The Toledo chronicle. [volume] (Toledo, Tama County, Iowa) 1873-1924, 1874-12-24
THE FREs;:,E.T, md Ias VS.
EsSIi.

az III a.. II. President IN his message
..,s ssv about the currency. frcsf
-. Cents Public history HAD sho"n
b;-, 70 be 4 man OF vasciiia''hs Paiio
- u he hsa erer manifested any as
,,o.;,;on to shift his sails in order 10 taAe
.aron.ape al change in the papic
h-eeze there might .aTe been some
-r.asonable doubt IS to villa. he would say |
ON this al absorbing question. IN hgh.
!, out on this line if it takes all summer
said the indonitable general, Whsh ne
MANNED the campaign of the Foianac
ID he did. In his devotion to the theory
much OF pvstnrn to specie payments Dc
convince ard persuaGe' hit whether he
In his ANNUAL messsre for 1868 tn,
the President said II recommend 10 you
then. such legislation as will insure q
gradual return TO specie payments and
put stop to fluctuations in the value of
currency" lie has promulgated the SAN.
doctrine in every annual message and in
auKural address from that time 10 this; and
IN his message to the Senate, ve.oing the
Currency Expansion Bill OF April ccd.
1874, referring to tie language above QUO
ted, he says: II still adler: to tie views
then expressed"
The President, having held ard advo-
Gated these views for the last Dix years,
would stultify himself by recommending
different course TO Congress cow. Nor
Vas there any good reason to fear or be-
lieve that he would It is true that the
tenor of the discussions ia the last session
Of Congress, and the results OF the late
elections, made it probable that 5 different:
doctrine would meet with more popular
favor but whatever other faults may be
justly chargeable upon the President, he
has never been guilty Ct changing The e1
preston of his views for the aake pleas
ing the multitude He has not in his con-
stitution any Ct the elements of the polisi-
cal trimmer or time server, but acts steadi-
ly from his OWE convictions as to the pub
lie good, regardless Of the question
which with too many Of our politicians Is
the all controlling one-whether tie ma
jority is going to be for OF against him.
4
Currency Question the first and chic! topic
OF his message, and again, with increased
emphasis, he urges npon Congress the ne
cessity OF providing for speedy return TO
specie payments. And We may well be-
lisve that this question of the currency will
be for few years TO come, as it has been
T.. q few years past, the principal topic i
of noHtir>.l discussion in and out of Con- /
gress.
We ars fully convinced that the differ I
ence Of opinion which prevails up" this
question is TO be attributed not go m,'ch
to the inherent difficulty in the principles
of political econmy involved, rs to the
dirsrys1cg eff interest which different Sec
tons Of the country have, or Mtat they
aaye- n. the final determination Of the ques
ton.
The treat fact is apparent thatthe West
IS -ar1s " indebted to the East, not only
10: ~ktt ds and lands purchased, but for
vsGff ums of money borrowed. The
-~es' .nows very well that if greenbacks
u
- -.7-~- .-l.arl IA
tsFrs more CT them, it will be easier to get
=ena, Ugh III them to par debt Of thous-
anti del ans, than TO get thousand dol
ara II gold or in paper which can
%. t2e changed for gold at par. In other
~ ords, il will take fewer bushels OF whest
-sor OF anything else which represents labor,
to paw debt in greenbacks than il gold,
when more wheat must he given for 6
cold dollar, than for $50 called dollar
greenback. The Western debtor. therefore,
because ii ts for his personal interest, may
naturally be expected to overlook the
national interest, and 70 advocate an eI-
psns:on Of the currency and oppose
any and all legislation which looks toward
return TO specie.
On the other hand, the eastern creditor,
having his interest alone in view, desires
10 have hisW estern debtor pay him in gold,
rather t. An in greenbacks, for the very
apparent reason that one thousand gold
dollars will bay him more food and cloth
ing, or anything else he may desire, than
ons thousand dollars IN greenbacks,
4nlsss the greenbacks are worth az much
as gold snd ezchsHgeble for it; in other
words, unless we are doing business on a
specie basis. Consequently the East is
opposed to expansion, and is heartily in
favor Of specie payments.
Hero is direct conflict at least an APP
percent conflict, between the interests Of
the East and the West: and the vote OF
the Currency Expansion Bill Of April 22d,
of 1874, shows plainly enough that it was
this difference 81 interest that determined
the fate of that bill, SO far as Congress
was concerned. The Senator's and Rep
resentatives from the West. almost to q
man, voted for expansion, while the mem
bers from the East as unanimously voted
against it.
But when will this difference Of interest ,
come to an endi When will the West
seacc to be in debt to the East? No one can ,
tell, but certainly not for centuries to
come. And it is certain that until that
time comes the nation cannot have set :
tied currency, unless congressman will !
agree magnanimous,y to hold the tempo |
rary interests of their constituents sub ]
servient 20 the interests and prosperity !
of the nation, and plant theselyes upon .
those eternal principles of political econo
my, .hich, when put into the form OF
laws, will Immediately give confidence to
traue, and in due time bring prosperity TO
the whole country. If the national rros-
perity demands return TO specie pay !
ments, the West ought to be patriotic !.
enough to submit to the temporary incon. !
vience which it would apparently suffer !.
by .uch return And if ii is best for the :
whole country that We should have more !,
greenbacks, the East in ike manner,
ought to waive any loss which such . |,
sourse would entail. 1t is the patriotic
duty Of every American citizen to prefer
the permanent good Of the whole nation
to the temporary good of his own section, :.
or even of himself The man who seeks ,
his own advantage as against the pros