The weekly Oskaloosa herald. [volume] (Oskaloosa, Iowa) 1855-1885, 1876-08-24

lnat the democracy 40 not lDtSila 10
lave specie payments at all. This
part of the platform has wor der
ill familiar look, and leaves the i'm
preston that it may have been pre-
pared by one Of the candidates on
the ticket. The position of the De
mocracy upon the currency question
illustrates its moral and intellectual
condition throughout We find an
utter want Of convictions and total
absence ofmoasures, policies, or any
thing wearing the semblance Of pat
riotism, and we find only cunning
vascilation and hypocrisy. They
are for and against specie payments
for and against greenbacks, for and
against banks, for and against intia-
ton, just as the varying prospects of
the hour indicate the gain or loss of
votes. The vane upon the church
steeple does not point the direction
of the wind with more industry than
does the Democracy turn their bat
tered and deformed face to the pop
ular breeze.
THE LETTERS
The letter of Gov. Tilden treats
chiefly ofthe finances, and cannot be
read by any impartial mind without
the conviction that it was intended to
satisfy men whose ideas are exactly
opposite to each other. He strug-
giles through half an hours tedious
reading to arraign the Republican
party for not having forced specie
payment long ago, and then argues
to show that the law providing for
resumption is a hindrance to resump-
ton, and should be repealed. But
when he comes to tell how resump-
ton can be brought about, and what
the Democratic party would do if 1T
were in power, he has nothing better
to offer than the following miserable
platitudes;
The proper time for resumption is the
time when wise preparations shall have
ripened into perfect ability to accomplish
the object with a certainty and case that
will inspire confidence and encourage the
reviving of business. The earliest time
in which such result can be brought about
is the best. Even when the preparations
shall have been matured, the exact date
would have to be chosen with reference
to the then existing state of trade and
credit operations in our own country, the
course of foreign commerce, and the con-
dition of the exchange with other nations.
The specific measures and the actual date
are matters of detail having reference to
the ever changing conditions. They be-
long to the domain of practical admins
trative craftsmanship.
Who can read this without know
ing that it is disgraceful jungle Of
words, stringing together of sem
fences intended to make an impress
sion and yet conveying no idea what
ever. 1t suggests mo measure, points
out no remedy, and labors by mere
volubility to cover up the utter inca
pacity Of the author
HENDRICKS ON SPECIE PAYMENTS.
Gov. Hendricks, IN his letter, after
talking in general way in favor of
specie payments, and urging the re-
peal of the Resumption act the only
measure which has been enacted for
that purpose, then escapes from the
whole subject in the following cutie
fish sentence, which was intend ed to
create an obscurity, and, practically,
means absolutely nothing:
thoroughly believe that by public econ
omy, by official retrenchments, and by
wise finance enabling us to accumulate the
precious metals, resumption, at an carly
period, is possible without producing an
artificial scarcity of currency" or disturb
ing public or commercial credit; and that
these ref orlns, together with the restoration
of pure government, will restore general
confidence, encourage the useful invest
ment of capital, furnish employment TO
labor, and relieve the country from the
paralysis of hard times"
1t will battle human ingenuity 10
extract Il practical idea from the
above sentence. 1t is precisely the
kind of talk man INDUCES in who
has no opinions upon the subject, and
seeks by pompOus and enigmatical
phrase TO conceal the abjcct poverty
of his intellectual eXchequer.
REPUBLICAN ACTION.
The Republican party has been,
and still is, in favor of a return to
specie payments. 1t regards gold
and silver as the standard of value,
and has looked forward steadily and
honestly to the time when the paper
money of the country should be at
par value. That there has been and
is to-day diversity of opinion in the
ranks Of the party in regard to the
manner and the time of resumption is
not to be denied but there has been
u general concurrence as to the ne
cesssity of resumption and the i'm
portance of adopting practical meas
ures looking to that result. 1t was in
this spirit that the act of January,
1875, was passed, fixing the 1st Of
January, 1879, as the time when re-
sumption should take place by the re-
demption of greenbacks in coin, and
for that purpose authorizing the Sec
rotary of the Treasury to reserve the
surplus gold in the Treasury and to
sell bonds to procure the additional
gold that might be necessary. Wheth-
er these preparations are sufficient,
and that additional legislation may
not be necessary, and whether in fact
the time fixed Is not premature, is
doubted by many who are the earnest
friends of specie payments. But
what has been done was honesty in
tended to accomplish the great pur-
pose, and when the st. Louis Conven-
ton and Tilden, and Hendricks pre-
tend to be greatly in earnest about
specie payments, and denounce the
Republican party for not having
brought them about before, and de-
mand the repeal of the Resumption
act because it is an obstacle in the
way of resumption, and then fail ut
terly to point out any method of re-
sumption, and talk only in empty
platitudes about resuming "by public
economies" "wise finance" and "of
fetal retrenchment," we realize how
utterly heartless, insincere, and ignor-
ant they are about the whole business.
The platform and letters are intend
cd to reconcile hard-money men OF
the East, who are demanding specie
payments at once, and the greenback
men of the West, who are opposed to
resumption altogether, and every in
termediate shade and class ofopinion,
TO vote for Tilden and Hendricks,
and are intended to make each class
of men believe that all the others arc
to be cheated, and their wishes alone
are to be consulted. The opposing
factions of the currency question can
each and all draw the most ample
Endorsement from the late speeches
of Mr.. Hendricks. He has with con-
summate impartiality divided his log
ic between the extravaganza OF Land
ers, the respectable reputation Of