The Portland daily press., 1878-08-29
GREENBACK RALLY.
Joseph l.. Smith ON Exhibitiom-E. n.
BoyntOn on our Financial Troubles.

Joseph l.. Smith ON Exhibitiom-E, N.
Boynton ON our Financial Troubles.
City Hall was we'll filled last night to see the
Greenback candidate for governor, Joseph L.
Smith Of Orono. Mr.. Smith was exhibited
promptly at o'clock. He is a short, porty
gentlemen, we'll dressed and apparently well
fed. He sports heavy gold watch chain and
heavy seal ring ornaments his horny hand.
He doesn't look like man who performs much
manual labor, or especially qualified to repre-
sent the laboring man. There are people who
are base enough to insinuate that Mr.. Smith is
one Of that hated class styled "Bloated Bond
holders He marched into the hall to the
music of "Hail to the Chief by Chandler's
band, and seated himself in the chair near the
front Of the stage. A large part of the audi
ence didn't know him, probably expecting to
see hard listed son of toll, but the few that
did greeted him with applause. He was left
on exhibition and the dignitaries on the stage
proceeded to organize the spectators into a
meeting
George w. Parker was made chairman, with
a long list of vice presidents and several sec
retaries. Mr.. Parker announced that Mr. e.
n. Boynton, who halls from New York but is
said to be law partner of Ben Butler, would
address the meeting, and that gentleman STEP
ped forward promptly and began. He is quite
tall and lank, with black hair and side whis-
kers. His style of speaking is declamatory
and not calculated to entrance an audience.
The managers of the meeting knew this appar-
emily and so advertised that Bondholder Smith
| W. ho of fl,aa H.
succeeded in holding the majority of the audi
ence until Boynton got through. Their prom
ises are like their currency, however, not made
to be redeemed, for Bondholder Smith fled
before Boynton ended.
Mr.. Boynton began by saying that he did not
expect to see such vast throng of people, and
of course he added that their presence excited
in his heart no ordinary emotions. He had
been in Portland once before as delegate to
convention of the Young Mems Christian
Association. He INDUCED in considerable
'gush" about Maine and Maine men, said that
Maine and Massachusetts, were one and insep-
arabic though they separated fifty eight years
ago, and that John Browns body was march
| ing on, though it has been understood to be
Wondering in the grave.
Finally Mr.. Boynton reached the subject of
| money. He is one of those men who believe
that money can be made out of nothing and
that intrinsic value is of no consequence,
| rather a hindrance than help. What is
| money he asked and then he went on to show
how dense was the ignorance of the bullionists
by telling his audience that Prof. Bonamy
Price was cornered by Peter Cooper and COM
PEELED to admit virtually that he didn't know
what money was. He then claimed Price as a
Greenbacker because he admitted the value
and even the necessity of paper currency,
forgetting lit is charitable to suppose) that this
paper money was to be convertible into coin at
the option of the holder. Hell quoted another
statement from Prof. Price, viz: that great
bankers oftentimes know very little about the
science of money. This was evidently cited
for the purpose of convincing the audience that
man who is not great banker, like Mr.
Boynton must necessarily know all about that
science. He then went on otell what money
was. Money according to Mr. Boynton, is
anything which the government sees fit to call
so. 1t may be piece of leather, or string of
wampum or piece of paper. OF course he
told the story of the bank of Venice and he
told it incorrectly as most Greenback orators
money based on nothing such as MT. Boynton
wants, but pieces of paper certifying that the
holder had certain amount of coin in the
bank. When those certificates were transferred
from one person to another the coin ia the
bank was transferred from one account to
another in conformity-as different from any
thing that Mr. Boynton proposes
as giving check with money on
deposit is from giving one when there is none.
He quoted quite freely from Henry Carey
Baird, whom he styles the greatest financier of
the country, to sustain his views of money,
and denounced Mr.. Thomas N. Nichol, Secre-
tary of the Honest Money League of Chicago,
as an ignorant wretch who was deluding the
people. There isn't any money Of the world,
says Mr. Boynton, there arn't any Russian
roubles floating about here. Mr.. Boynton is
mistaken. There have been Russian roubles
floating about Mt. Desert for some months and
the inhabitants are very glad to get them.
They much prefer them to Russian paper not
withstanding this paper is endorsed by the
Russian government, and therefore is the best
kind Of money according to Mr.. Boynton. Hav-
ing settled that money was nothing but stamp
Mr.. Boynton proceeded to tell US what our
troubles resulted from. Essentially his expla-
nation was this. The government issued
promises to pay in coin instead of pieces of
paper stamped 'grhis is dollar This was
our financial mistake and all our troubles re-
suited from it. We were drawn into it by the
Rothschilds and other gold sharks who are
seeking to enslave the American people. The
Continental currency failed for the same reas-
on. The French assignats failed because they
were based on the property of refugees who re-
turned and took possession of the security
though Mr.. Boynton knows or ought to know
that the assignats were repudated long before
the priests returned. Like all Greenbackers he
was very fond of quoting the example of
France as far as it suited his purpose, but with
the dishonesty characteristic of such orators he
failed to tell his audience that France had got
back to specie basis, and that nothing but
gold and silver is legal tender in that country
to-day.
Mr.. Boynton said the Greenbackers did not
propose an unlimited issue of paper. He did
not tell where they proposed to stop however.
He thought the American people had intelIi-
gence enough to know when to STOP The
money should be issued by the government be-
cause the faith Of the whole people is better
than that of any one. individuals may pass
away, banks may break, states-he was going on
to say may fall-but the thought suddenly oc.
CURED to him that if they did his paper money
based on the faith and credit of the whole peo-
pie fell with them, and he left this period in
complete.
We have given some of the points of the ad-
dress. 1t was the stock Greenback speech and
contained the usual number of misstatements
The currency in 1865 was placed at 81, 700 0OO,-
900, though it has been demonstrated again and
again that nearly 81 ,OOO,OOO,OOO of this is made
up of 30 bonds that never entered into circula-
ton at all. He said Prof. Sumner attributed our
business depression to over-production. Prof.
Sumner did no such thing. He attributed it
to disproportion in production. very differ
ent thing. Mr.. Boynton's citations we have
not the means at hand to examine. They are
quite as likely to be wrong as right, however.
| Gen. Butler was eulogized as that GLORIOUS