Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1870-01-13
THE INDIANA DEMOCRACY ON

4
Upon the financial and debtspaying cues
tons. It. with entire unanimity, resolved:
ssThat we are willing to Rpy our ma
tional debt in strict compliance with our
contracts, whether it was made payable in |
gold or greenbacls, but we are unwilling |
to do more than that, and we declare that |
the five-twenty bonds are payable in |
greenbacks or their equivalent, and we |
condemn the policy of the Administration |
which is squandering millions of money
by mying such bonds at high rate of
premium, when the Government had the
clear right to redeem them at par
HThat the National bank system or
gained in the interest of the bondbolders
ought to be abolished, and greenbacks is
sued in, lieu of such paper, thus saving
millions annuallyto the people, and giving
&c. the whole people, instead of the few,
TIE benefits of issuing a paper currency.
s'That the business interests of the
country demand an increased and main
tanned volume of currency, and the bur
den of the public debt, the high rate of
interest and taxation, imperatively forbid
the contraction of the currency in Sle in
terests of the bondholders.
f'That the shares of stocks in the
National banks ought to be subject to
school and municipal taxation on the
same conditions as SOther property, and
we demand of our State Legislature that
the shares of such banks shall be subject
to equal taxation with other property of
the State.
ssThat the bonds of tie Unit&l States
ought to be taxed by Congress for nation
al purposes to such an extent as will sub
stantially equalize the taxation of such
bonds with other property subject to local
taxation.
Upon this subject, we make the follow
ing extracts from the speech of Hon.
Dan. w. voorhees,, the eloquentDemocratic
member of Congress from the TerTe Haute
district:
q As our armies moved forward, as
| families were broken up, and the head Of
| the household taken away, the son torn
| from the mother, and pushed into the
smoke and flame of death, these patriotic
bondholders advanced their money for the
use of the nation. intend to demon
slrate by figures that can not lie, that for
| every dollar which they then advanced to
| equipyour armies, andto pay yoursoldiers,
| they took an obligation for two to be re-
| paid by the people. Sincethe world began,
| since governments were organized among
men, there has been no such speculation.
| No such swindle was ever imposed upon
| a laboring people by a government-no
sucHthing has ever been known before.
| Nearly one-half of the bonded debt to-day
is a fiction, and exists merely upon paper,
for the money paid upon it never left the
l Golfers of the capitalist Upon eight or
| nine hundred millions of this fiction the
| people have been paying their annual in
terest in gold for the last five or six years.
| ''These are questions to be met. / am
for paying every honest cent we owe, but
l am for serving a notice upon these PEG
| pie that their receipt of something for
| nothing must draw to O close.
''The Secretary of. tie Treasury claims
| TO be in favor of funding the national
debt. Twelve hundreds millions are to be
divided into three parts-four hundred
millions TO be paid in twenty years, four
hundred millions in twenty-five years and
four hundred millions in thirty years, at
| four and half per cent. | can show any
person, by actual calculation, that, at the
end of thirty years, the people of this
| country Will have paid thirteen hundred
and fifty millions in gold as interest," and
not one dollar of the principal viii then
be Cancelled. One hundred and fifty mil
lions more OF interest he proposes to fund
in the same manner.
81 am sometimes asked why we do not
| propose an affirmative measure as well as
| a negative one. It is said that am al
ways ready to tear down the plans of
other people, but | propose none myself
Bear with me briefly for q moment We
have now five hundred millions of FIVE
twenty bonds, payable in five or at the
end of twenty years. They are about
| payable now. The five years have nearly
expired. They can be paid now or at any
| time within the next fifteen years.
| Sprinkle the next fifteen years with an
| issue of currency, aud we should be able
to pay these bonds in better money than
the debt was bought with. [Applause.
Do you say that would initiate
i tue ClIIGLCy anu IdLSC INC pilCE
/ of commodities? Let me appeal
to this assembly. 1 judge from the faces
turned toward me that you are from every
avoCation in life. Do You want money!
Was there ever such cry of distress for
circulating medium as there is to-day, iE-
respective of party! The cotton crop
alone calls for three hundred millions of
circulation to carry it off This is what
| | was told when was at New Orleans, in
| September, by a commission merchant
1 there. The sugar crop needs one hundred
| and fifty millions more. The rice crop
needs fifty millions, making i've hundred
| millions which is needed by the South
| aloha The whole circulation now is
seven hundred millions. By the opening
of this country west of US nearly 20 the
| golden gates of California, circulation is
| demanded In the interest of the trade of
this region greater than that of the whole
| country before the war We are grow
ing, advancing and powerful people. In
| stead of seven hundred millions to-day,
| this country could absorb twelve hundred
millions and not feel any undue initiation.
| This is powerful question for the people,
| especially, when you consider the national
banking system, and the irregular distri-,
button of the currency. Massachusetts
has $50 per capita, while here in 1ndi
ana we have but Sc. We are the step
children of the household who have to
take the leayings of others and more