The Tipton advertiser. [volume] (Tipton, Cedar Co., Iowa) 1856-1962, 1876-02-24
BLAINE on FINANCE.
A sketch Of His Great Speech In
thc House.

In his review OF the financial situa-
ton, as given in the House .ast week,
Mr.. Blaine approached the subject in
q spirit OF candor that gives weight
to every utterance. While he APP
proaches it with no partisan bitterness
yet he is compelled to say that the
question has become SO entangled
with party relations that mo intelli-
gent discussion of it can be had with
out giving its political history, and if
that history bares severely on the
Democratic party, its defenders must
answer the facts, and not quarrel
with their presentation He be!iev-
ed that upon one question parties
should agree not TO dlsagree-as to
the essential nature and value OF the
circulating medium. Until the REBEL
ion, their never had been party in
this country which believed in any
other than the specie standard for
our currency, and it was one Of the
memorable necessities of that rebel
lion to resort to paper money. 1t was
undoubtedly the design of the trainers
Of the constitution to protect the peo-
pie from the danger Of an irredeema-
ble currency. But without tempora-
ry departure from the there etofore
fixed order of things, and resort to
legal tender currency, the country
being without sufficient revenues TO
meet its suddenly developed and stu.
pendous demands for monev, it is
doublfal ii The rebellion could have
been crushed. The Democratic party
opposed bitterly this necessary war
measure, and The air was heavy with
dolorous predictions, and anathemas
agains, an irredeemable rag currency.
As the case stood then, Mr.. Blaine
presents il:
But the promptings Of patriotism, the
pressure of necessity, the 'despotism of
duty which thus decided the course of
the Republicans, failed to influence the
Democrats IN Congress. Marshaled aud
led by Mr.. Pendleton, since become the
great advocate of initiation, the Demo.
Gratis voted in well nigh solid columns
against the legal tender bill, Bankrupt.
cy to the treasury was impending; eighty
millions OF unpaid acquisitions lay on
the oecretary's desk; large part Of the
army had not received dollar for six
months; supplies were failing; recruit
ing halted; the spirits OF the people
dropped; while the executive depart.
ment, charges with the conduct OF war,
urged that critical campaign then In
progress, would necessarily end in disas.
ter unless relief could be afforded in
this way, But Democratic consciences
were too tender, and Democratic scru.
pies too Intense at that time to permit
such fearful infraction of the constitu-
tion as the passage of legal tender bill,
oven to save the Union of our fathers
and thus preserve the constitution it
SELF
The war at an end, it became the
settled purpose Of the Republican
party to restore to the country its
credit and sound currency. Where
then were the Democrats to ne found!
"lrreconcilably hostile to the issue Of
legal tenders, when hat form Of credit
was needed for the salvation of the
country, the Democracy, as soon as
the country was saved, conceived
violent love for these notes, and de-
manded an almost illimitable issue of
them" The Democratic platform of
1868 demanded that sixteen hundred
Of bonds be paid off in legal
tenders. The Government had pledges
for four hundred millions of dollars
and the Democratic par
", headed by Mr.. Seymour, secuted
them. Even those who had enabled
the q vernment to go on buying its
bonds, to bear small interest, and
were promised actual money-gold-
as recompense, were to be made
odious, and efforts were made to
break the solumn faith of the Govern
ment by paying them in deprecated
currency. Opprobrious epithets were
applied to The holders of these secu-
rites. and to be an honorable credi-
tor of the nation was to be called a
'bloated bondholdcr." This is the
record. And now the Democratic
order Of The day is imitation. The at
tempts OF Republican statesmen to
,aise the money of the Government
o approximate, gradually, the value
of the dollar, is met by persistent eff
Tort to carry it nearer zero. ''Hard
times is the inevitable result, and
he activities Of the country are para
wed, for, uncertainty as to the val
le of the currency from day TO day is
INJURIOUS to all honest industry"
And again, what must be the effect
Of this initiation project on that large
class who attempt to be provident on
heir small incomes? Impair the psr-
chasing power of the dollar and you
strike at the, laboring class. The
,avings banks, which represent the
surplus owned by the laborers of the
na,icn, says Mr.. Blaine, represent the
savings owned by the working people,
and today they have deposits exceed
ng eleven hundred millions Of dollars
more than the entire capital Stock
and deposits of the National Banks
And more, The aggregated pi,tauces
Di the worthy pensioners of the ma
ion, and at whom it we're dishonor
and disgrace to strike, have capt.
.lized investment of six hundred
of dollars. Imitation must
permanently injure these two classes,
who can not afford it, and they repre-
sent together seventeen hundred mill
ions of money. Mr.. Blaine states a
concerning the intimate
interests Of the West and South on
the question of imitation, which may
be very clearly understood here:
"Of all sections interested 10 the specie
standard the West and South stand first.
The great staples produced in those vast
and fertile regions, wheat, corn, -four,
beef, pork, hides, tobacco, hemp, cotton,
rice and sugar, are inevitably aud pre-
subjected to the gold standard
when sold The price of cotton sent to
Lowell is just as much determined by the
gold standard as that which is exported |
to Manchester, and the stCffs sold in |
New York are daily equxted with the
prices of the Liverpool corn exchange.
And SO of all the the other commodities.
And yet We hear representatives OF the |
great interests that aIe thus compelled |
to sell at gold prices, resolute and deter |
mined in their demands that they snall |