The Portland daily press., 1875-08-14
Iron the Bath Times,]
Let us Have Honest Money.

BATH, Aug. 18th, 1870.
Mr.. EDIToR:-There is not manufacturing
interest in Bath or in Maine, from shipbuilding
to shoemaking that is not vitality interested to.
day in having our currency brought to the spe.
Gle standard. Every enterprise in the country
to-day is languishng from the effects of the
panic of 1873, and no man of the least expert
ence or wisdom in business matters believes
that We shall have any return of solid prosper
ity except on thesbasis of returning to specie
payment
This being. the condition of affairs in the bus
mess world, how do We fiud political parties
treating the question? The Republican party
from Maine to California in every state conven-
uon, north, south, east and west, have resolved
In favor of specie payment. Maine Republic
cans are no more decided in their expressions
on this question than are those in Ohio, Iowa
and Wisconsin. Indeed the party presents one
solid front for honest money and enduring
prosperity.
The Democrats, on the other hand, are all
divided, distracted and helpless on this ques-
ton. In Maine indeed the Democrats resolve
for specie payment; bnt every Democratic pa
per in Maine is warmly supporting that notori-
GUS demagogue, Bill Allen, who is now rum
ming for Governor in Ohio, as the Democratic
candidate on platform of the indefinite ex-
pansion of an irresponsible and irredeemable
paper currency.
And every Democratic paper in Maine is
eulogizing Geo. H. Pendleton, the very apostle
of repudiation-the very embodiment. and,
indeed, the author of the paper money swim
die.
More than forty years ago Daniel Webster
warned the people of this country that emo de-
vice had ever been contrived so effective for
cheating labor Of its reward as irredeemable
paper currency" There is not farmer or
mechanic, an artisan or day laborer in Maine
that will not suffer by irredeemable paper
money. There is not one of them that will not
gain comfort and independence by having the
government return to honest money
hinbnIlHlnC fn.6a aor ha cor rsoI fo1-
most as favorable rates as before the war. Give
us specie basis and Maine will in the future
60 far ahead Of anything she has ever done in
the past in the way of shipbuilding The Dem
ocratic paper published in Augusta, the Stand
ard, quotes approvingly an article from the
Washington Capital, urging that foreign built
ships be admitted duty free to American Regis
try. This of course would be deadly blow at
shipbuilding in this country. A few years ago,
however, when Republican Congress passed
most benefcent act permitting the free impor-
tation Of all shipbuilding material, every
Democratic Senator and Representative in Con-
gress voted against it and the Democratic pa
pers in Maine opposed it and ridiculed it Now
we lind the same Democratic papers advocating
the admission of foreign built ships free of all
duty and their admission to American Regis
try. To admit ship building material free of
duty encourages the building of vessels at home
and the employment of American labor. To
admit foreign ships free destroys shipbuilding
at home and gives the preference to the foreign
laborer over the American laborer. And this
is Democracy in Maine as now preached by
their leading organs.
The article quoted and approved by the Maine
Standard advocates also the reduction of the
wages OF seamen, both officers and men, and
consequently of all laboriDg men. Low wages
for the laborer have always found warm adVo-
Gates in the Democratic ranks--never in tho
Republican ranks. The last Democratic Presi-
dent with which this country was cursed, Mr..
buchanan, was the well known advocate of re-
duclng the wages of laboring men in this coun-
try to the pauper standard of Europe. In con-
sequence of this he was known for years as
Ten cent Jimmy" 1t is quite natural that
the Democratic papers should now take up the
reduction of wages of the laborer and the ad-
mission OF foreign built ships of free American
Registry.
Let these Democrats be rebuked. Let every
laboring man rally against them for their poll
cy would reduce his wages and beggar his fam.
lily! Let every farmer rally against them-for
they would destroy American industry and
hence destroy the market for farm products.
Let every snipbuilder rally against them for
their policy of admitting foreign built vessels
would destroy shipbuilding on this continent
And finally let every man who is opposed to
lrredeemable paper money rally against the
Democracy who are its only advocates Disloy-
al to the country when it was imperilled by
war, the Democratic party now advocates
policy that would destroy our prosperity in time
of peace. Let Maine rally as one man against
this wild, unprincipled, destructive party.
A SHIPBUILDER.