The spirit of democracy. [volume] (Woodsfield, Ohio) 1844-1994, 1869-05-18
Increase IN two years

AS the New York Herald asks: At
this rate when viii the debt he paid and,
without some glimHses Of daylight, how
long viii The people stand it,
This certainly does not look like re
duction Of the debt. But this increase
of over eight millions only tells part Of
the story Two years ago large part
Of the debt eitherpail no interest, or six
per cent, or, at The most, seven thirty in
greenbacks BY a steady process of con
version nearly 81! this has been turned IN
to five-twenty bonds, bearing gold i'll
terest of six per cent per annum All these
bonds. by the face Of the contract and
the terms of the law creating them, are
really payable in lawful money. Con-
gress has lately set itself to change his
contract in tie interest OF the bondholders
and has pledged the national faith, as far
as it has a right to do so, to a full pay
ment in gold of this entire loan. If this
usurpatiun is allowed to stand, we have
an addition 20 the actual debt of over
eight hundred millions of dollars.
This is the way the public credit has
been strengthened by the Radical Con-
gress, who usurped some years ago the
entire government of the country, and
are. therefore, responsible for the present
state of aff;,irs. They have had full sway.
The people LET them have it in their hour,
of folly. and we behold the result. 1t
means dearer bread and less of it, in
creased expense ofliving. permanent and
grinding taxation, a hard time for the
wife and the children of the workingman,
and no hope ahead For is he not patti
ent and submissive Does not the pleas
ure Of being cheated entirely reconcile
him to the tyranny of these Radical lea
ders A?
We have not told the whole story.
the sources of Federal income are dry
inc up, both at the North and South.
We hear of failures every day, Of men
locking up their capital, of mems hearts
failing them for fear Ravaged by war
of politicians more cruel and fendish
than history records, for the four years
past the South has vainly struggled to
restore ber great staples of cotton, tobac-
co, sugar, and rice. The two last are
nothing, and are all paid off as mere
bagatelle for the pleasure and glory of
negro governments; tobacco is half the
old crop, while the great cotton crop
which once poured its stream of wealth
all over our borders has not reached half
Of what it was before the war. Yet four
years have passed since the war. and ov-
er two wears of Reconstruction"
Such is the craftsmanship Of this party
Such is the financial condition of the
country-worse by far than it was at
the close of the war. Then the debt was
large indeed, but everybody was ready to
go to work The people everywhere
wanted to curtail Government expenses.
The soldiers did not grumble at being
disbanded They welcomed the Seace
and a return to industry. Every thing
was fair for restoring production, paying
off the debt, and reducing expenses.
But no The Radical party would not con
sent. 1t must have war, strife, variance,
large armies grievances and outrages
for election staples, proAigacy, and ''re.
construction''-anything, in short, but
peace and economy.
We arraign this party, and especially
its leaders in Congress and the affiliated.
State governments, rs responsible for
the present disgraceful state Of affairs
They held the reins of Government, and
they took all the power of the Constitu-
ton, and then went outside for more
The people beheld this stolidly and with
apathy, They let it go on. Behold the
result Is it not an era to make every
man blush? Corruption on a gigantic
scale exposed and admitted; yet no re-
formation, no improvement; the people
not yet fired to the generous indignation
which IS essential TO self-proteetion. The
people are, indeed, conscious that it is
all wrong, yet the thieves walk secure;
the corruptionists rule the Congress and
wax fat and are at ease, while there is
misery everywhere in the poor mans
bin.