The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1878-10-18

4 J
to 1861 was to increase it to $91 900, 900,
and the last act of Democratic admins
tration was to rob the treasury of every
dollar, to take possession of our navy,
our arsenals and forts, and even to step
into the back door of the postal depart
ment and steal the last postage stamp
the government possessed. During the
four years of war, of which possibly
some empty coat sleeve present, and the
232, 900 on the pension roll, might serve
as reminder, the debt grew to $780,
OOO, 600; but he would ask the question:
If there had been no Democratic party
would there have been any war; and if
no war, would there have been any debt;
and if no debt, would there have been
| $151 600 900 of interest per annum to
pay? Thus war, debt and interest may
be traced directly to the Democratic par
ty. But the Republican party, in thlr-
teen years, have paid of the national
debt $500, 100000, of the bonded indebt-
edness $500, OOO, 600; have reduced the
interest from 1851, 100000 to 1914 ,0O0,-
600; and while the expense of the ma
tional government was in 1865, $685.
000, 900 per annum, today it is $241 ,0O0,-
900, saving of $247, 100000 June Both,
1878, the balance of trade with foreign
countries was $3.50, 100000 in our favor,
and during the present year it will be
over $350,000,000, while our foreign
bonded debt is less than 100000, 0O0
War was impossible without financial
embarrassment; but this showing told
US what the Republican party had done
toward the recovery from that embar-
rassment. Col. st. John said he was
greenbacker-but he was for an honest
greenback-[applausel -one that was
worth as many cents on the dollar in the
poor mans pocket as the rich mans gold
or silver. Applause.1 The Republican
party was the father of the greenback
No other political organization has ever
given to nation paper currency that
floats at par. On their issue, Pendleton,
VOORHEES,, Vanlandigham and Thurman,
denounced them as unconstitutional.
Yet after the war they were the first to
PANHOSS PoJ VII IhC NlCDG III STCCu-
backs. The speaker referred briefly to
the various financial schemes of the OBJ
position down to the present fiat money
plan, viz: PendletOn's plan, the inter-
convertible bond plan, and the PROPOSE
ton for the government to loan money
on landed and other security.
In speaking of the fiat money scheme,
he showed how it was impossible to
have fiat money without depreciation,
and how in every case the hardship of
depreciation falls on the industrial class
es. The National Greenback party is a
libel on its name, because there is no
proposition in its platform looking to
national greenback. 1t is asserted that
the stamp of the government is what
gives value to money-and that a ton of
gold is worth no more intrinsically than
ton of lead. (On asking whether he
was right in this assertion, several of
our prominent Greenbackers responded
with an emphatic "Nor'-and most eff
fectively our next governor referred
them to the identical words he had quot
ed, in Sam. Crawford's late letter on the
financial question. Watson, Spangler,
and the rest of them, could not 60 back
on Sam, and were considerably non
plussed) The speaker defined the posi-
ton of Butler, the apostle of fiat money,
on this question, and in a series of effect
i've illustrations, which we shall not at
tempt to quote, showed up the absurdity
of Elder Mitchell's position that the
stamp of the government makes money,
and that we can create money by fiat any
more than we can make wheat at so cents
a bushel worth ten dollars, or say of
bakers ticket, this is bread; or call a
piece of paper quart of milk and dis
pense with COWS, by fiat. He showed
that gold had in itself intrinsic value
as gold in ten dollar gold piece is worth
in bullion just One-sixth of one per cent
less than $40. If congress has the pow
er to create money at all, why not close
up business, call an extra session and
create not $40, but 500 million billions.
This part of his address was frequently
interrupted by laughter and applause, as
his series of most amusing yet exactly
appropriate illustrations placed in its
proper light the absurdity of the fiatists.
Ho referred to the financial experience
of France, where though to-day the gov
eminent does not float dollar of paper
currency, the fiat experiment was tried
in 1870. He gave the history of our ma
tional experience in fiat money, from the
clam shells of Manhattan Island and the
continental currency, down to the Gull
mination of Democratic financial wis
dom is found in the state-bank currency.
and the good Democratic currency that
had the name and face of jefferson Da-
Wis on the lower left-hand corner. He
exhibited specimens of all these, and
gave us as the last Ben. Buffers flexible
fiat currency three dollars on one side,
ten on the other-all depending on how
you put it at man. If we must repu-
diate, let US repudiate honestly by saying
that we do not believe in paying our
honest debts, and not by the roundabout
trickery of depreciation.
Col. ST. John read a bill of merchan-
disc dated 1864, the items of which az
gregated $61.37, and which could now
be duplicated for less than SIS, thus
showing that the purchasing power of
81 then was equal to but 81 now. A
comparison of wages for labor then and
now put an effective quietus on the
'hard times" cry we hear so much. In
closing this part of his address he said
that what we want is an honest, stable
currency, an honest government and
loyal people, devoted to the nation and
the nag.
In conclusion he made some reference
to himself as candidate before the peo-
pie for the goyernorship of Kansas-af
firming his mistaken adherence to his
temperance principles, so repugnant to
the Democracy-and pledged himself if
elected, as he should be by 10000 ma
jOrity, he would go in the interest of no
church, faction, class or individual, but
in the interest of the whole people; and
he would strive to set no example that
Il