The Portland daily press., 1878-07-31

A telegram has just been placed In my hands
stating that gold has sold to-day in New York
at par for greenbacks. This may be true. 1t
may be mistaken. If true, let us take courage.
Ii false. let US accent it as at least finally and
surely prophetic. Loud applause.l
Will you pardon me few words? (Cries of
go Cd, go on.")
| Three years ago this autumn, out in the great
State of Ohio, the Republican party at last
| dared to meet the issue aud went to the people
| of that State upon it and trusted their honor
| and their common sense We won great
victory for the nations faith. (Applause.)
| Men of Maine have faith 10 the Republican
party of Maine (CheersJ Do not try to
dodge the issue. Do not get down from the
high ground Of honesty and seek temporary
victory by the tricks of miserable expediency.
(Cheers.l Remember that this debt is to be
paid. (Appause) We created it to crush
Democratic rebellion. Applause.
We will pay it by Republican effort ZAP
plause.) Then shall history repeat itself. and
all men and all parties will be in our victory
blessed Resumption shall bring prosperity.
(Cheers Then shall the sun again "shine alike
upon the Just and the unjust" daughter and
CHEERS Even our Democratic and National
friends Will be ss happy and prosperous as you,
because you will have kept the faith and full
hlled the trust committed to your charge.
(Long and continued applause.)
AT the close of Gen. Woodford's speech, and
as soon as silence was restored, some one call
ed for Blaine. This one call was the signal of
a perfect shout, which continued for some sec
onds after the Senator appeared to speak. He
spoke as follows:
SPEECH OF SENATOR BLAINE.
Mr., Chairman and Fellcm o1tisens-Th pee
Pile of Maine are distinguished. Think for two
characteristics; one is high sense of honor,
and tue other is strong common sense. Gap
plause.) They do not propose with high
sense of honor to rspudiate any obligations.
They do not believe, with their strong common
sense, tina. stamping piece of paper creates
value Aud they remember lesson which can
never be forgotten, q single incident which
covers in its scope and its meaning the entire
greenback Discussion. When had the honor
to enter Congress from an adjoining district
there were one hundred and fifty million dol
lars of legal tenders 10 this country, and they
were worth enc hundred and forty-seven mill
lions in gold dollars. staid there myself, vot-
ing for legal tender bills until We had four
hundred and fifty millions of legal tenders and
they were worth one hundred aud forty-fve
millions in gold. We had three times as many
paper dollars and the aggregate was worth two
millions less than when we began, and II we
had doubled the amount they would not have
been worth anything at all.
do not, however, with all due respect to my
honored. valued and eloquent friend, have the
slightest apprehension of the reputation of
the greenback dollars of this country; not the
slightest. beg to say distinctly that there is
nothing in the situation today, if he will paI-
don me for differing from him, to create an ap-
pre- hension, with sound common sense govern
ing us, that we are to travel the road with the
national legal tender note, that was travelled
by the continental currency of the revolution.
Our forefathers issued two hundred and forty
oae millions of legal tender paner, and they
did not have over Eve hundred and fifty mill
lions of property in the entire thirteen cole
MES. (Applause.)' To put as on the same
perilous edge We would have to put cut six
thousand millions of legal tender paper before
we got to the point they reached. Suppose the
continental currency had only reached the ag-
gregate of thirty million dollars is there
man here who believes that with the victory
aud peace OF 1888 there would have been SOL
i;ary doliar LETT? There would not have been
dollar of it left behind. So shat while 1 agree,
and am snre that the great mass OF the PEG
pie OF Maine agree, that an enlarged aud in
h.ted issue Of paper money IN time of pesca is
not only unconstitutional but is wild and Wis
ionary and would end ia the destruction of the
whole mass, l do not believe that with a prop
erty running up to fifty thousand millions of
doll irs this day, the United States are in the
slightest danger of repudiating solitary penny
OF the three hundred and forty -ope millions
that is STAN ped upon their honor.
Mr.. BARKER-Suppose they inf ate?
MR.. BLAINE-Ah! says the chairman, sup
pose they INF ate That reminds me that when
we had reached the point in 1854, of four hun
dred millions legal tender in circulation and
fifty millions of reserve. aud tina dagger of
rapid depreciation was such that we wire on
the road towards the continental result of the
revolution, the Congress of the United States
speaking for you and in your name. speaking
to its creditors of both continents and all ma
items said and put on your statute book, that
the amount of legal tender noes issued and to
be issued should never excee -four hundred mill
lion dollars, and charge the greenback agita-
tor not only with standing on absurd aud Wis
iOnary theory, not only with flying 10 the face
of the experience of all nations, in all ceptur-
les, but charge him with a still more serious
and still more hsgitous course of action,
charge him with inviting you and me to violate
solemn aud repeated aod emphatic pledge
given Dy this naUion u, aricuLo norris, as we
then feared, given with as sacred a will as the
man who in drowning, to save himself from
destruction beneath the waves, should say, save
me and | will keep this pledge.
The United States 10 its hour of peril said to
the whole world, we want your treasure, we are
in struggle for nationality and existence, we
will give you our bonds and we pledge you on
the honor of this great nation, speaking with
unanimity through both branches of Con-
gress, all parties and all sections, We pledge you
we will SO entirely protect the currency in
which our obligations shall be paid that we will
never permit the amount of legal tender cur
rency TO be Issued to exceed four hundred mill
lI0os. | charge the greenback agi-
tator, standing safe on the soil of the country,
beneath its flag, saved by an honorable pledge,
that he today asks you and me to join with him
10 violating that pledge.
ROBERT MARTIN-We shan't do it.
Mr. BLAINE The people Of Maine will never
do it, reUer, NEVER, NEVER
Mr.. Frye was next called for, and he said:
REMARKS OF REPRESENTATIVE FRYE.
Mr. President and Gentlemen of the Conven-
ton:
Ii would be useless for me TO deny that this
call which you have made upon me for
speech is fattering and it would be useless for
me to deny that it would be qualification for
me to address SUCH an audience as this. But
the hour is fast slipping away and tomorrow
commence my campagn, by making speech
which is to be followed every day until the
Republicans have rolled up ajority in the
State of Maine over the Greenbackers and
Democrats Of at least ten thousand.
Mr.. Barker-Begin it here.
Mr.. Frye-The chairman suggests that I
start my speech here. l do not like to do it
and trust the convention will pardon me for
reserviDg my speech for my constituents in the
second district.
Mr.. Hale was next called for and he spoke as
follows:
SPEECH OF REPRESENTATIVE HALE.
Mr.. PreSident:-The State of Maine has
proved time and again that she is sound
politically. She helped to save the Republic;
she gave freely of men and money to put down
the rebellion; she rebnked sympathizsrs with
the rebellion at home by putting them down at
the ballot box; she has never wavered in
principle. This year she is to prove whether
or not she is in favor of sound, good money,
whether the currency that is used ia business,
that pays for labor, that builds houses and
ships and Keeps homes and families comforta-
Bile shall bs as goo in the hands of the
laborer as the capitalist. as good the world
over as it is here. She is to settle this year
whether she will give encouragement to
movement that has hitherto been unknown in
all her politics, movement that threatens to
disturb what is practically settled to-day. For
the despatch which came over the wires that
practical resu mption had set in is a despatch
which tells the whole story if we hold stead
fast 10 tue direction ia which we have been
going. Aud while there may be tenn porary
huctuatiou 10 the few months following,
Gov. Woodfords despatch tells the living
truth for now, tomorrow, and the far reaching
future. Maine is to settle in her politics this
year whether the proposition for an irredeema-
BILE currency is to have force and strength with
her people and become apart of her politics;
whether We are to be invited to the DEVILS
dance of initiation, for inf alton is in separately
connected with the proposition for an ire
deemable currency. You cannot separate the
the two; it one goes the other goes. If you