The Valley Virginian. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1865-1895, 1878-10-24
THE NATIONAL FINANCE.
SPEECH OF GOVERNOR WOODFORD 4
CLEA AELAND.

IhE MAIlUNAL f1NlaNtE.
SPEECH OF GOVERNOR WOODFORD A.
CLEAAELAND.
During the Ohio campaign Gov. Wood
ford addressed large audience in Cleave-
land upon the great question now agitatin'
the country. He said:
GOVERNOR WOODFORD'S SPEECH.
Through all the country men are debating
questions OF labor, wages and money. TIT
questions are here, and must be answered
Parties did not make them parties canno
get away from them. They face the poo
man, who seeks work that he may have bread
they face the farmer, with fields to till an(
crops to sell; they face every man who ha
saved, and to-day possesses something from
what he earned yesterday.
Thus all men who are willing to work an
mean to be honest have equal interest in Civ
| ing to these questions of labor and wage!
answers that, shall be wise and just.
The interest of the willing laborer and tn,
| honest capitalist are and must be precisely
the same. Labor and capital are not, as
demagogues falsely teach, natural enemies
They are, and always must be, partners il
production and trade. They should be
friends. The !aborer with a dollar in the
savings bank has the same interest in keep
ing the National credit good that the bank
| director has. Both are bondholders. The
mechanic who earns a dollar has the sane
interest in having a sound currency that the
money lender has. Both are bill-holders.
You cannot rob the one without robbing the
other,
Our people stand to-day where the roads
part. These roads are only two. One or
the other we must take. 10 go back and to
stand still are now alike impossible.
We must either 90 forward to permanent
specie resumption, or we shall 60 forward to
an 1redeenable paper currency. Specie re-
sumption can, with honest and wise methods
of business, be permanent. An irredeema-
BILE paper currency cannot be made perma-
nent. The wit of man has never yet devised
any way of making something out of moth
ing.
A promise made with the avowal that it is
never to be kept is always lie. Irredeem-
able paper is such promise. 1t has no val
lie when made; it will have no value when
broken. 1t is a falsehood from the time it is
printed until its circulation ends. It's issue
begins by discrediting itself. fit gets cir
culation it compels imitation. 1t will inevi-
tably end in population. This is the abso-
lutte teaching of common sense. This is the
uniform teaching of history.
Because the way of resumption is the way
Of health. life and prosperity, let me beg
you to keep steadily and resolutely therein.
Because the way of imitation is the way
OF speculation, gambling, reputation and
bankruptcy, let me plead with you to turn
from it as from the forbidden path.
These are very plain, direct words. You
justly ask my reasons. Let me give them as
briefly and simply as can. I do not care to
beat about the bush, nor to attempt to con-
fuse.
THE REAL ISSUE OF THIS CANVASS
l. Permanent specie resumption means
general popular honesty, industry, economy.
and, therefore. it means at the last general
prosperity.
2. The continued use of an irredeemable
paper currency inevitably means-first inf1a-
ton; then reckless speculation then disas-
ter; and at last the absolute and utter repu-
diation of the currency itself.
These statemer is are only different
converse forms of putting one and tine same
essential truth. If we argue the one we
must consider The other.
come then to plead with you for the ear
ly and permanent resumption of specie pay
mems by the General Government.
WHY?
First-Because coin, hard coin, gold and
silver coin, is the only absolute money known
to the Constitution of the United States.
The Constitution nowhere gives to the
Federal Government the right to print pa
per and impress upon that paper the quality
or function Of absolute lega. tender.
The only provisions of the Constitution
bearing on this question are two. The one
is that which authorizing Congress ito coin
money, and regulate the value thereof"
The other is that which, by implication, per-
mits the Federal Government to emit or is
sue ''bills of credit.''
The construction Of the first provision
seems very simple. When the Constitution
was framed, words were probably used &C
cording to their meaning. The words of the
Constitution were and are ito coin naonev.'
You coin metal. You print paper. You do
not print gold and silver money. You do
not coin greenbacks or bank notes.
Congress can therefore in the tim OF peace
only constitutionally make such money as it
can coin.
The other constitutional permission for
emitting OF issuing bills of credit seems to
me equally clear. The very fact that aucll
bill is "a bill of credit" involves the idea of
lending or borrowing. The idea of lending
borrowing must include the idea OF pay
ment. If you borrow from me and do not
intend to pay, you either steal what I lend
you or cheat me into loaning it. How YOU
S's'A
which would be dishonest in private deal
ings cannot comprehend.
You only give credit where you expect
payment. You only get credit where you
are expected to pay. To pay one note by
giving another is simply to exchange prom
ises. The process does not finally pay debts.
At the last the debt is still unpaid. When
you get there you must either settle by actual
payment, or you become confessedly a bank
rnpt. That is all there is Of it.
But you may say in reply, Congress did
issue these greenbacks. and did make legal
tender in payment Of debt. Certainly, but
WHY AND HOW?
Rebellion was in the land. The Republic
had to crush that rebellion, OR it would have
crushed the Republic. Because we were
Nation we had Nations right to live.
We asked for volunteers and paid bounties.
We asked for loans and paid interest. We
drafted men when volunteering became
slow. We forced loans where and are the