The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1875-10-08
Senator WuUace-s Great Speech.


September by Hon William A. Wal
lace, and commend it to the consldera-
ton ofall ofour readers. The Republl-
can party has had uninterrupted control
of the State government from 1860 up
to the present day VIII any intelli-
gent man, after having read the figures
aud facts presented by Senator Wal
lace, pretend to say that change i'll
the management of the affairs of the
State is not imperatively demanded
in the interest of every taxpayer in
the commonwealth The people are
thoroughly in earnest on this subject
and are fatally bent upon a change of
administra alton. SO that extravaganza
and corruption shall be dethroned, and
honesty and reform be made the rute
in the future, and not the erceptton,
as they have been in the past.
The expense of your State government
have increased from SAG, 900, in 1880, 20
| 81 ,096, 1913, in 1874. The control of patron
age, power, and place is vested i'll a cabal
of men who dicta te nominations, prescribe
/ regiSatton, and farm the revenues of your
/ great State. A system of taxation devised
/ in their interest fills your Treasury at the
( expense of your industrial corporations or
! is so imposed as to be wruug ultimately
/ Fl ON the people. Taxes upon real estate
/ have been repealed to give the excuse for
/ the change of your loans from five to
six per cent, to the end that a full Treas
( ury might be at hand to make earnings for
/ personal gain and political purposes, and
! the people were made to pay thereby, since
/ 1861, more than 50, 600, 000 by this act alone
/ This subject is one that is worthy the con-
! sderatiOn of the gentleman who opened the
/ campaign at Reading, and as its results are
! upon us yet, and daily affect the finances of
! the State, it is pertinent to inquire how ii
was done ? what has been done? and why
! it was done? The act of February2, 1867,
originated in the Treasury. Its spacious
/ pretext was the lifting of our overdue debt
! aud funding it SO as to meet it at maturity.
( 1t incl eased the interest upon S23, 900, 0Q0 of
the State de bt from five to six per cent. See
! its first effect upon the taxpayers OF the
State:
/ On December l. 1866, the whole debt
/ ON thi, we paid AN annual Interest of $50. .iSj
/ ON December l. 1861, the whole debt , go,
/ On this we paid an annual interest of 2253, ,0:}3
/ SO that after paying $3.50 621 of the pub
/ lie deot, we were required to pay $40, S91
more interest than we did the year before.
/ For the seven years that have passed from
December. 1867, to December 1874, one
per cent. upon the whole $230, 900 per year
for seven years makes an aggregate of ST.
6l0. .000 add to this the cost Of placing the
/ loan, $50, ,606; interest paid in 1861 more
! than in 1866, $40, S91 total cost of new
loan to the people to December !, 1874,
50, 149, 503. What was the ulterior purpose
of this change of loan? 1t was to increase
! the balance III the Treasury; it was to fill
up the vaults for use by those who CON
, trOlled the finances. See its result. BY
I the repor. of the State Treasurer for 1867
we fiud that he had in his hands an average
monthly balance of So, 5S2, 2f4. By tue
same report for 1868 the average monthly
balance is shown 10 be 50, 800, 900. These
are grand totals glorious pickings for skill
ful findnciers, rich placers for political use
The Qualification over the reduction in the
total of the debt prompts me to give it a
glance i'll passing. 1t is to be remem bered
that the sinking fund policy and its results
belong to the Democracy, for they origina-
ted it. and without their active aid its effects
would have been utterly destroyed. Off
cial records fully prove this fact.
From 1860 to 1874, inclusive, the Treas
ury has received from the people the
people the sum Of..........-.......sS SD, ,9223, sos
The public debt, December.
III. public debt, December,
1874, Is-.-..--.... A,5H9,6sS
/, Whole cash paid on debt. .sI3 3s9.4l2
Interest paid on public debt 2S,960,SSs}
Money to be accounted fur............Si4,5I3I Ig3
Thirteen millions of debt have been paid
and forty-four and a half millions of money
have still to be accounted for. Where are
they? They can only be accounted for by
reckless expenditure. extravaganza i'm ad-
miniStratiOn, and misa ppropriati0n of as
Q sets. \ full treasury 10 produce interest
for those who rule at Harrisburg has been
:he policy for years. and in the attempt to
2 expose 1t You and your representatives. have
: been turned from its doors and denied the
right to know how and where their money
is kept These Illegal earnings have again
and again been used in political contests to
5 determine results against your will. Inf
: deity TO public trusts has been the .rnle.
. personal gain the controlling thought. The
, calm and intelligent scrutiny of a bile
= Executive, who will WELD his veto power
and his control over the Commissioners of
[ the Sinking Fund with decision and force
I IN the interests of the people, an honest and
: faithful administration of the State Treas
, ury through which its exact condition will
be unroled as a scroll for the inspection of
l the people, are now Indispensable i'm the
! interests of all. The policy of the past and
g of the present must be reversed Salaries
: must be reduced. Economy and retrench-
! ment must become the rule. An empty
Treasury with ease in taxation is infinitely '
better than overtlowing Golfers foI the prof.
e it of those who rule prompt application
| of the moneys of the State to the payment
. of the debt no perquisites for officials
/, save the salaries fixed 10y law the books OF
every department open to public inspection
by every taxpayer. These are our pledges
: to those whose votes we seek. With such
+ record, both State and National, as oul
! adversaries have made, with hard times
oppressive taxation, and completely with
y corrupt rule justly chargeable to them, it i.
e not strange that the people arc restive ano
: demand a change. BE it our duty tc Pre-
n claim their wrongs and shortcomings, anC
:. to aggressively strike them therefor i'm ever,
. hamlet ut every cross road, and i'm ever,
schocl-house in all this broad Common
e wealth hence to the idcs of November.
r Pardon me for word personal to myself
o When last occupied this stand, year ago
=. | was YOUR candidate for fifth term in LII,