Mexico weekly ledger. (Mexico, Mo.) 1855-1956, 1878-05-02

close of the war bought lands, pa
two-thirds Of the cost in cash. al
gave notes and deeds of trust to s
cure the remaining one-third, al
J; have paid interest at ten per cent. a
, nualIy, and to-day are compelled
u Surrender their homes to tie vendo
IN satisfaction of the last paymen
And this Is not a matter of choit
but OF prime; necessity. l know {
one farm in this part of the state tina
sold in 1866 or '67 for $4,000. ST
thousand dollars was paid cash an
the remainder secured on the farm
On this last sum the interest has bee
annually paid, and now the owne
Becoming disheartened has consente,
" surrender it as the only means o
Teeing himself from the debt.
~as-f19d it not been for contraction h.
could have sold it for something lik,
cost, anr saved enough to be com
Portable. But instead of that he il
penniless anG Ills wife and children
Homeless and wanderers. II thi!
were an isolated case it would be :
matter Of no sort Of consideration.
but it is the sad and lamentable ex.
periencc of hundreds and thousands
not only in Missouri but throughoul
the West. Your contraction polio,
has not only depressed the value oi
real estate in the West, but has pur
~ out of the power of any man to fix
any value whatever for it,
Contraction has done another thing
that is as fatal to Western industr,
rs the decline in real estate, and thai
is in creating such an cxorbitant rate
of interest. This is terrible con
sumption thar gnaws at the vitals OF
Western industry. The people OF
Missouri were never blessed with
such an abundant crop of corn as
they have the presentscason, and our
f;rmels could reaiize q compensation
for their labor If the y could command
money a. Il low rate OF interest to in
vest III Texas cattle and feed them
the winter. This can not be
done, and millions of bushels will
have to he sold in retail at from fif-
teen to twenty cents per bushci to
get money 10 pay the taX-gather and
purchase for the family the bare nee
essaries of life. Sir, / think it YOU
could get out from your six-stor
office, your fine dinners, casy-chairs
and soft cushions, and witness the
:canty living, and the penury that
stalks all over tie rural districts, YOU
would bc willing tor the government
10 11aoiei the 'Tios'i'~s - t,r ,peoplt
by expanding The currency 10 at least
twelve hundred millions, and thereby
inducing the blo9tcd bomd-holders to
invest in lands. circulate dIeir hoard
ed treasure, and quit crying them
selves hoarse fer gold. god. gold,
You say W. are preparing for rcsump-
ton; that IN oreeerr to d4 his we must
export more than We import; that in
1871 the difference III our favor was
siXty-tiyc millions, and in 1879 it was
seventy-iiye millions; and from this
YOU conclude taat in 1879 We can re-
sumo sneeio payment withoiit o rip
pie on the bosom of the ocean Of
finance. fear that you have either
perpetrated a gross sophism on us ar
you are wogully mistaken. | remcm-
Der, some years ago, when the bal
ance Of trade was against us. that VIC
balanced the account by sending over
to Europe large amonnts of our bonds.
Now, how long will it take us ut the
present rate OF balance of trade in
onr favor to get those bonds back and
cancelled? viii four years suffice!
Can't Europe allow the balance Of
trade in our favor for ten years yet
to come, at the present rate, and pay
us in oar5own paper, without sending
us Il dollar in gold If SO, how will
this wait usinto the haven of specie
payment in 1879? / don't see how
man who has out a hundred notes,
and by taking in ten of them each
year for fen years, with no other in
come, can pay specie for another
hundred notes Immediately thereaf-
ter. Perhaps Gen. Schurz can ex-
plain, On the 27th from certain re-
marks in connection with the quota
tio9iiit tio9iit ftTfaa-.l4e Fl message of President
Grant in 1871, yJu seem to Indicate
that the commerce Of the country
might be carrieelpn with no other
medium than gold and silver. This
certainly cannot he done without pro-
ducing universal bankruptcy. fn the
country and the people were both out
Of debt, so that taxation and the pay
ment of interest would be nominal,
then, PERHAPS the specie that we could
command might answer the demands
Of trade and commerce, but with six
teen hunareil and ! eighteen millions
five hundred thousand dollars Of cit
les, towns counties and states in
debtedDess, TO say nothingi Of the
h,inT refISY afHniliiDus af5 nerspnaiE in,