The Brookhaven ledger. (Brookhaven, Miss.) 1875-1883, 1876-08-10
Enunoiation Of Principles by the
Democratic Candidates.
Full Text Of the Tilden and Hen
bricks Letters.
Ringing Pronunciation of Esc-
publican Abuses.
The Platform ard Its Principles
Warmly Endorsed
Governor TsIGen's E.cfter.

NEW YORK, Aug. 4.-Ihe 1OilOWlr
is Gov. Tilden's letter of acceptance:
ALBANY, July 31st, 1876.
Geht{emen:-When l had the homo
to receive a personal delivery of you
letter on behalf of the Democratic Ma
tional Convention, held on the 2Sth q
June, at st. Louis, advising me of m,
j nomination as the candidate of the con
stituency represented by that body, 10
the Office of President of the Unites
States, l answered that at my earliest
convenience, and in conformity with
usage, l would prepare and transmit
you a formal acceptance.
Inow avail ,nyeolf Of the first interya
in an unavoidable occupation to fulfil
that engagement. The Convention,
before making it's nominations, adopted
a declaration of principles which, Us s
whole, seems to me a wise exposition
of the necessities of Il country ant
of the reforms needed to bring bach
the government to it's true functions, tc
restore purity Of administration, and tt
renew the prosperity Of the people; buI
some of these reforms are SO urgent
that they claim more than q passing APP
proval.
REFORM. n PUBLIC EXPENSES.
The necessity of a reform in the
scale of public expense, Federal, State
and municipal, and in the modes OF
Federal taxation. justiiies all the prom
inence given to it in the declaration OF
the st. Louis Convention. The present
depression in all the business and III
dustries of the people, which is depriv>
ing labor of it's employment and carry.
ing want into SO many homes, has its
principal cause in excessive govern
mental consumption, under the illu.
sions of a specious prosperity, engen>
dered by the false policies of the Fed.
eral Government.
A waste of capital has been going OIL
ever since the peace of 1865, which
could only end in universal disaster
The Federal taxes of the last clever
years reach the gigantic sum of forty.
five millions. Local taxation has
amounted to two-thirds as much more
the vast aggregate is not less than sew,
e~nty-five millions. This enormous tax.
alton followed a civil conflict that hao
greatly impaired our aggregate wealth
and had made a prompt reduction OF
expenses Indispensable.
1t was aggravated by the most I'M
scientific and ill-adyised methods O.
taxation that increased the sacrifices O.
the people far beyond the receipts o.
the Treasury; it was aggravated, more.
over, by a financial policy which tended
to diminish the energy, skill, economy
of production and the frugality of pr
vate consumption. and induced miscal
culation in business and an unremuner.
alive use of capitsl and labor. Even
in prosperous times the daily wants OF
industrious communities press closely
upon their daily earnings. The mar
gin of possible national savings is ut
best a small per centage of national
earnings, yet now for eleven years gov
eminent consumption has been a larger
portion of the national earnings than
the whole people can possibly save. ev-
en- in prosperous times, for all new in
vestments.
The consequences of these errors are
now acute public calamity, but they
were necessary andinevitable, were fore
seen and depicted when the waves of
that fictitious prosperity ran highest, in
q speech made by me on the 9th OF
September, 1868. 1t was said of these
taxes: They bear heavily upon every
mans income, upon every industry and
every business in the country, and yeal
by year they are destined to press still
more heavily unless we arrest the sys-
TEN that gives rise to them. 1t was
comparatively easy, when values were
doubling under repeated issue of legal
tender paper money, to pay out of the
froth of our growing and apparent
wealth these taxes, but when values re-
cede and sink toward their natural
scale, the tax-gather takes from US moi
only our profits but also a portion OF
our capital.
/ do not wish to exaggerate or alarm,
I simply say that we can not afford the
costly and r%uinous policy of the Radi'
cal majority of Congress. We can not
afford that policy toward the South; we
can not afford the magnificent and OPP.
pressive centralism in which our Gov
eminent is being converted; we can moi
afford the present magnificent scale OF
taxation. To the Secretary Of the
Treasury, l said early in 1866, there is
no royal road for a government more
than for an individual or a corporation:
what you want to do now is to cut down
yeur expenses and live within your in.
come.
1 would give all the legerdemain Of
finance and financiering, I would give
the whole of it for the old, homely
maxim. Live within your income
This reform will be resisted at every
step, but it must be pressed persistent.
ly. We see to-day the immediate rep.
resentatives of the people in one branch
of Congress, while struggling to reduce
expenditures, compelled to confront the
menace of the Senate and Executive
that, unless the Objectionable appropri-
atoms be consented TO, the operations
of the government Hereunder shall sui.
fer detriment or cease.
In my Judgment an amendment Of
the Constitution ought to be devised,
separating into distinct bills the APP
preparations for the various departments
of the public service, and excluding
from each bill all appropriations fol
other objects, and all Independent leg.
islation in that way alone, the r~evisory
power of each of the two Houses and Of
the Executive be preserved and ex>
empted from the moral duress which
often compels assent to Objectionable
appropriations rather than stop the
wheels of government.
THE SOUTH.
An accessory cause enhancing the
distress in business is to be found il
the systematic and insupportable mis-
government imposed on the States Of
the South. Besides the ordinary effects
of ignorant and dishonest administra
ton. it has inflicted upon them enor
NOUS issues of FRAUDULENT bonds, the
scanty avails of which were wasted o.
stolen and the existence of which is
public discredit tending to bankruptcy
or reputation; taxes, generally oppres'
sive. in some instances have confiscatee
the entire income of property and total
ly destroyed it's marketable value. I
Is moi possible that these evils should
not react upon the prosperity of thu
whole country. The nobler motives o
humanity concur with the material in
| ~terests Of all, it requiring that all OBJ
, stacle be removed to a complete ant
durable reconciliation between kindred
regulations, once unnaturally estrang
led. On the basis recognized by the st
|, Louis platform of the Constitution o
: - CAokoc NTH itS onoO1nont