.
Labor is suffering; it may become FESTIVE.
The Republican party upsets this whole
policy. 1t insists on paying the debt In
gold, and exempting bonds from taxation.
The Funding bill expresses the whole
idea. 1t passed both Houses; it would
have become law except for the adj
iournment II provided that the present
bonds should be exchanged for other
bonds bearing A per cent. interest, paya.
BILE in forty years, principal aud interest,
both to be paid in gold, and to be ex-
empt from all State and Federal taxa.
ton. Gold stands to-day at upwards
of l4O. This bill adds at once six
hundred millions and more to the debt
1t abandons the right of taxation, and
thus gives up more than twelve millions
Of gold. 1t postpones indefinitely the
If payment is postponed forty
years the debt will never be paid at all.
It will become one Of the permanent in
,titutions of the country. If the debt
should be $500, 600, 900, and should be
funded, at even four per cent, the annual
interest would reach 500, 900, 900 10 gold,
and this must be raised year by year,
rom the labor of the country forty years.
How many of you will live that long
How many of your children will live that
ong? And yet, year by year, as long as
7ou live, as long as they live, out oftheir
sweat and blood, of their bones aud
,inews, of their breaking hearts and
lying bodies, these one hundred millions
must be raised Applause Do you
know what national debt meansY 1t
means hard labor, scant clothing, brown
,read and no meat. 1t means that the
.ich shall be richer and the poor shall
% poorer. It,means that untaxcd capi-
al shall pamper the idle with Injuries,
while squalor shall preside in the cabin
If the poor, and suffering shall make his
life like constant death. Renewed
applause see before me many young
men. Are you willing to perpetuate a
policy which will forever prevent you
rom rising above your present conei-
ion? You look forward to few years
If labor, and then hope to devote your
,elf to trading with the capital which |
your industry aud frugality shall have
Isved. In your dreams you see snug
cottage, lighted with the smile of love and
sounding with the babble of infant
.ongues, over which plenty and content
nent cast their cheerful rays. Great
applause Are you willing to give up
his bright prospect and be content for
aver to pay to the tax-gatherer all your
beyond food and clothing
Cries of "Noi" "Nol"] Extend the
1ebt and reduce the INTEREST," No, gen.
tlemep, pay the debt and save the inte-
rest. Reduce the taxes, equalize the
Durthens, and industry will be stimu-
lated, business will be restored, enterprise
will be active, and labor will reap its just
and adequate reward. An essential step
IN this movement is the restoration of
he prosperity of the Southern States.
They constitute an agricultural com
munity. They are producers Their
interests are identical with yours. Their
staples will furnish business for your
navies. They will furnish
wealth for US all They ought to pay
their share of the tax, and of the public
debt. They can do it well. They will do
it easily if order is established in their
homes and security is felt. HE who
soweth shall also reap Every instinct
Of sel6shness, as we'll as patriotism, de-
mands that the policy of hatred and OPP