American citizen. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1864-1890, 1869-09-25
Che Failure of the Republican
PartF.


From the Nashville Union and American
The Hon Thomas Ewing was
thirty years since d Wing United
States Senator from Ohio. He was
afterwards Secretary of the Treasury c
under Gen. Harrison and again I'M &
der Gen. Tayler. Since the disrup-
ton of the Wing party, Mr.. Ewing
has been {; Republican, though he
recoiled at some of the eXcesses of !
that party, and at last openly revolt {
ed from their destructive policy, and
has since acted with the Democratic
party. In recent letter upon the
present disturbed state of the coun
Try, he inveighs against the Repub-
lican party bitterly. The perversion
of the constitutional relation of the
States to the federal government, at
tempted through the pending fif-
teenth amendment to the cOnstitu
ton of the United States, is revolt
ing to all his ideas of a republican
system. He insists that the pro
posed amendment has not been Legal |
ly submitted to the Legislatures of
the States for ratification or rejec- /
ton. because the Senators and Rep |
resentatives from the Southern
! States were denied admission, and |
that the two-thirds required to pass
it must be two, thirds of the entire
Senate and House of Representatives
and not of the fractional number
present. In this connection he says:
"That which we have is no more a
cOnstitutionalS submission than would
have been resolution of Republi-
can caucus.
"But there is now also an attempt
to force this irregular resolution up
OH us, without the consent of the
Legislatures of constitutional ma
jority of the States. The Southern
States not yet reconstructed are to
be denied readmission as States I'M
til they adopt this amendment.
They are to be thus forced to give
their free consent to it. Besides, if
: the unreconstructed States ratify the
: amendment pursuant to the resolu-
ton, what will it avail7 The whole
action of Congress is founded on the
: assumption that they are not now
States in the Union, but some kind
; of quidity, no one knows what-ter-
ritorieS, conquered provinces, mill
$ tary proconsulates-and not States,
Z until again admitted. Now if they
: adopt the resolution in obedience
: to this mandate, their action is nuga
I tory. None but the States of the
Union can participate in amending
e the constitution of the Union, and
J.. the whole Radical system of recon
u struction rests upon the assumption
:, that they are not now States.
o "But the party, having determined
I to carry the measure, constltutlo ial
!. objections are, am we'll aware, I'M
g availing-impertine perhaps, since
o caucus resolutions have become the
: paramount law. l am, however, OPP
J. posed to the measure, totally and Ell
e tirely, and to all the iugglery and
r thimble- rigging by which it is to be
'e brought about. l am unwilling t.
D, change the constitution of the United
L. States for trivial cause, even i
le some possible good might follow it
N but here | can see none. The pro
is posed amendment is not in accor(
lie with the opinions and feelings of on
t. people, and | would not have then
e. lured or forced unwillingly to abop
E. it. There is no more reason for eX
tending to the negro political thai
a social equality. Indeed, both ar
Sc proposed by ultra Republican re
e formers, and both supported by til,
e. same arguments. The experiment
v of negro supremacy, where now il
u full operation, has not generally pro
he duced results which impress mel
ne favorably."
L, He says that deprecated curren
r. cy-one below the standard of til
IT. civilized worlds an evil, but no
ne so great as assumed. The tendenc
lg of a national legal-tender paper cul
ID rency to auctuaton is much less thai
n is generally supposed. 1t Is not, h
th says, the deprecated currency, bu
ne the heavy annual interest of the deb
he that presses with such enorlnOu
It. weight on the productive interest
a. of the country. To reduce tina
y. weight he would fund that portion 0
IS. the debt which is payable, at reas
IN enable rate of interest; and he de
I'll clares that it is now in our power t
re. take an important and decisive ste
all in that direction. He proposes tina
lie the Secretary OfSthe Treasury be d
"a rected to prepare fifteen hundre
no million dollars in bonds, payable i
ne gold at any time at the option of tn
bt United States after forty .'ears, an
n to bear four per cent. interest i
IT. gold, the bonds to be exempted frol
III State taxation. And he would d
as rect the Secretary to give notice tina
he he is ready to redeem the whole il
d; sue of 1862 and 1868 on the LIST {
It; May, 1870, in legal tender notes G
lat in these four per cent. bonds, at tn
in option of the creditor. In regard t
lal Secretary Boutwelps policy he con
on ments as follows:
Fly While am writing, the Secrt
or tary of the Treasury reports that b
ID has paid off another two millions {
he the five twenties. They were, by tn
ed, express terms of the law under whic
ut they were borrowed, payable in lega
all tender notes, and added as gratu
llc ty four hundred thousand dollars
On he paid 81, 100000 in currency ft
Gle $2,000,0O0 due i'll currency. This
)ut simple plumber, excused by no rea
ng enable doubt or ambiguity of fact
:. language. There should be an EN-
to this. The whisky rings and a
other rings, official and non officia
formed to detraud the revenue an
in plumber the Treasury, played :;
va child's play compared to this. Ca
Ill ried to it's utmost result it will &c
ley the nation of more than seven hui
ian dred millions, principal and interes