Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1875-03-12
OUR SPENDTHRLFT UNCLE

FRIDAY MORNING. MARCH IL, 1875.
OUR SPENDTHRLFT UNCLE
There is no delusion that has taken
stronger possession of the Southern people
than that our Uncle Sam is prosperous,
well-to-do-in short, rich. The very name
of the Government has become associated
with ideas Of great Treasury vaults filed
with tight-bellied money bags, and the
idea has saturated our judgment SO that
We even look upon the pettiest officers in
its employ as persons having mysterious
backing Of unteld wealth somewhere or
other, we can't tell exactly where. Much
Of this delusion comes from our enforced
absence from our Uncle. When we
left in 81 he was prosperous, thrifty
farmer, with just enough money to meet
his wants without forcing his boys too
much; when we came back after our ter
rife four years. frolic among the husks.
returning not 50 much as prodigal sons as
being, so to speak, led back by the ears,
we found him, in our hungry view Of it.,
rolling in wealth. By a magical touch he
had changed paper into gold, or at least
made it nearly as good, and he was sling
ing his money about in the profusest way.
Without stopping to remember that he
owed everybody, that some day this paper
would have to be paid in gold, and that we
would be taxed to do it, we counted him
as rich. It is true that the glimpses that
the ex-prodigals caught Of his Golfers were
few and far between, but this was attri-
buted to the selfishness OF the other brother
who had stayed at home and who was very
much irritated with us for having given so
much trouble in the family; but nothing
shook the idea that Uncle Sam was rich.
And it was an idea which was largely
traded upon. When Southern man got
ND any sort Of claim against the Govern
ment, it was pleaded in amelioration of his
extortion that lit was to come out Of the
Yankees whom a Congressman COW
cred his back grab into the treasury of his
breaches pocket, it was argued that he had
beaten the s'Y ankees" out of that much
that if he hadn't taken it, it would have
gone to those Y ankees;" and when the
widest scheme of internal improvement,
such, for instance, as the guaranteeing of
one hundred and twenty four millions of
dollars of bonds Of the Texas Pacific rail-
road, were preached, it was protested That
the sharpness Of the thing was in it's Civ
ing the South some show at the National
Treasury. The people had been so long
weaned from the National Government
that they forgot that they were partners in
the concern atall, and had to bear their
share of taxation to support its extrava.
gance. They were SO worried about their
local rights that there seemed to be sort
Of tacit agreement that, if only the State
governments were spared to them, the
Federal Government might do pretty mucf
O. it pleased in the way Ct corruption and
the extravaganza flowing from it. Their.
are 10 many people who don't pay Fed
eral tax that they lose sight Of it, and for
get that the few who do, make them il
turn bear their proportion. For example
there is one distillery firm in Augusta tina
pays more tax to the U. S. Government
than the whole county pays to the State O
Virginia: upon reading which the farme
will say, "Well, what is that to me?
don't use the liquor" But it is grea
deal to him. The distiller with heav,
tax cannot pay him as much for his corr
as he could with light one, and if thu
farmer insists upon it the distiller sends II
the West for cheaper grain. So you sex
the supposed wealth comes out Of ever
one of us at last.
But then our uncle isn't rich atall. He
has given away the public lands; SO hi
hasn't any reserved capital, and is living
on sort of hand~to-mouth principle. HI
tells us now and then that we must b
aniet under taxation because he is reduc
ing the public debt, which is partly true
for every month or two he does Top off f;
million or 50. but then he gets deeper init
the people to pay for it. Look at this ex
hibit Of Congressional appropriations:
v.,, AIS TT5 Ens az o33 5s