The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1877-09-22
VERY THIN AND ANCIENT.

:, been at least offered for publication in our OWL
h columns, accompanied with the authors real
9 name. However, as he shows all the earmarks
" of leader IN the present Independent" green
T back movement, we waive such objections and
award him notice The fact, however, that
. he foregocs all considerations of decency and
propriety to avail himself of the ready and Gag
; er columns of a republican newspaper, adds
y confirmation to the general suspicion, among
; democrats at least, that this independent
D greenback movement is in its whole design and
5 scope in sympathy with and intended to aid
? the republican party.
: We are the more confirmed in this when we
; come directly to the matter in hand, to wit,
n Mr. "Greenbackers" reply 10 our question,
: "What do the grcenbackers by this indepen-
dent movement propose to accomplish? This
q is the unique reply:
To break up both the Democratic and Re
publican party machines in town, county, state
and nation; TO take the control of the ship of
state from those who have proven false to their
trust; to battle the designs of the worshipers of
mammOn, which are TO steal from citizens of
this republic the ballot and drill them into Eu-
ropean good behavior with a standing army;
4 to bring our representatives and officials to
recognize the fact that they are servants and
not masters, and must be held accountable for
their stewardships.
Mr.. Grcenbacker, we hope, lays no claim to
originality in this reply There has not been
a political swashbucklero or humbug "reformer'
on the stump in the last twenty five years who
has not proclaimed identically the same thing
as the object Of himself or his party 1t falls
regularly every few months from the glib and
classic tongue of Wendell Phillips; Sam Cary,
Peter Cooper, Kewanee Smith and that whole
"independent' tribe have worn it threadbarc
years ago, and we have more than once heard
Tim Rhodes make the same uttcrance, with
more than equal elegance of diction and intel |
ligencc of comprehension, in our court house
For shame, Mr. Greenbacker,-to answer a
Itrenchant, incisivc question with such superan-
nuated hyfalutin swash, Even Carter Harri,
son, in his insanest spread-eagle soarings, |
would dispise such rubbish.
To come down to business, "Greenbacker"
manifests deplorable ignorance when he init.
turned about since 1876 if it is now friendly to
the grecnback. There is certainly nothing in
the St LOUIS platform unfriendy to the green
back. 1t censures the party in power for break
ing the pledge made when the greenback was
issued that it should be convertible into gov.
eminent bonds, and demands the repeal of the
resumption clause of the act by which it is
proposed so to contract the greenback issue as
to be able to redeem in gold the balance left in
circulation in 1879
1t is true, the st. Louis, no more than the
Cincinnati platform, had any friendly word to
offer for the wild vagaries of such lunatics as
Cary, Cooper, Ilooton, Campbell, Smith, &c.
who proposed to deluge the country with an
to be redeemed save in government bonds
payable only in the same irredeemable green.
backs. A mind capable only of reasoning in
II circle is said to be unsound, and that is ex.
actly what such a scheme involved. [
Or does our Mr.. "Greenbacker" still cling
to that delusion? If so, we beg him to consid-
cr the plight he is in. He is clamorng-all
the grecnback clubs do so now--for the remon-
citation of silver Greenbacks are now worth {
within 3 per cent as much as gold, while sill
yer is nearly five per cent. below greenbacks.
Does he want congress to remonetiZe silver and
the minis to resume its coinage by the million
in the hope of getting a cheaper currency than
greenbacksY If So here's a pretty greenbacker
for you For does he not know that the cheap
er always banishes the dearer currency, and
that in such case grecnbacks in n year would
disappear like scared mice into their holes and ;
would be as much out of general circulation '
as gold is now? Or has he sense enough to
know that the effect of the reconciliation of i,
silver would be to appreciate 1.-The dollar of the I
daddies TO par with gold, and that the green.
back being made redcemable IN silver, as 1t +
in reality now is if we had the dollar of the :
daddies," will be equally at par with gold and i
silver How does that leave him as an advo. Ic
cate of the cheap greenback currency of Coop
er, Cary Il Coz If we are to have such a
what do we want with silver, seeing
has raised it to a par with ,
goldy We beg Mr.. Greenbacker to define
himself. Is he for cheap greenback curren- :
cy that will Danish gold and silver from circu. !,
lation, or is he for a greenback currency that
shall be receivable for all customs and other :
dues, and kept strictly on a par with gold (
and silver' Is he for one currency for the
bondholder and another for the people; or is
he for a triune currency of gold, silver and /,
greenbacks, all equal in value and circulating
with equal freedom and abundance? If the !.
former, let him cling to his independently
organization; if the latter, he is in faith dem.
ocrat though ignorantly or treacherously work.
ing in the hands Of the republican party that
is owned, from its head leader down 10 the
lowest scullon in its ranks, by the national
banks. II