Democratic enquirer. [volume] (M'arthur, Vinton County, Ohio) 1867-1873, 1872-09-25
Paving the Debt.

The great dlng-dOng KEPT up
by the Radical press over the al
legged virtue of the present Ad,
ministration in reference to its
rapid payment of the Public
Debt, shows that Grants follow
ers rely upon deception on this
point in particular, for help in
their day of tribulation and sore
trouble.
We have shown up the falsity
of this claim repeatedly, but the
organ grinders hang on to it
with the tenacity Of q death grip,
and it becomes necessary, or at
least expedient, to keep the
truth of the matter before the
people.
We cut the following from a
recent speech of Gen. Banks; it
will amply pay attentive perusal !:
They say they have paid off
the debt to a very large extent,
and I say that is the very thing
they ought not TO have done-to
tax the soldiers of the army, the
fathers and mothers Of soldiers,
and their orphan children, to
pay a debt of three thousand
million dollars-that if they had
taken that sum and with it in
creased the industries Of the
country, in twenty-five years the
debt would pay itself from that
increase. That policy is not
right or advantageous or wise,
and they would be ashamed OF
speaking of it if they had the in
telligence to comprehend the abb
surdity of their plea. But if it
is a wise policy, it does not be-
long to them. They found it
and executed it; they have done
nothing but initiate the policy Of
other Administrations. [ sup
pose they could not spare money
enough to pay off as much of the
debt as Andy johnson paid of
in his Administration. Why, as
early as 1862 Mr.. Chase con
ceived the idea of paying off the
the national debt at once. He
said then that if the war CLOSED
at that time he could raise ST..
60O,O00,O0O and pay off the
debt, and so he might. Then
Andy Johnson followed him and
then his Administration, and
now they put it all to the credit
Of General Grant. They say ht
has paid in the last three years
$30O,000,000. Under Andy
johnson, in two years and nine
months, 81, ,066, 100000 was pai(
off He paid three times az
much as Grant by the week, by
the month, by the year, by the
period, taken together as they
take it. Mr.. Boutwell, tells you
in a speech which I heard him
deliver myself and he said that
the government of Andy John
sen had paid off a war debt Of
81, 1865, 100000, but he did not
give him any credit for it; he
wanted to impeach him for it,
put him in a dark place where
there is no Custom Houses OF
Treasury Departments place
where these gentlemen will be
very likely to find themselves al
no distant day. He said it was
not Andy JOhnson's work; il
was the work of the people. He
did not give. MI. johnson the
least credit. He was then g
candidate before the people, and
most unluckily for us, he is now
a candidate for favor with the
President. Therefore when the
President pays $3OO,OOO,OOO o.
the debt, he says that it is due
to the President that this debt is
paid, but you can see better than
that. He says that Gen. Grant
is a very great man but the on
ly illustration he gives is thar
he has appointed him Secretary
Of the Treasury. Laughter. 4
Now you see upon this question
of the debt they have no CLAIM
to favor. They can not escape
their policy which they hav,
been pursuing in other respects
But they have reduced the ex
penses of the Government
Compared with what have the,
reduced the expenses? Why
with the Government of MI
Lincoln. But he was engage,
in war, and they ought to reduc,
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