The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1874-08-11

with his deliberate speeches on record against
the gold bill of March lS, 1863, and his vote re-
corded in the negative on its passage on page ~
Of the Congressional Globe of the first session OF
the For y-first Congress, he comes before the
its favor a settlement, and asks his partisans
10 turn about as he does -
TWO REASONS GIVEN BY THE SENATOR FOR
HIS CHANGE.
But Senator Morton gives two reasons for
abandoning his own former conclusive reason
ings ON this subject which call for notice at my
hands, however trifling and fallacious they may
be. He seems to concede still that the five
twenty bonds were payable in legal tender
notes, but seeks to escape.their actual payment
in that way by assuming that they must be paid
i'm the very identical notes in existence when
the.bonds were issued, and In no other like
kind. Even If this construction OF the Law was
warran ted, there is a clause at the close of the
first section OF the act of February ., 1852, which
is broad enough to carry If out. 1t is there pro-
vided that the greenbacks may be re-issued as
often as the exigencies OF the public may re-
ouire By so doing the same object could be ac-
complished in the redemption of bonds by
the issue ofn legal tender notes. But no at
tempt has been made to thus comply with the
law in the payment of the national debt, and
the reduction of its interest demands. do not
believe, however, that the powers OF Con-
gress are so limited and feeble that, after it has
declared by law in favor of paying public debt
in certain wsy, it has no power 10 provide the
s 70 ranre s eqislafion in the inter-
est of the moneyed classes IL would not be long
DELAYED, and the arguments in It's favor would
flood the land. It Is enough however on this
point that the Supreme Court of the United
States has decided that Congress has the consti.
tutional power to issue paper currency and
make it legal tender. The power of Congress
being conceded its exercise should follow In the
fulfilment OF It's promises to pay in that kind of
money. a he idea that the government may
have the constitutional power TO make con-
tract in behalf of the people with public credl,
tors, and yet be destitute of the constitutional
power 10 carry out the terms of the contract
thus made, seems too absurd for argument In
embraced by a man of the robust and vigorous
intellectually OF Senator Morton except as the
resort of desperation Every lawyer who has ex.
knows that new greenbacks may be issued, or
old ones re-issued, and used in payment OF the
bonds under consideration.
THE ACT OF JUNE so, 1864.
But Senator Morton recited the act of Congress
OF June 80, 1854, as pledge that the American
government will never. under any circumstan-
ces, without any Limitation as to time, though
wars may assail us, and our necessities be ever
so urgent, issue or suffer TO be issued more than
4OOOOOCO0 of legal tender notes This pledge ac-
cording to the senator extends through all time,
and can be broken in no contingency. 1he his
tory of the world is full of such foolish nalities.
One generation, thinking itself wise enough for
all time to come, hasloften attempted TO bind all
the generations that were to come after IT. Such
preSum ptious efforts, however, have always
been spurned whenever they stood in the way
of the public wants and of human progress. So
terTnine that the greenback circulation ought to
be increased for the best interest OF the country
beyond 4OO,OOOOC0 by the grad ual payment OF the
$50 bonds, or by the substitution OF greenbackS
for national banking currency, this pretended
pledge viii no more bind them than the obsolete
blue laws of Connecticut now bind the enlight-
ened de cendeniS of their ignorant and narrow
minded fathers. Let us, however, obey the law.
and fulfill the law. and allow the consequences
10 follow in their natural order. 1t needs no gift
of prophecy to fOretell that they Will be favOra-
BILE TO the laboring masses OF the country, and
ind lima 70 int
THE PROOF SUMMED UP THAT THE $40 BONDS
ARE PAYABLE IN GREENBACKs.
If any further defense of the first and second
resolutions of the democratic platform is
needed, L will refer my audience to the Congress
sional Globe, part fifth of the second session OF
the Fortieth Congress, page AIS. There we find
Thadeus Stevens, who, as chairman of the ways
and means committee, had reported all the
laws nave cte4 on gnelng s ms con
higher authority. Speaking of the 5:2O bonds,
he says
money, just as the gentleman understands
money, Just as understand Ii, Just as we all
understand IL when we passed the law author
izing that loan, Just as it a dozen times eX-
planned upon the floor by the chairman of the
committee of ways and means when called
upon by gentlemen 10 explain what 1T meant,
meant"
And again the old republican leader ex-
claimed:
II want to say that if this loan was to be paid
according 10 the intimatiOn of the gentleman
| from Illinois tMr. Rossl If knew that any
party in this country would go for paying in
coin that which is payable in money, thus en-
a platform and such a determination this day
on the part of any party, / would vote for the
| for no such swindle on the tax payers of this
country; would vote for no such speculation
in favor of the large bondholders, the million
aires, who took advantage OF our folly in grant
invthem coin payment of interest"
Senator sherman of Ohio, the chairman of
| finance In the Senate, gave similar cOnstruc-
| tion to the laws under consideration, and
many leaders and State conventions of the re-
this point. How stands this charge of repudia-
ton madeby Senator Morton against the demOc-
rasy of Indiana? Who are the repudiationists? ?
Those who abide by the law those who repu-
diate the law? brand as the repudiators of the
| faith of the nation those who have broken and
| to obtain money unlawfully from the people.
This form of repudiatton is abroad in the land,
and know of no other that's. III these resolu-
| tions in the democratic platform favor repudia-
/ tton, then so did Senator Morton himself five
man, the republican state platforms of Ohio and
Indiana In 1855, and the entire republican press
1 ofthe west at that time. Add TO this array OF
fiscal agent of the government to sell It's bonds,
| advertised the ten-forty bonds as the only ones
whose principal as well az interest, was paya-
bic In coin, and am content to leave this
branch of nay subject.
| RETURN TO SPECIE PAYMENT.
From what have already said my views in
regard TO the return TO specie payment may be
easily anticipated. When the debts which were
contracted, as We have seen, TO be paid in paper
shall have been discharged, and the business in
terests ofthe laboring masses demand, then Will
be the proper time for specie payments, and not
before Money is simply a means of trade
amongst individuals and nations, and that kind
| of money which inspires and retains confidence
| ana IS cReapIy put IN c1rculat1on, and easily
handled Is the best for the people. At this time
| our government currency has these requisites
and there can be no object in q return to specie
payment now, except TO still further oppress
those who are in debt, and still further enrich
public and private creditors. There is much
talk in regard TO system of exports and i'm
ports, by which we may procure and
| retain q sufficient amount OF gold to
| redeem our circulation and pay every
i thing in specie. This is delusion