The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1870-09-29

ON the street seventy-two days, allow
ing it to travel ar the rate If twenty
miles per d;y. This is no fancy pic
ture. 1t is,. stern e llity demonstrate
ing the amount of money which Sher-
man, Schenck, and the balance of the
Republican party propose to grind
out of your labor to pay the bond
holders sum you never borrowed
and never agreed to pay. 4
--,. THE NATIONAL BANKS. arfs II.
But the magnitude of the bondhold-
ers' speculations off your earnings
does not stop with the payment
of this vast sum. They have been
banking on their bonds and
I lending .you money as individu-
ais at heavy rates of interest. Now l
am not warning against capital contin-
ed to its honest and legitimate pur-
suits nor against the men who are en-
gagged in banking. 1t is this outra-
geous system of banking the Repub-
licans have fastened upon the country
that 1 oppose.
In the days of Jackson the greatest
triumph of the Democratic party was
when he throttled and slew the United
States Bank, called the great monster
that might, with the power of its
money, overthrow the liberties of the
people. That bank had only a capital
of thirty millions, and it was required
by law to have at least one dollar in
gold or silver for every three dollars
of paper put in circulation. The
country was then alarmed by the
power of that bank. But now the
Republicans have established sixteen
hundred National Banks all over the
| land with capital of nearly five hun
dred millions, based wholly upon
bonds-and not one dollar in coin.
| G7 NATIONAL BANK PROFITS. %
Another source of profit arising
from the bondholders' investment is
in these banks. For every hundred
dollar bond on which he is drawing
his gold interest, lie receives ninety
dollars in bank notes which he lends
to you at high rates as your necessi-
ties require you to pay. His is there
fore a double action system of profit !;
the interest the Government pays him
on the bond, aud the interest you pay
him as an individual on his bank
notes, Senator Sherman's system of
finance allows him to take one big
dip out of the Government treasury,
and another out of your pockets as
borrowers.
To show you the extent of his bank
profits, | have taken the official state
ment of the First National Bank of
Hamilton, the city in which reside.
They are good bankers, and fully un-
derstand their business of money
making. A calculation, based upon
the date Of their statement, shows that
during the last five years their profits
have been over 100 per cent. per an
mum.
In statement published in the
Bankers Magazine, of June, it ap-
pears that last year the Tradesman's
National Bank of Philadelphia made
2l3 per cent, and the National Bank
of Northern Liberties, Philadelphia,
made 109per cent.
Now, let it be constantly borne in
mind, fellow-citizens, that it is to this
class of men, who enjoy these enor-
nous gains, that Sherman, Schenek
and the Republican party presose to
turn over, the specie in the great train
have described, whilst at the same
time they are repudiating the contract
they made with the brave and honest
soldier, who laid down his life on the
field of battle, and whose widow and
children may perchance this hour be
ina state of starvation or objects of
public charity. They paid the soldier
in paper whose contract called for
gold, and are now trying to force you
to pay the bondholders in gold whose
contract calls for paper.
TAXATION. t.as r..-s.t--
Some one in the crowd asked me
just new how the fourteen hundred
miles of wagon loads of specie were
to be raised? By taxation of some
sort, of course. You, the people will
have to raise it. In regard TO taxation
one word as to my individual opinion.
The only just and truly honest system
would be to adopt a system of direct
taXation. Let tile Constitution of the
United States be so amended as that
all taxes for the support of govern.
ments, National, State, county and
local, should be based on wealth, and
not, as it is now, on population, Then
you would need but one set of officers
and with economy the amount thus
raised would, in the course of time,
discharge all our public debt. Under
such system, each man would be
taxed precisely in proportion to the
amount of his wealth. The poor man
who owns property worth fifty dollars
would pay five times as much as the
poorer man who owns only ten doll
lars worth of property The bond
holder, with his hundred thousand
dollars, w0uld pay FIVE times as much
as the farmer worth twenty thousand
dollars in land. And the reason of
the justice of this system is that it is
the government and its laws that
protect one citizen in the enjoyment
of a greater amount of property than
another. a-, -..a.4 sian.
The systems of taxation adopted by
tn Republican party are oppressive
and unjust. They are in ponGiet with
the spirit Of true eppblicanism, be-
cause they are unequal. Senator
Sherman told you the, e,other day that
there were no longer any questions of
interest before the people. Everything
he says Is sSina on right. In his par=
ty allis lovely [taughter], AHA the po-
litical goose has All altitude that Just
suits him. [lfenewed laughter1 1t
may be so with him and his bond
holding friends; but it is not so with
the mighty masses of laborers and
producers who toll fer Q Livelihood.
| pEopose q brief eKpasitioh Of the
GROSS injdstioe Of his system Of
JNrrprar prx-rS1rrc .-s-..T
As it bears upon New England and
Ohio. General Morgan, in his able
speech at this place, Shaved that ohio
paid a millien and a half dollars more,
annually, than all six of the New
England States. have here the OF
fetal report of the Commissioner of
Internal Revenue, by references to
page s0j, it appears that
The First Congressional Dis aFr
trict of Ohio paid d..........,,... 81 Jos Sc 81
The Second Congressional Dis
trict of Ohio paid. ............... 9, ,954 T60 46
The Third Congressional Dis
trlct OF uhtQ pald ,.,;i... .:.,..... ,52s4SS %