Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1878-04-24

THE FAsT-DAY SERMON OF THE REV. EDWARD
Y. HINCKs, PREACHED TO FOUR CHURCHES IN
PORTLAND, MAINE.
To the Rer. Ed.card Y. Hincks:
SIR:-In the Portland Advertiser Of April IL.
appears fast-day sermon by you, entitled, Tho
Need of Civil Service Reform shown by the Pas
sage of the Silver Bill"
One of the most strenuous rules OF faith and
practice in the Congreg ational churches is that
well-known direction, al thy brother shall tres
pass against thee, go and tell him his fault be-
tween thee aud him alone If be shall hear thee
thou hast gained thy brother" As member in
good and regular standing OF one Congi egatonal
Church, while you are the billiant leader of an
other, as native and citizen of the State which is
the afectionate, If sometimes stern, mother of
your own State, | feel personal responsibility for
your good behavior; and | therefore propose, in
accordance with inmemoral Congregational usage
to tell you your fault between you and me alone.
in love and the spirit Of meekness.
The text of your sermon is, "Shall | count them
pure, with the wicked balances, and the bag of de-
ceittul weights = This, however, is not really
your text; it is but a catchword. The actual text
whose spirit breathes through your sermon is 81
thank thee that am not other men are, extor-
TONERS unjust, aduterers or even as this publican
IN Congress"
In speaking of the late discussion of great ma
tional financial measure, Of the passage of the
Silver Bill, you rule out the possibility of all
honest difference of opinion, and as
suming more than Paps inisllibiity you pro-
nounce all these Congressman who are not on
your sile OF the question, thieves and robbers.
Not content with this simple assertion, and dis
daining so profane process as the production Of
evidence, you administer to yourself the usual
benefit of clergy, claim to be the mouthpiece of
Heaven, and announce that the Creator of the
Universe s your side against 4 b-metAlc
standard. These are your words: "The men
whom have elected to make our laws have
committed in our name deed which is q stain
upon our national honor, and an offence against
righteous God Speaking as our representatives,
they have said that we prefer to pay our debts in
a scant measure, in order that we may defraud our
creditors of a part of what we owe"
You make these statements without the shadow
of an attempt to prove them. With one breath of
your reverend lips YOU relegate thousands of your
fellow-cit zens to the criminal classes, and pro-
duce not jot or title of evidence. You give no
sign Of having so much as looked into the ques-
ton yourself. You are politically but an echo of
echoes, yet you rise up in your prestly Office and
deal out condemnation upon your lay brethren
with a lavish and lordy hand.
NO EVIDENCE.
The only thing that even hovers on the border
and Of evidence for your wanton extravaganza of
asset ton IS il the side remark: The nation had
often declared its purpose of paying its debit gold
dollar for gold dollar" For lack of anything
more -au Gible in your "loose expectoration of
speech, | must peforce avail my self Of this, and
bid you name to that wider congreg alton whom
you address through the newspaper the law or
statut, or bond or other instrument which was
uttered by this nation, promising to pay gold dol
lar Tor gold dolari" Your assertion is explicit,
modified. No man, least OF all a minister of the
Gospel could be excused for making such q state
ment without knowing whereof he affirmed. But
this is what you have done. You had only to turn
to the Statutes OF the United States and you
would have found that never did Congress utter
one word about paying gold dollar for gold
dollar" Never can you fud in law compact,
expressed or implied, that this Cover nment agreed
to pay "gold" alone. In every statute Congress
agreed to pay "coin," and where it specified fur
ther, it specified gold or silver" In every case
where you find gold" you will find the words
"or silver Immediately added. II you had been
willing to relin9ush the doctrine of penary in
spiration when appying yourself to politics, and
had done so secular thing as to look into the his
tory of our bonds, you would have found that,
prior to July IA, 1870, all bonds Of the United
States simply agreed to pay so many dollars
without specifying the kind of dollars, and hence
the mischevous Greenbsck movement to pay the
bonds in paper Tue interest was provided for 10
"coin," but the principal simply in dollars. BY
the act of July a. 1870, to provide for the refund
ing of the United States debt at lower rates of
interest it was specially enacted that the bonds
were payable "io the standard coin OF that date"
[ nder that act nearly twelve hundred millions of
the bonded debt have been refunded. and the
greenback movement that had mensced our pab-
lie credit was destroyed That the silver dollar
was at that date one of the standard coins" of
the United Ststes-full legal tender-I presume
that you will not venture TO deny. Even after the
assumed decentralization of silver in 1873, the
bonds Of the United States all contained the same
specific provision Only last Summer Q $500
United States bond of the new per cents. which
| was so happy TO hold for q heeting moment.
gave me time enough to read on its face the same
definition and limitation of the Governments s-
billty to pay in the standard coins they existed
July IA, 1870.
WHAT ARE THE GROUNDS?
On what ground, then, do you charge upon
scores of your ellow-citlzens, every one of them
picked men nearly every of them with as
sterling and stainless a reputation for honesty Is
yourself; upon what ground do you attempt to
fasten upon them charges of dishonor and dis
grace Upon what ground do you lay the wicked
balances and the deceitful weights of the prophet
at their door1
Is it that the silver dollar weighs only 4l2 IL
grains Is anybody deceived or attempted to be
deceived by it Is it not openly and publicly
proclaimed that the silver dollar shall weigh just
4l2 l-2 grains Was not that its exact legal
weight when the bonds were issuedS Bring
forward any agreement of the United States;