The Tiffin tribune. (Tiffin, Ohio) 1868-1887, 1874-09-17

cratic Convention of Tennessee. III
current is widening and deepening
and now in Ohio-which never shranl
: from the burden of her debt-neve
: for a moment violated her faith-nev
er even listened to such advice, excep
in the almost forgotten days OF By
: ington and MeNulty, and then, rejee
! ting their counsel, sold her bonds 81
! fifty cents on the dollar to pay her in
! terest-even in Ohio, which we proud
ly claim as a model State, the Demo
cratic party in their recent Conven
, ton squint toward reputation, but dt
not boldly, like the Indiana DemOcra
cy, assert their purpose to commit it
The OhiO Democrats resolve as fol
. lows
THAT the Democracy of Ohio reit
crate their declaration that the five
twenty bonds, by the letter and spiri
of the law, and the general under
standing of the community, were pay
able in legal.tender notes, and the act
of March, 1859, which pledged the
faib of the Nation to their payment
in coin, was an unnecessary and wick.
ed sacrifice of the interests of the tax
paying laborers for the benefit of TIE
non-tsx-paying bondholders.n
PROPOSED NATIONAL DIsHONOR.
The Indiana Democrats assert as fol-
lows:
"That We are in favor of the re-
demption Of the five-twenty bonds in
greenbacks, according to the law I'M
der which they were issued"
The Ohio Democrats do not say they
will pay the bonds in greenbacks, but
they stop short and denounce the act
of March, 1869. They say that the
bonds were payable in greenbaeks,
and do not say whether they may
now be paid in greer backs. It is a
most lame, pitiful and Impotent con-
clusIon. If this policy of reopening
the questions settled by the act of
March, 1869, is not sheer demagogism
it is by far the most important issue
of the canvass. Prior to 1869 there
were some honest differences of opin-
ion as to the construction of our loan
laws. The act of March, 1863, was
universally regarded as forever set
Ting this question. It declared that
the public faith was pledged to the
payment of both bcn 3 and notes in
coin. 1t was passed by a Congress
fresh from the people by a vote of 80
yeas to AZ nays 10 the House, and in
the Senate by y yeas to 13 nays 1t
was universally acqulesced in. The
effect of the act was Immediately to
advance the public credit. 1t led to
confidence and prosperity and the rap
id payment of the public debt. Under
the policy thus inaugurated three hun.
dred and eighty-two millions Of the
debt has been paid, the rate of inter-
est has been reduced on five hundred
millions more of the debt still due,
and an annual saying of interest has
been made of over twenty-five mill
lions. A period of unexampled pros
perity set in, which has only been
checked by too rapid development
of distant and unprOductive railroads.
Gentlemen, the reopening of this
controversy Is real calamity The
failure of confidence in railroad IN
vestments was the cause of the recent
panic. This swept away fortunes like
hurricane. Its receding waves still
paralyZe business, and especially in
the production of iron and manufac-
lures of iron. What then will be the
effect Of destroying confidence in pub
lie securities and the public faith
What would be the effect of hurrying
home our discredited debt? What
will be the result if the United States
should now, in violation of the public
faith, begin to pay out its newly print
ed notes in payment Of bonds? 1t Is
this danger to the public credit that
ought now to be grappled with and
throttled by the people of Ohio with
the fierce energy they grsppled and
throttled Vallandigham in 1868. Un-
tarnished honor, honor so pure that it
is not only free from open fault, but
from even the shadow of it, this is the
pride of State-men may not attain
it, but organized States can. Fellow
citizens, this movement, whether un-
der the open flag of reputation raised
by the Indiana Democrats or the COW
ert, evasive threat of reputation in
the Ohio Democratic platform, is dis
honor, shameless, palpable and fla
grant, with which We Republicans
have this day made issue.
AN IMPENDING DANGER.
Again 1 call your attention to the
second clause of the section of the
Fourteenth Amendment read by me.
1t provides that neither the United
States nor any State shall assume to
pay any debt or obligation in aid of
the rebellion-or any claim for the
loss Of any slave. This provision is
also in constant danger Of violation.
Claims have been assumed by States
under the control Of the Democratic
party which grew out of aid to the re-
belliOn.
One of the dangers that now threat
ems our future Is the mption by
the General Government, through
the agency of the Democratic party,
of an overwhelming mass of claims
growing out OF the war. Heretofore,
by the careful watchfulness of the Re
publican party in Congress, the pay
ment of claims in the Confederate
States have been confined to supplies
furnished to our army and to such
claims as by the well defined laws of
war belligerent ought to pay for sup
plies in an enemy's country. Even
these are enormous. / read you a
statement recently made by Judge
Lawrence, of Ohio:
"Some idea of the magnitude of
these claims may be had by the fact
that the claims presented TO the Com
missiOners of Claims reach $50, ,033, ,764
4nO5G hOn OclOLO NOukICS6
reach about so, 900, 900, many of which
are test claims, which, If successful,
will be followed by very many mill
lions more. The judgments of the
Court of Claims for year 1873 amount
to S489, ,034. The claims paid under
relief acts by Congress for the same
year were S797, ,S4S. can not state
the amount paid on allowance of the
hHnf ff frn
aud included 81, $3.50, ,679 for captured
and abandoned property. Senator
Davis, in his speech of May IL, esti-
mates that all pending war claims be-
fore the departments, the COmmis-
sioners of Claims and Congress num-
ber SO, 242 aggregating SIS, ,547, ,12l."
TINS vast volume Of claims might
easily be enlarged by the adoption of
plausible rules so as 70 include several
hundred millions of dollars and thus
add many of the losses suffered by the
rebels to the burden of our public
debt. This the Democratic party, If
in power, will be sure to do, for there
has been no case or class of cases that
the Democratic members do not vote
for. A Democratic Congress means
a vast enlargement of the public debt
by the vast assumption of rebel
claims. This is not a fanciful danger.
Not only is there danger of the Ma
tional Government being overburden-
ed with debts caused by the rebellion,
but now daily the actual services rem.
dered and sacrifices suffered by lead
ing rebels are rewarded by the Demo-
cratic party-not for acquiescence in
the results of the war, as in the case
of Longstreet and others, but as q di-
rect reward and compensation for ser
vices rendered to the Confederate
States, and as q mark of honor for
duty done. Persons without number
have been appointed and elected to Of
| fee in Democratic States, solely be-
cause they were active, jealous and
able officers and agents of the Confed-
crate States. Such service is almost 8
prerequisite for Office in some of the
Democratic States. 1t may be said
that the right to vote precludes all
question Of the reason for a vote, but
when We are invited to join the Demo-
cratic party, we may well inquire in
to the motives tbst inspire, and the
influence that controls that party
where it has full power.
Sanofnr Eharnnan nnWf raFnaan6a1 m