The Portland daily press., 1868-08-25
The Question Admirably stated.

Among the many calculations of the prin-
cipe upon which it is the duty of the govern
ment to pay its obligations in gold, we have
seen nothing better than the following from
the Norwich Bulletin:
The following conversation rook place in the
countinp-room of one of our friends few
days since. A prominent Democrat, man of
strict honesty in his private life, had just put
the following question, some discussion having
preceded it,
"Well, Mr.. A., let us drop all political antag-
onsm and argue this question on its merits
Upon what ground can you maintain that one
hundred gold dollars shall be paid upon bond
for which the government received only fifty
unless the exact letter of the law demands
such payment"
Mr.. A-"That question is easily answered
and will give you case in point. You know
old Mrs e., our neighbor, whose husband died
in 1889, and for whom am trustee. Her hus-
band left her the house she occupies and about
$4,000 in money, the income OF which is all
she has for the support of herself and her sick
daughter, who is now dying OF consumption.
As soon as / could collect the sums due her
husband invested the whole in mortgage Of
seven per cent. interest, due in five years. The
notes became due in 1864, when the price OF
gold was 100, and was forced to take NV nav
IN legal-tender notes, and l again had to look
round Tor an investment The interest on the
mortgage having been paid in currency The
old lady had been very much straitened for
the past year, and | concluded that in order
TO meet her expenses she must have her inter-
est IN gold, and that even then she would lose,
as had lent her money before the war at sew
en- per cent, and could now only get six per
cent. on the fve-twenty bonds, but l took
them.
"Yes," said the Democrat, "but you took
them at less than sixty in gold value"
Mr.. A.-"On the contrary, Mr. D., the gov
ernment borrowed old Mrs C. s ten thousand
Inv yllAt, r %oI,,
its demand notes in settlement of the mort
gage on which L had lent the gold, and these
demand notes bearing no interest, and al
though due on demand, being nothing more
nor less than the original capital, and when
ask the government to pay me ten thousand
dollars in gold, ask no more than the pay
ment of what l had ia 1859. If you now ask
me to take greenbacks, which are worth only
20 cents in gold, for my bonds, 1 shall get ST.
and the government will have confscated
$4,000 of old Mrs. C.'s property"
"Well," said the Democrat, 81 am not re-
sponsible for the egal-tender act; your Repub-
lican Congress made the law and forced Mrs.
q. and me to take the notes."
MIR. Ayes, and your party are response
Bile; you refused to subscribe for the bonds
you impeded the government you rendered
aid and comfort to the Rebels in every way
that you knew how to, without riskng your
necks-your mob-leader Seymour, brags that
he never subscribed dollar to loan and new
ry for the government to collect a forced loan
or TO give up to the Rebels"
well" said the Democrat, attempting to
dodge, "Mrs. C.'s case is only solitary one;
most of the bonds were subscribed for by men
who made their money in the rise in prices
hoddy men and such"
Mr.. A.-"Indeed, are the active business
men among your acquantances large owners
of bonds, or were they subscribers? You
know better You know that your savings
backs hold large amount, you know that
your insurance Office has its funds in bonds,
and you know that the men in active business,
the shoddy men least of all, could not spare
their money from their business except few
like our neighbor H. & Co., who made it a
point of honor to subscribe for every loan"
The Democrat-"Why don't you go to work
and take up your greenbacks; your failed pa
per, as you call it?'
Mr.. A.-"That is what we mean to do; we
know that greenbacks are the peoples money,
and when we have elected Grant, we mean to
make them as good as gold, and we intend to
do that by burying your Rebel repudiators
and mob leaders out of sight and hearing"
Here the conversation ended