Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1874-05-17

! cent. less than the Obtl2auOnS Wnlcn
issued in return. It cannot be denie
that we are paying an exuavagant pI
Is centage for the use Of the money bo
> roweG, which was paper currency grea
!; ly depTeciated below the value OF colt
u This fact is made apparent when we col
u slider that bondholders receive from til
= treasury, upon each dollar they own !
e government securities, six per cent.
gold, which is nearly or quite equal
! nine per cent. in currency; that upo
y which these institutions issue their eli
{ circulation bearing siz Der cent. interes
: aud that they are exempt from taxatio
: by the government and the States, an
!. thereby enhanced two per cent in To
: hands sOfbondholders. We thus have a
: aggregate of seventeen per cent whic
: may be received upon each dollar by th
, owners of government securities. A sys
tenn that produces such results is justl
; regarded as favoringa few at the expens
!. of the many, aud has led 70 the fnrthe
: inquiry whether our bondhOlders, Il
view Of the large profits which they hav
enjoyed, would themselves be averse
: a settlement of our Indebtedness upon
plan which would yield them fair re
munerati0n, and at the same time b
: Just TO the taxpayers Of the nation. Ou
! national credit should be saeredly oh
served; but in making provision for on
! creditors we should not forget what j
: due to the masses Of the people. 1t ma,
be assumed that the hol,iers o
our securities have already received
I upon their bonds a larger amour
than their original investment meas
ured by a gold standard. Upon thil
statement Of facts, it would seem bu
just and equitable that the six per cent
, interest now paid by the government
should be applied TO the reduction Of the
principal in semi-annual instalments
which in sixteen years and eight months
would liquidate the entire national debt
Six per cent. in gold would, at present
rates, be equal to nine per cent. in cur
rency, and equivalent to the pay
ment of the debt one time and a
half in a fraction less than seventeen
years. This, in connection with all the
other advantages derived from their in
vestment, would afford to the public
creditors fair and liberal compensation
for the use of their capital, and with
this they should be satisfied. The les
sons of the past admonish theIlender
that it is not well to be over-anxious in
exacting from the borrower rigid COM
|
If provision be made for the payment
of the Indebtedness of the government
in the manner suggested, our nation Will
rapidly recover its wonted prosperity.
It's interests require that some measure
should be taken to release the large
amount of capital invested in the Sc
curities of the government. 1t is not
now merely unprOductive, but in the
taxation annually consumes Sl50, ,000,-
000, which would otherwise be used by
our enterprising people in adding to the
wealth of the nation. Our commerce,
which at one time successfully rivalled
! that of the great maratime powers, has
rapidly diminished, and our industrial
interests are in a depressed and lam
| gushing condition. The development
of our inexhaustible resources is check
| and the fertile fields of the south are be-
coming waste for the want of means to
| till them. v ith the release of capital
new life would be infused into the pa
ralyZed energies or our people, and
activity and vigor impaired TO every
! branch of industry. Our people need
encouragement in their efforts to re-
cover from the effects of the rebellion
and iDjudicious legislation, and it should
be the aim of the government to stimu-
late them by the prospect of an early
release from the burdens which impede
their prosperity. If we cannot take the
burdens from their shoulders we should
at least manifest a willingness to help
them.
Pursuing this idea of debt, this with
taxation viii always come and have to
be paid. Interest on our debt was sus-
pended five years, as we all were unable
10 pay it. l don't know that everybody
was hurt very much during that suspen-
sion, especially the public, for many
holders Of bonds had gained them at one
half their value. The legislature, upon
meeting, concluded something must be
done for the relief of the country;
says here are five years coupons
that are due, and in a spirit Of
great hberality desiring to restore the
faith of the State, said if you come for
ward and fund coupons and bonds for for
ty years we will promise topay them for
what Is due now. The promise is to
pay forty years after date, and II any
body alludes to this public debt, he will
hear some one ready to cry out, without
having argument or justice in his mind, |
"Why, he wants to repudiatew If the
State owe YOU a certain amount now
duC cAlC AEAhsCS W BogT JHa SsAsAC
its note for forty years after date. To
postpone payment of a debt violates two
great principles. If 1t cannot be paid let
it stand; it cannot get greater, at least
il cannot accumulate faster than by
funding and requiring payment thereon
of interest. Postponing it for forty
years is tantamount to making it
A PERMANENT DEBT.
4 IL
permanent debts, and you take the his
tory of any nation that has risen, pros
pered and fell, can you put your
finger upon a single one that has made
q large national debt, a permanent debt,
that is now a free government? APP
pIause. Where is it? l assert here to- |
night that there is not nation upon !
the habitable globe that has made a
large national debt permanent upon the /
people, that has a free government. |
This forty years is an ineipient step to |
making the debt upon the peO-
pie q permanent debt. When for |
ty years expires, we viii fund |
again, and then again and again, |
and so Indebtedness secumulates upon |
Indebtedness, the taxes. increase, and the /
people become slaves, and heWers OfwOOd 1
and drawers Of water. Applause, Now
let US take up this idea of funding, end |
carry it still farther. Your debt nov, we
will say, Is twenty-five million dollars,
and the amount of interest on that sum,
multiplied by six, will give you a mill
lion and q half dollars; and now the
single item of interest upon the twenty
five million dollars taxes the people
million and half per annUm-that will
be fifteen millions IN ten years; taking
it for ten more years will be thirty mill
liOns and running it up to forty years,
you will have sixty millions of dollars
10 pay, and still the twenty-five MILLIONS
YOU have funded. Now | don't think
hat is much of plan to relieve the peo-
Die, IN this connection | wish to men,
ion another thought: What right have
you and l to live In
LUXURY AND EASE, ExTRAYAaANCE
AND PRoFLIGACY?
What right have we to eXpend thou
,anGs and millions of dollars, and then
urn round and say we will transmit TO
innocent children-debts
hat we have incurred2 Why, Mr. Jetfer-
,on, in connection with other distin-
zuished men ana writers upon that sub
ect, declared emphaticaliy that We had
no right to make a debt to exist longer
than 4 pssiority of the population lived.
Aecordif b the tables Of mortality in
nineteen years the majority of all that
Is now here will have passed away.
What right again, say, have we
10 impose debts upon those who
will come after US? As regards
funding = perhaps had better
not mention that word though; for it is
said by some that we must ignore 1t.
II is in the way. We canpOt get together
because of that word, as q great many
nave committed themselves to it. So
hey say we must not
TALK ABOUT FUNDING.
We must not talk about taxation. While
{ does seem to me that all honest men
all upright men-have right TO talk
about these matters, they say we must
ay these subjects aside, or We cannot
agree. Who has a right to say that
anding is Democratic or Radically VIII
he Democrats take it as their peculiar
measure, on viii the Radicals take 1t as
heirs. BECAUSE some Of them have got
heir fingers ca ay Both Radical and
therefore, we must ignore
.he question Of funding, and let
t 20 along. Applause. But
/ think the time has come
when we can come together upon prin-
cipIe. l think the time has come when
we ought to begin to work for our coup-
try instead OF for party. This nation,
State and federal, has been serving par
ties Long enough. l think it is pretty
near time parties were beginning to
serve their country. When I say o0un-
try, mean the people; and the people 4
ought TO get together and thing and