Urbana union. [volume] (Urbana, Ohio) 1862-1872, 1869-09-01

in the land, and having complete con-
troll in congress, have decreed that the
entire bonded debt Of the United States
shall be paid in gold. President Grant
not only signed the bill enacting gold
payment, but declared in effect, in his
inaugural, that this waSa cardinal meas
Ure Of his administration. The COuven-
ton nominating Gen. Hayes for re-elec-
ton, endorses the gold bill and is its
advocate. The Republican party, after
equivOcating and lodging, and being on
both sides Of this question, has at last
taken its position on the side of the Ma
tiOnal banker and untaNcd b0ndhOlder.
The Democratic party is just as en-
phatiC and distinct in its avOwaI that
these bonds, having been purchased with
lcgal-tender money at less than fifty
cents on the dollar, lin gold, and hav-
ing been made payable in lawful money,
they should be paid as fast rs redeem
able in gTeCnbacks, these being the law
full money of the people. The issue is
fairly Joined, and it is for the voters to
decide whether eight hundred millions
of dollars shall be added to the already
crushing load of debt, simply to crafty
the rapacity of the uHtaXcd mOneyed
aristOcracy, or whether they will abide
/ by the letter and spirit of the law, and
/ pay the bOndhOlders in the same money
which taxpayers receive for their labor
and the products Of their farms and
workshops. [Applause.l
There are substantial reasons why I
am with the Democratic party on this
| issue, which may be briefly stated:
l. Payment in gold Of the fivG-twen-
/ ty bonds was asneverprOmiSed nor intend
/ ed.
. Tf I;..,,,..,.l t, ,,,,- +I,,,..o III. -,
coin, the people have no coin with which
| to pay them, and they can not get it in
/ the world in sufficient quantities.
8. Having received from the Govern
ment in its extremity usuTiOus interest
/ for their money, demand that the pTin-
cipal shall be paid in coin is dishonest,
unjust and insOlent. To embOdy all in
| a single sentence-the producing classes
are under no legal or moral obligations
| to pay these bonds in coin; they could
not thus pay them if they would, and
ought not if they could. [ApplaUse.l
| have said the national honor is in
VOlved in this issue. If the people are
not allowed to liquidate these bonds in
legal tender notes, according to their
| letter and spirit, reputation will come,
| if not from choice, from necessity, as
| certain as that death will come to all
| the living. Let us maintain the nations
| honor, and preserve the public faith, be
| lust to both debtor and creditor, by pay
| ing the debt according to its terms in the
money of the people. Prominent Radi-
Gals, and Democratic capitalists who in
| siSt upon coin payment, say that green
| backs are not money, and that the bonds
| are Dapable in money. This is certainly
a recent discovery. During the war
| they were held to be and were treated as
money by every department of Govern
ment, legislative, judicial and executive.
| The soldiers, who were entitled to re-
ceive thirteen dollars per month in
money, were paid in what is now sncer-
ingly called paper promises" " and they
received them as money, at par, al
though worth in gold forty cents on a
dollar. They were even used by the
! Government as money in the purchase
of all army supplies, in the payment OF
all debts, and the widows and orphans
of our fallen heroes must take them for
pensions, payable OHLy IN HIOHCy. Every
officer of the Government, from the
greatest to the least, receives them
! States, as well rs individuals, pay even
their gold ObligatiOnsw with them, and all
| the people know and accept them as the
only money in circulation. Whatever
is endowed by National law with the
| functions Of money, and IS made Il legal
| tender for Repayment Of all debts, pub
! lie and private, receivable for taxes and
| Government dues, is money, no differ
ence in what form or Of what material.
! No State can make anything but gold
and silver n legal tender for the pay
ment of debts. The power to coin mon
| ey and regulate its value is an attribute
Of the highest tsOyereignty, and is, there
! fore, by the Constitution, conferred only
upon Congress. In the exercise Of that
power Congress has made greenbacks
! Il legal tender, and the States and the
people have acqUiesced, and in good
| faith have received and disbursed them
as money. LApplause.l
To make bondhOlders a privileged
| class by law, not only eNempting them
| from taxation, but paying them in a
money unknown to the people, is an
outrage which will not be tolerated.
! The Republican party is fully commit
! ed to the cOnsUmmatiOn of this outrage,
and this is therefore a distinct, and l
think, most important issue in this can
VaSs.
We are told that these bonds are now
| largely held and owned in Europe, and
that the holders have Il right to expect
payment in the money of the civilized
world. To this I reply that each indie
pendent nation establishes its own cir
culating medium, makes its own legal
| tender, and when itcOntTactS 4 debt it is
understood that it will be paid in the
money of the realm, unless there is a
positive stipulation to the contrary
Such is the theory, and such has been
! the practice. In Great Britain from
| 1897 to 1919, the notes Of the Bank of
! England were declared by act of Parlia-
ment Iegal-tender for the payment of
all debts, public and private. The Gov
eTnment and people received and paid
out the notes of the bank for all debts
and liabilities, no matter whether held
at home or abroad. Gold and silver
were obsolete; England only exercised n
| right which inheres in every sovereign
State,
/ twill be proper here to state that this
/ era of paper money was the most pros
porous period in English history. La
| Dor was more universally employed, and
! better paid, all the productive industries
were more prosperous, and all the inter-
ests of the GOvernmCntand people were
! promoted more than at any time before
or since. During that long and event
| full period there was not a financial CTi-
/ sis, Il money panic, prostratiOn of pub
| lie or private credit, want of employ
ment or any distress among the work
| ing classes. From the hour that Parli-
ament, in obedience to the demand of
| the mOneYed aristOCracy, CnthrOnCd the
gold idol and made coin the only legal
| tender, poverty, distress and ruin were
universal, except among the creditor
class. 1t was the harvest of the money
| kings, while the labOring and debtor
class were made bankrupt and the pub
| lie debt was practically increased one
| third i'll amount. One of the ablest
/ English historians compares the results
produced 10y the gold bin To- the effect Of
| Il breath from the polar regions of the
north sweeping down upon the vCriUre
and vegetation of the tropics. Shall we
repeat that experiment and lee guilty of
similar folly, with a certainty of
| like results? Here, as i'm England, dur
| ing the period referred to, gold and sill
vcr are obsolete, Il paper money not is
sued by a bank, but directly by the Gov
Crnmcnt, having as its basis the entire
wealth of the nation, is the only legal
| tender known among our people. \
| debt almost fabulous i'm amount has been
contracted, involving taxation mpar-
allied i'm the worlds history, farms have
been purchased, manufactures erected,
goods bought, all more or less upon
credit, with grCenEaCks as the represent
tativc and standard of value. Restore
coin as the only lCgal-tcndcr, and your
debit is i'm effect uplrlv 1DublC1 V-IiIp