Wilmington daily commercial., 1875-08-10

dollar. what would be their vslus il the amount
Ts5 increased to $500 600, 600 or 81 ,0O0 600 600
With no hope prospect or Prstense that thej
would evsr ks teaesneds Let su? nan Of com
mon ssnss answer. But it is said that the legsl
tender quality, the fact thst the debtor can com
pei the creditor to take them in payment oil
debts, will preserve their value even If they are
never to be redeemed or paid The simple an
swer to this is that when tho volume Of green
backs is largely increased, and all prospect or
pretense Of payment is abandoned, people will
refuse to sell their property or labor upon cre-
dit, knowing that they can be compelled to re-
ceive in payment deprecated paper never to be
redeemed
But we are told that any amount of this paper
will float, because the faith, and credit
of the country are pledged for it. II there be
no way to convert the resources credit of the
| Government to the payment Of the notes, what
does the security amount to? II all the real estate
| in the Union were mortgaged for the payment
| Of these notes-Dut there is no way to forecose,
| to collect, to convert-what does the mortgage
| amount to Stripped of all DISCUSSES and pre-
| lenses, the substitution Of greenbaeks for ma
| tional bank notes will be understood by the
country declaration that these notes will
never be redeemed.
But here unmask this whole frand and I'M
| posture. The advocates Of more greenbacks in
| the place OF national banknotes are the enemies
OF the greenbacks, ,as they have ever been. They
are utterly opposed to national currency in
every form. When the greenback currency was
first proposed in 1882, and WAS Indispensable to
the suppression Of the rebellion and the preser-
vation of the Union, thelDemooratic leaders ey-
erywhere denounced it as unconstitutional. did
everything in their power to make it worthless
and to bring it into dishonor. This warfare
against the constitutionaty of greenbacks has
neyor been relinquished to this hour When
Chief Justice Chase, with the majority OF the
Supreme Court, decided that the issue Of green
backs during the war, under a military necessity
to preserve the life of the nation,
was unconstitutional, the decision was
heralded everywhere by the Democratic
party as the grandest triumph of our constitu-
honA principles known in our HISTORY, and
when, afterwards dnring the administration of
General Grant, the membership OF that court
having somewhat changed, the court decided, by
8 ajority Of one, that the issue of greenbacks
during the war, under pressure Of national mill
tary necessity, was constitutional, the Democratic
party, with one accord throughout the United
States, declared that the decision was corrupt
and that the court had been packed by President
Grant for that purpose, And you will remember
that, during the CANVASS of 1879, the charge of
having packed tue Supreme Court, to procure q
decision sustaining greenbacks, in fragrant viola
ton OF the Constitution, WAS the most persistent
and clamorous made against General Grant and
the Republican party. Democratic leaders have
not changed their opinions upon that subject.
Only the other day. at Gallpolis, Mr. Pendle-
ton asserted, i'll the strongest terms, that az a
Hehper OF ConBress he had opposed the Issue
OF greenbacks in 1862 because they were uncon-
sttutional, that he had never changed his opin-
ion, and believed that Congress had no such
power. Mr.. Thurman, Mr.. Bayard and ] believe
every Democratic member OF the Senate, have
from time to time denied the power of Congress-
to make greenbacks legal tender, charged that
the Supreme Court by which the decision was
made was packed, although the decision went no
further than holding that Congress had the
power to pass such a law in time of war. II the
1amnaratie halt tbot ,y,na
are unconstitutional. how we sufficiently con-
denim the hypocrisy of the demand for a new is-
sue OF hundreds Of millions to take the place of
national bank notes? II they believe them to |
be constitutional, no condemnation can be se- |
we're enough for their conduct during the war; |
when they denied their constitutionaty and did |
all in their power to dishonor them, at time |
when they were necessary to preserve tho life |
OF the nation.
The question as to whether Treasury note /
can be made legal tender in payment of debt |
is purely question of law, to be decided finally
by the Supreme Court OF the United States and |
there is not respectable Democratic lawyer |
now in the State of Ohio who does not believe
that new law creating further issue OF green
backs az substitute for national bank notes, or
for any other purpose, would be declared by
that court unconstitutional and void.
This whole scheme OF further issue OF green
backs, in lien OF of national bank notes, az
raign here to-day as bypocritical and treacher-
ous, designed in the first place to effect the des-
tructon OF national banks, and then by their
volume, and then by the decision OF the courts,
to destroy the greenbacks themselves, and pave |
the way for the restoration Of the old State bank |
system. The State sovereignty party will never |
stop short OF State banks. A national cur
rency, whether Of greenbacks or bank notes,
ls hateful to that party which sbhors |
the national idea and desires that
there is not ono nation, but thirty-seven sov-
ereign powers. The party which clamors con-
stantly about centralizng and federal assump-
ton can never be the friend OF the greenback
which represents the highest form Of national
sovereignty. Every year the proposition has
been brought forward in Congress to repeal the
law taxing the notes of State banks, which drove
these banks out Of existence, ,.and the repeal Of
which would again open up the flood gates for
pubic and private robbery by the establishment
the States. Only last year Mr.. Thurman and
every Democratic Senator voted for PROPOSE
uon TO repeal that law, which was offered as an
amendment to finance bill.
The restoration OF tue State bank system
means as many systems Of banking rs there
are States, violent expansions and contractiops,
hundreds of broken banks and millions of
bank-note trash dying in the hands of the peo-
pie 1t means the Western and Southern States
shall again pay millions of tribute to the
Eastern States i'll the form OF exchange It
means that the citizen OF Ohio cannot pay his
hotel bills in New York or Boston with Ohio
money, without suffering shave or buying
Eastern FUNDS. 1t means that no man can re-
ceiYe the price OF horse without examining a
counterfeit detector to see that the money h
good or that the bank is not broken, The
Old state bank system is necessary to the State
Rights Democracy. The party that denies the
naton and hates everything national, turns
with aversion from national currency State
sovereignty and State banks are twin relics of
hal yn |