The workingman's advocate. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1864-1877, 1875-07-31
Shot and Slaughter.

i desire to thank you for your defense O
the legal tenders or peoples money, An,
particularly for your Just and able criti
. cism OF an article recently published in tn
New York Tribune threatening with "shO
and slaughter" the people Of the countr,
the "sdns cttIottes," as it styles them il
other instances-who do not agree will
the financial policy Of the bankers, user
ers, and money lenders IL would be har,
to compress a greater amount Of insolenc,
into the same space than is found in tn,
following paragraph from that organ Of tn,
Wall street dynasty. 1t says
THAT terrible spirit which arrays labol
in arms against capital and excites ignor
ance, and want to tear down the pillar
which sustain the whole structure of mod
ern civ ilizAtion and industry, in Other
lands it has more than once been necessary
to crush out with shot and slaughter"
We are now experiencing a foretaste oil
the condition of things which you so vel
described as occurring in England at the
time Of specie resumption after the Napo
leonic wars, and which had to be enforced
BY "shot and slaughter "a means to which
the Tribune insinuates it may be necessary
to resort in order to accomplish a similar
object In this country, to-wit the estab-
llshment OF bankocracy or money oil
garchy. There is no room to doubt that
the object Of the Tribune and other papers
y and parties now denounclng the legal tend
ers or peoples money as irredeemable
trash, engraved lies, etc, and clamoring
for specie resumption, is to force the re-
tirement of every dollar of the greenbacks,
and to surrender the power and franchise
of furnishing the circulating medium to
the so-called national banks, but which are
in reality only institutions organized under
national authority for private gain.
This Is the system that the Tribune and
other journals ran in the interest Of the
bankers and others Of the money lending
class. They would have the people be-
lieve that this is the main pillar which sus-
tanned their rights and liberties, and that
it ought to be upheld by ''shot and slaught-
er." But We will inform these gentlemen
that they greatly underrate the intelligence
and spirit Of the American people when
they assume that they will sustain any such
fraudulent device for their oppression and
degradation. All fair-minded men II av-
erage intelligence have come "a understand
that the system Of one currency redeema-
I bAC III hAOlncE LtlOTt IL Will ptTIOTiil AL Lflt
uses of amedium of exchange, is a cheat and
a frand. They also know that the clamor
of the bankers and their confederates for
specie redemption is only a device to get
/ the legal-tenders withdrawn from circula-
ton, by converting them into non taxed,
interest bearing bonds, thereby giving the
bankers a monopoly of the whole field Of
circulation, with power to despoil the pro
duclng classes at pleasure.
Knowing this, they will not for the sake
Of party, nor at the behest Of party lead
ers, stultify themselves by voting to sus-
tain any such fraudulent scheme much
less will they consent To uphold it BY 'shot
and slaughter served two and A half
years in the war for maintaining the Union,
and securing to all an unfettered start and
fair chance in the race of life, and am
now willing to bear my equitable share Of
the burdens necessary to sustain the honor
and credit of the government | fought to
uphold. ! am not, however, disposed to
consent to the continuance Of the present
financial policy by which the labor and le-
ultimate business interests of the country
are rendered subservient to the money
lending class.
The greenbacks were the soldiers friends
all through the late struggle they went
with them to the front, and purchased sup
plies for those dependent on them at home,
while gold and silver sought safety in the
vaults Of the usurers, and their worshipers
skulked abroad to avoid the dangers Of the
conflict. With these facts still strongly
impressed on his mind, the true soldier,
who is never ungrateful, will not | repeat,
! bao,,,,., .,F
true friend, the greenback, to crafty the
Unsuitable cupidity Of priviledged class q
bankers and usurers or to keep in power
any set of party leaders that favor their
dishonest financial devices. | know this
view of the subject is shared by large
majority OF the rank and file Of those who
were at the front in the late conflict OF
arms, and who have acted and voted with
the party that gave the country the legal
tenders-the best currency We have ever
had, either in time of war or peace. But
whether we can continue our allegiance to
that party depends upon whether OF not il
has changed front on this important ques-
tion. If the Inter Ocean is a fair expon-
nent of the views Of the party, then we
can continue to battle in its ranks but il
the teachings Of such Independent, Liber-
al, Democratic, or Republican journals a.
the New York Tribune, Times and World,
the Cincinnati Commercial and Gazette, the
Chicago Tribune and Times, with most OF
the country journals in our commercial
centers, are to be presented ais orthodox on
this question, then we must part with such
Of our friends as are disposed to accept
these new, and as we believe, heretical doc
trines. These papers without regard to
party affiliations, seem to vie with each
other in their abuse Of the legal tenders
the soldiers money during the war, and
the peoples now-by styling them rag
money, "irredeemable trash, engraved
lies" etc, etc This is, however, no new;
to those of us who were in the army
The enemies of the government ther
abused them as roundly as the bankers
the butternuts, and their confederates do
now, the only difference being that thoss
warning against the government admitted
that they would be good if we we're sue
cessful in suppressing the rebellion.
1t requires no process Of astute reason
ing to convince any candid mind that i
was the legal-tenders that sustained tn,
credit Of the government and enabled it t.
maintain the Union, without which III
bonds as well as currency would be Al
worthless as the bonds and currency Of tn,
Southern Confederacy. 1t is equally plair
that they are better and cheaper medium
Of exchange than the notes Of the so-callec
national banks, or than can be furnished
by any specie-basis fallacy or other scheme
that can be invented by the banker anC
butternuts. Believing this, we will vot'
for no man nor will we act with any party
that is not avowedly in favor of the with
drswal of bank currency and the substitu
ton of full legal-tender money, issueC
directly to the people in the payment o
all debts of the government, as the exclu
sive circulating medium Of the nation.
VETERAN.
RETURNS Of the State Of N. Y. enumera
tion mn compared with the census az 1870