Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1878-07-07
BEN BUTLER,
Inc Bold, Bad Man, who Dares Thou
sand Newspapers-A Significant and
Pointed Address to the Working
men OF Massachusetts.
The Money Kings Course During the
Wharf.-The Bonds Must be Paid I'm
Greenbacks According 10 Con-
tract-RefOrm Must Precede
Prosperity.
Special to the Cincinnati Knquirer.l

Special to the Cincinnati Enquirer.l
NEwBURYPoRT, MASS, July 4.-The great
Greenback meeting, which is looked upon
with considerable significance as to Ben But
ler's political future with that party, was
held here to-day. There was tremendous
throng, and the speech of the day was made
by Butler himself. He was introduced as the
man who dared a thousand newspapers. But
Ter began by asking why, In a land where all
the eastern section had its storehouses burst
ing with the products of industry, while the
west was overloaded with the necessaries OF
life, should the people be starving as well as
having to go naked? If the reason was
found, we could apply-the remedy. He al
luded to the great railroad strikes last year,
and accused reporters of having misrepre-
sented the strikers, whose movement did no
good. Strikes for higher wages did no good,
and it was beneath the dignity of American
workingmen to strike for higher wages. The
word communist had been applied to the
movement of workingmen. Communism IN
the old countries was a protest of the peo-
pie against the wrongs of the ruling
classes, and was characterized by murder,
violence and destruction of property. Com
munism had no business in this country, be-
cause every man here had remedy, as he
could control the laws under which we live
by his ballot, which was the only weapon.
The workingmen, if united, would control
the destiny of the nation. they could take
the State government of Massachusetts into
their hands and carry 1t On for the next
twenty years for their own benefit. Frequent
elections were necessary for the preservation
of our liberties. Workingmen were divided
on the political dogma because of some body
in the west or south. They should unite and
stand together, and then they would have
control of the national government, which,
instead of being run In the interest of a few,
as in the past would be conducted for the
good of the whole people. Seven years ago,
he said, he introduced III Congress bill to
have the money of the country in the hands
of the government and not In the hands of
corporations, and he was beaten by
eight votes. In the majority that beat
him there were sixty-6ve bank presidents and
directors, es Oh voting for his own interest, and
who were sent to congress by working men.
He said he had nothing to conceal, and no
interests to promote except those of all pres
ent. The difficulty was not in the want of
railroads and cheap transportation, and not
In reproduction on either continent. The
latter assertion was not true, when we con-
slider the needs of the shoeless and hungry,
who, if supplied, would exhaust any surplus.
Wheat was being sent to Europe to feed hun
CRY mouths there, 1t passing the mouths of
the hungry here. In Europe the hungry
could pay for the wheat they eat, while here
the hungry could not. That was the trouble.
Our enterprise was stopped, for the reason
that it was more profitable for the capitalist
to put his money, In the present state of the
nations finances, into government bonds.
National finances had been Sc managed that
accumulated capital was not taxed. At the
beginning of the war the government had to
have money, and depended upon gold and
silver. 1t issued its own money, and that
money, greenback money, for while NAM
tanned itself at oar, then it went down, be-
cause there was doubt about the credit of the
country and the result of the war. 1t went
down, down, under the enormous issue that
had to be made to sustain our armies, and
because our credit was doubtful. We
had no bales of cotton to lodge as
collateral security with the bankers
of Europe, as had the Confederacy,
and therefore our loau went down lower than
theirs. The money-klngs had control, and
put into this war measure two provisions,
both of which made that grand old man,
Thaddeus Stevens, shed tears as he came
from the conference-room of the conference
committee. The first was that that money
should not be received by everybody for ev-
erything. 1t was made receivable for the
blood of our soldiers, for the tears of the
widows, for the groans of the orphan, for
labor, for every thing but interest money of
European bankers, and that must be paid In
gold; and therefore it went down to thirty
cents on the dollar; and there was provision
that it might be funded in six per cent. gold
bearing bonds, and bought up at thirty cents
on gold-bearing bonds at one hundred cents
on the dollars-six dollars for the use of thur
ty; hard bargain. be SAID he was beaten
in this district because he dared to take the
stump and say that the bargain was that these
bonds should be paid in greenbacks precisely
what was paid for them. But for the honor
of our country we are to pay one hundred
dollars for thirty dollars; and in 1869 that
act was passed-one of the most iniquitous
acts ever passed since God allowed legisla-
tive assembly to meet. He voted against it
alone, spoke against it alone in 1869. He
believed that there was no legal obligation
upon us to do it, and did not desire that that
obligation should be undertaken. If this
country was bound to pay more than three
times over all the debt of the war, and if IN
paying that debt such legislative means were
to be passed through congress as that was, it
was very clear to see what must be the result.
1t is the result of this day-of millions of
men out of employment and starving. In
stead of issuing all this money by the govern
ment, and taking the profit OF, we established
national banks, two thousand of them, and
we made an arrangement by which, if they
would buy these bonds, or had bought them
at thirty cents on the dollar, and would
pledge them to US, we would issue our guar
antee notes to them to ninety cents on the
dollar, for the purpose of circulation as
money-for the purpose of being loaned as
money. A man bought his bond for thirty
cents on the dollar; he was to have paid
per cent. gold interest on it, because N 1869
we promised that. Men took advantage of
such laws when they were enacted, joined to-
gether and got one hundred thousand dollars
of them and put them in a national
bank. They came to the treasury of the
United States, and they took out
ninety thousand dollars In bank-notes,
which circulated as money, leaving their
bonds there as security, on which they got
six per cent, and which cost them but thirty
cents on the dollar. They got ninety thou.
sand dollars more, and then loaned it to their
neighbors for seven per cent; and so much
more greedy were they that they persuaded
the laboring men of Massachusetts to vote
TO a general court to pass a
law repeating the usury act, so that they
might get more than SIX per cent, as bank
ing institutions. and this was on the ground
that they would make money cheaper. The |
speaker urged all Workingmen to organize, |
and in the coming elections, by their ballots, |
secure a government that would bring true |
reform and prosperity. In an interview after |
his speech, General Butler said that he be- |
lieved the Greenback party to be strong; that |
he never again will accept a congressional |
nomination. He left it to be inferred that, |
under certain contingencies likely to arise, he
would accept nomination for governor from
the Greenback party. He believes that in
the next congress the greenbackers will hold
The balance of power.