New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1874-08-06
VOLUME VIII---NO. lC
THE KEY NOTE OF THE CAMPAIGN
senator a1orton's Speech.

senator Morton's Speech.
On Friday evening, July 81, Senator
Morton delivered an address at the Opera
House at Terre Haute, Indiana, wl6ch
NAV be considered the key note of the COM
ing campaign in that State. He commenced
by saying:
The Democratic party is out OF power,
and is struggling to regain it. 1t is the op-
position aud attempts to seize upon every
popular discomfort, and to avail itself Of
every local passion to ipjure the Republican
party. 1t presents nopolcy for the admin
istration of the government. and makes no
attempt to preserve consistency. 1t feels
at liberty to profess in one locality what it de-
MES in another, and TO take any position in
one State to strike the Republican party
blow, without regard to the ground which
it occupies upon the same question IN other
States. It. does not hesitate to use any
weapon of assault, knowing that there ls
little responsibility attached to those who
are struggling to gain power as compared
with those who are in possession OF 1t and
who are responsible for its exercise
Illustrations are given of this, as free
trade and revenue from taxation in Maine,
protective tariff in Pennsylvania, revenue
tariff in Indiana; positions on all sides on
the temperance question, with strong
,eanng TO intemperance. In contrast to
this
The principles and constitution of the
Republican party put it naturally upon the
side of temperance as against lntemperance,
of freedom as against slavery, OF the people
against monopoly, of labor, free schools, IN
tellectual and moral progress. 1t is a pro-
gressive party, and whenever it ceases to
be so and becomes conservative, then you
may begin to talk about its mission being
performed It is qualified to grapple with
every new issue that is presented. has its
face to the future, and holds that the work
of reform is its normal and necessary con-
dition.
After declaring there is no room for a
third party the panic of last year and the
currency bills are discussed with reference
to the debates on immediate return to
specie payments He declares that the
$45, ,O0O, 600 increase, being slowly absorbed
by the Southern States, would have caused
no imitation. Of the bill that passed, fixing
the amount of legal tender notes at 1882,
O00 900 for permanent circulation. and tax
ing from the Secretary of the Treasury the
power to retire the $26,000,O00 of such
notes, which had been issued after the
commencement Of the panic, he says:
It is not expansion by creating new
currency, but by putting into circulation
some $4,000 900 of existing currency which
had been locked up in the vaults OF the
banks. The effect of this bill in expanding
the volume of currency in circulation was
against it. and those who voted against 1,
did so for that reason. The bill extin
guished the threat of contraction which
hung over the business of the country like
a suspended sword and is an explicit de
claration against that policy.
The time of the panic was not the time to
attempt to redeem greenbacks in coin. A,
that time he said:
/ agree that the faith of the government
is pledged to redeem what are called green.
backs In coin. l agree to that as fully and
as strongly as anybody; and further agree
that we are to keep steadily in view re,
wrong time to do right thing; and in my
opinion this is not the time in which we
should adopt definite measures to redeem
these notes in coin, unless the time be put
off 30 far that it will not increase the present
embarrassment or intensity the effects OF
the panic upon the country
The Democratic plank requiring the re-
peal of the national banking law he con-
siders would simply revive the old system
of State banks, with all the evils OF a local,
unsecured, unreliable currency, which does
not circulate beyond the limits of the
State in which it is created, which from
year to year perishes in the hands OF the
people, and under which the States OF the
West and South paid cOnstrnt tribute to the
Eastern States in the form of exchange.
The national banks afford q currency that
is perfectly secured, in which every body
has entire confidence, that is OF uniform
value in every part OF the United otates'
-, pforfo q n
uuestionably the safest and most satisfactory
bank currency this country has ever had.
The proposition to destroy this banking
system involves radical change in the
finances and business of the country, the
collection and withdrawal of more than
have made to the people. the vast derange'
ment. contraction and distress which such
an event must produce upon the business
OF the country, and years OF doubt and ex
pertinent before another system can be es
tablished ir its place.
The argument that the government has
an increased burden in paying interest tG
these banks on their deposited bonds il
shown to be false:
The bonds which the banks deposit with
the government as a security for the re
demptiOn and payment of their notes they
have to buy in the market, just like any
body else, paying the same prices Ii these
bonds were not held by the banks they
would be held by others, for they we're al
ready in existence before the banks pur
chased them, and whether the interest ii
paid to the banks or private parties, as thu
holder of these bonds, can make no differ
ence to the government.
The contradictory resolutions of the Dem
ocratic platform, that the government
should issue s354OOO,OOO of additiona
greenbacks and that it should Immediately
resume specie payments, are contrasted:
If the government can not procure the
gold wherewith to redeem $685., ,O00, 900 OF
greenbacks, the present amount in circula
tiOn, how will it be able to redeem the
greenbacks when the volume shall have
been increased by adding 1854 ,OO0, 900 more
in place of the national bank currency
making s736,OOO,OOO of greenbacks9
The government is pledged that the vol
ume of greenbacks shall never exceed
$4OO, 900, 900. The Democrats denounced
the legal tender acts as unconstitutional
sustained Chief Justice Chase in his de
cision to that effect; denounced the Presi
dent and the Supreme Court when the
decision was reversed and now they urge
the issue of greenbacks should be doubled
and used to pay the fve-twenty bonds sold
by the government years before.
The position of these Democratic leaders
Is subject to this criticism-that during the