The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1876-08-18
WASHINGTON LETTER.

WASlllNdION, ID. a., August H. 1910.
Congress still fingers like the ghost Of hope
haunting the shore Of memory. IL is ru-
morcd that Morton, on tomorrow will give
his last conclusive flutter to the sanguinaIy
garment, he so much loves to display. Yes
Mr. Oliver Z. Morton proposes to unburden
himself upon Southern ailairs. Truly un'
questionable authority, coming into the SEN
ate stuffed and crammcd, with envy, hatred,
malice and all unchnritablcnoss towards the
South, earnishcd with foul misroprcscnta-
items and downright lies manufactured by
carpct-baggers, employed and paid for the
express purpose. Ho would put upon record
Il beautiful picture of the South indeed.
| Morton, in his seat in the Senate some
| weeks since asked what good thing the
Democracy had donc2 Now what the
! sprightly divers idea may be Of what a
| good thing is it may be difficult to deter
mine. He may think there never was any
good thing accomplished by any political
party till the Republican party came into
power and the possession OF a government
in Il time Of profound peace and general
! prosperity, virtually free from the weight ul
u dollars iudebt CduCs5, with an honest civil
service costing only some seventy or eighty
| millions per gunum and in sixteen years
leave it buricued with upwards OF two thou
sand millions Of debt, an annual expenditure
OF iour hundred and fifty millions, the per
capita tax on every individual of the entire
population increased from two dollars and
eighty cents to nineteen dollars, and no class
OF the people one whit the better for this
vast increase of their burdens except the au-
thor5 aud coulriqers of 10. The host Of olli-
cal thieves and plunlereg5 who arc known
to have made and sluandercd princcy for
tunes from the public treasury; the stupcn-
dous robJCries Of moneys and lands 10y the
Sw.udling corporations created by tor,uou,
legislators of the Elaine and Col.aN school
have, il is true, greatly enriched thousands
of the pcculators and corrupyouist-, and all
this in the estimation of the man with th,
bloody shirt may bo q very good thug
They are certainly all the good things' that
the country has to thank the Rcpubli,
can party for in the past eleven years. But
Mr.. Morton and his coa5iutOrs constantly
asscyofato that all this income and cNpeuli-
turC and debt was Il consequence Of the war
and as they allego the Democrats produce,
the war, they have no right to complain. 7,
this il is only necessary to say, that taking
the previous experience under Democrat,
rule as Uur guide, tHcTc is no good reason
why the machinery ot the government lUi
the past dccadcof years could not have becl
ran, including the payment OF the intcres
upon The public debt, !Or5 say two hundr2,
and fifty millions, saving au average Of tw,
hundred millions per auuum, which hay,
| been stolen or squand2rod every year sine
the war, aGgre ylte rsun which would hay
paid off moro than !an.aj,sn deb. , j
.,ra'i.,g 'ur good tl.. f.at O., D.W.c
" ra.y vrn.Y." ID .:a.aa aag,l.. iuJ... ID. O.. n..n
4ga ui 'Hi.n sud i.pu#ri,E. al3 wi,a O..
. c5tlrol oi tue coordinate ,taiui Of the GOV
v enment tire task is easy OF accomplishment
and ,vit q an honest and Crpnhl riV vii -uv,.i