Ottumwa weekly courier. (Ottumwa, Wapello County, Iowa) 1872-1899, 1878-07-10

or two and a half paper dollars to
make one of the other factors of his
trinity. Is not this one trial sufficient
to satisfy any sane and honest man
that this trinity is no trinity? That it
is only the chimera of an unwise or a
dishonest man: Then the General
comes to the matter of redemption
in his trinity of money, and here he
is as clear as the Mormon prophets.
He says: 81 hare ol,cdys thought the
main idea Of redemption wds circulation
and not redemption." Now what on
earth does that mean? What docs it
mean but perfect evasion of the
question of redemption: What but a
meaningless platitude: 1t reminds us
of the query and answer as follows:
slim, what inference do you draw
from this passage of scripture: The
asses snuffed up the east wind?'" and
Jim replies: ~ would say that it
would be long time before they
would get fat on it," Now would il
not be a long time before the Gener-
ais plan of redemption would redeem
anything? Is it possible that the
General has had an experience in cir
culating his own paper, and that it
has made such vivid impression on
his mind that he thinks the main idea
of redemption is circulation? Does the
General mean that a mans paper or a
governments paper is redeemed when
it won't circulate any more; when it
finds rest because of its worthlessness??
Ifnot this, is it redeemed when it goes
perambulating Overt the country worth
about 40 cents on the dollar, as the
paper money of the country did ut
one time, and as it would again, to
take the least damaging view of it,
if, as the General says, he would pay
off 500, 900, 900 of bonds with it, stop
taxation and pay the expenses of gov
eminent with it, &C., &c. The fact is
that the American name would be-
come a shame and by-word, even
among half civilized people, if such a
course were pursued. 1t would be
trampling upon the plain letter of the
federal constitution and all the laws
of the land; it would. utterly destroy
the credit of the nation and bring ru.
in upon the whole people, and the
greatest woe would fall upon the
poorer classes because they would be
the least prepared to withstand the
stagnation in business, the total want
of all confidence in the national honor
the gloom of death that would chill
the energy of capital and consequent
: ly all the avenues of industry. We
remember well, following upon the
heels of the rebellion, how Pendletor
in Ohio, and III. Clay Dean in Iowa
the same who now wants democra
cy to endorse Weaver, taught repu
diation of the national debt by issu
ing greenbacks (which they had 81
hated), and paying off our immens,
debt, and then let the greenbacks "5
redeemed by failing to circulate" on ac
count of their utter worthlessness
We remember all this we say, an(
alsolemember how Gen. Weaver vehe
mently denounced such a course, an(
| we confess that we had supposed tina
man who has held several importan
offices at the hands ofthe republicans
and lucrative ones too, and then aftel
all, because he had not succeeded il
securing from the party score or les
more of offices, has now adopted sub
) stantially the Henry Clay Dean doc
trine.
We add but few words more: L
Gen. Weaver don't know that hi.
statement to the effect that Morton OF
Sherman ever said seven hundred
millions of our bonds Were payable III
greenbacks, then he shows himself t.
be culpably and disgracefully ingno
rant or shamelessly dishonest. We
suppose the General refers to the first
issue which stated that they were
payable in lawful money, and there
was difference of opinion as to what
was lawful money, but those bonds
were all called in long ago and none
are now out. All the 5-2O's expressly
state that they are payable in coin
i We forbear further comment now
1t is a painful subject and we give il
because we want our republican read.
ers to awaken to the enormity of the
doctrines he advocates and to the
danger of the air being impregnated
with such communistic ideas.