Iowa voter. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1867-1874, 1871-09-14


II ever the Democratic humbu,
schemes and bogus programmes il
regard to national finances we're dis
secied and shown up as they ough
to be, it certainly was in Senator
ahernan's speech at Toledo, Ohio
On the 9th uit., OF which the follow
ing Is an extract. Read it, for it i
worth reading. The Senator said:
.Nr. Ewing proposes to issue one
billion dollars paper money and
make it legal tender, destroy thu
National Banks, and pay off the five
twenties, and thus make money easy
and interest light. Before we ex
anime this New Departure" il ]:
well to inquire whether it isa "Dem.
pcratic departure" or merely an
"Ewing departure" We can prop
erly leave it to console its author. II
this the financial plan Of the Demo.
cratic party? If we look to the
South, they want no paper money,
but open reputation, and specie
payments. FIVE look to New York
California, Connecticut, New Jersey,
and the Northern States where the
Democratic party have power, we
find they utterly reject this scheme
and all schemes Of paper money, and
demand a return to the hard money
OF the Constitution. The voice OF
the Press in other States is Ominous.
Look to the Democratic Judges OF
the Supreme Court, aud we find they
hold all the legal tenders unconstitu-
tienal and void. But Gen. Ewing
says this is the new departure Of the
Ohio Democracy. The only ResOlu-
tfon Of the Ohio Democracy that bears
on the subject Is the twelfth, that
squints vaguely at the payment OF
the bonds in greenbacks and per
cent. loan. But let me state fatal
objection to this scheme:
First. The four Democratic Judges
Of the Supreme Court pronounce any
scheme Of legal-tender unconstitu-
fional and void, while five Of the
Judges who sustained our present
egal-tender act rested it upon the
war powers Of the Government; and
not one Of them would uphold as
constitutional the new legal-tenders
I'm peace, In violation Of our loan
laws, assigned solely for the benefit
of public creditors. This scheme
would then meet, at the outset, the
unanimous judgment the Supreme
Court, as unconstitutional, null and
void.
Second. This scheme is in express
violation Of our contract with the
public creditors. The laws provide
that custom duties shall be paid in
gold, aud that i'm no event shall the
amount of the United States legal
tender notes exceed $50, 900. 1t
IL, therefore, an act Of open repudi-
alton.
Third. The only doubt that ever
existed as to the payment Of the
debt in legal-tenders was, whether
notes, already issued under acts crea-
ting the public debt, could be.tendered
in payment Of the principal of the
debts. It would be idle to raise the
question, even If it was an open one.
But 1t has been settled by the act to
strengthen the public credit, that no
such question shall be made until
paper money shall be Mt q par with
gold. This settlement of danger
Gus question has been approved by
nine-tenths Of the American people.
Fourth: Aside from all public
questions Of the public debt, the fur.
therissue ofdepreciated paper money,
irredecmable in gold, would be bad
policy. No proposition in political
economy Is clearer than that IRE
dcemable paper money is the most
fraitlul cause Of misery and misfort-
une, especially to the laboring man.
1t has been said to be the most in
genio,is way to fertilize rich mems
fields with the sweat Of the poor
mans brow. The most important
and difficult problem on hand now
is to bring the present paper money
up to a standard Of gold, without
tlistress or contraction. This done,
with tile proper provision against
panics, we have the best system of
currencyin the world. ano - b
nm: The allegation that this
scheme will lower the rate of inter-
est is without the slightest founda-
ton. All experience proves that
paper money increases the rate of
interest, and sudden imitation now
.-L...ff ..c1,,~ ;cl,