The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1869-10-07

pay coin interest, having no privilege
to pay the principal of the debt. Let
us see what can be done with the pub
lie debt. One-quarter of the interest
bearing debt is now due. What is to
be done with it? 1t takes. $4,000, 900
coin every year, which is collected
from the people Of the country to pay
the interest. That is equivalent to at
least S40,000,000 of the currency. in
which we deal. Now LET us see
whether by one grand stroke, without
doing one solitary particle of harm to
any living soul ON earth, we can re-
duce our public debt one-quarter III
an hour, and be rid of paying what is
equivalent to S40,000,090 a year upon
that portion of it. l say we. can, Il
say we should. | say that it is per-
fectly easy for all honest people to pay /
one-quartcr of that debt and in no. I
wise derange the business of the eoun-
try or iniure any mortal man. How !
would you do it? you might say! l.,
would pay it just as would pay you
a debt if owed one. If / owed, y ou:I
a dollar, Wonld give You a one-doIlar;I
greenback. And there is nota, Justice
of the peace in this town butlwhat,I
would say, it / rendered it to, you, YOU
have got to take it. Whatever might,
have been the policy of making lawful
tender of such currency, it was new
ertheless made and expressed in, the,
law and upon the very face of, the pa
per, that it was lawful tender in pay
ment of,all debts except duties on i'm
ports and interest on the public debt
Now, my felloW-citiZens, pay off the
debt now due and you save nearly
$40,000,000 i'll interest, when estimat-
ed in currency. In order to do that
you have got to do another thing.
This party has authorized banks, about
l,600 in number, called National Banks,
with the privilege of issuing paper
money irredeenable. They have is
sued $390,000,000 of this paper. Now,
what are we entitled to say to them
to-day? The law autholizes!the Con-
gress of the United States atI,any
time to repeal or modify it, as they
might see fit. You have had a good
run for five or six years. You have
earned money uponthe circulation of
an irredeemable currency, and it is
time now to stop. The American
people can't afford to pay $4O,O0O,O0O
year in order that you may have the
profit of circulating currency infe-
rior to the greenbacks, for all there is
in it is the security of the. federal
) credit at the foundation. Now, in
, stead of having the federal security at
the bottom of this, let US take up
these bonds and pay the debt, and put
our own currency into circulation in
: stead of this irredeemable paper
5 Applause. The whole problem is
I solved. What next, my fellow-citi-
zens? AS incidental to that, they say
you cannot tax that property at alt
The payment would remove all ques-
tions of that sort. For the moment
= you pay off the debt you have that
wealth in something else, and it goes
into the property of our country, and
1 reckon it would be taxed as other
e property. [Applause.l But next in
l importance to the redemption of one
7 quarter of this debt, and l beg your
:. attention while state it, is the 49,,
t CAPITAL LOCKED UP.
: That is the greatest curse Of this
e country now. Two Thousand millions
n of the government credit is in the
hands of the moneyed interest, not
cooperating with labor, nor produc-
S ing dollar. 1t is put in a strong
t box, and kept there, sticking out its
t head once i'll every six months, and
hauling in your earnings to pay its
interest. Of all the most unprosper-
4 Gus conditions this is the worst
n when the capital of the country is
4 locked up, in no wise cooperating
with the business of the country, con
stantly grasping at the earnings of the
country, to satisfy the interest upon
: it. The man who has had mortgage
d upon his place has some realization as
: to how that works. Suppose we pay
off S500,000000 of this debt Bat
how? you may ask. Why just give
S notice to the holders Of these bonds,
D that in February next they can come
= to the Treasury of the United States,
and thei" bonds can be redeemed. in
terest would cease upon all those out
: standing after that time. What would
n be the result ?-S500,000000 of this
4 money that is locked up from the
: business of the country is let loose
What then? The holders of the
e greenbacks, inaslnuch as greembacks
IS bear no interest when they are locked
b up, would do their utmost to make
: their capital earn something, and il
:, cannot earn anything except as it CO.
operates with labor and produces
e something. [Applause.l That is one
a of the most unerring rules that apply
4 to production in this world. Capital
and labor must cOperate in order TO
produce anything. Now, suppose ]
e own ten thousand dollars of them;
F.? am perfectly willing to let them lie in
O a box as long as the government will
n pay larger interest, and can make
;, larger profit, than to put them into
business. But if [ am given green
S backs in place of those bonds, don't
e put the greenbacks in box-they
o would be worth no more at the end OF
the year than at the beginning and
would have all taxes paving on them
What do l do? L go into the planning
o mill. l must do something to max
this ten thousand dollars earn some.
thing. / will set up u business;
G will take nv greenbacks and invest
i them in machinery, and erect q shop
It but they won't earn anything unit
John, James and Richard are brought
in and furnish muscle to run i6iG What
. would be the effect upon the business
e of the American people to-day. il
d S500.000000 of additional capital Wert
g turned out of the strong boxes and
.. into the workshops, and employed
. in thousand different ways. How
n quickly would all these men, instead
of keeping their money in strong
box, come around and invite Richard
and Thomas and Jacob, TO come and
:. work with the capital. Now, fellow,
u citizens, I tell you at once there never
it was an easier thing presented to tho
h people in the wNrld. 1 tell YOU again
20 and this might be said to the capitallst
" as well as the laboring man, that tho
IL credit of the country will never rise
IS until some portion of the debt is paid
1t so that the world can see that. tho
If debt is going down instead of up
a Now, my fellow-citizens, without go.
" ing into the details of this matter.
have indicated what think wouldb be
it saving of $40,O0o,O00 annually.
+ have indicated what think would
r greatly add to the laboring interests
= of the country. But some men say