The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1879-08-12
DE LA MATYR.
The Greenback Doctrine Pure and Sim
pie.

The advertisement which the PRESS gave
Rev. Mr.. De La Matyr yesterday morning Sc
cured for him a full house at City Hall last
night. We are glad it did for the audience
heard the Greenback doctrine in its worst
form and know just what these Performers are
up to. Mr.. De La Matyr is engaged in shap-
ing the legislation of the country and his words
are, or course, entitled to more weight as be-
traying the purposes of the Greenback party
than those of the small fry who for the NEST
part address Greenback meetings.
Mr.. A. H. Waite called the meeting to Or
der and Rev. w. f. Eaton of Cape Elizabeth
was made chairman. Neither of them said
anything of any consequence.
Mr. De La Matyr was then introduced. He
is man of medium height, brown hair, Ro-
man nose and a mouth which is decidedly
prominent. He is a fair speaker, but yells
louder at times than is necessary. After COM
plimenting Portland, its scenery and inhab-
itants, he called the audiences attention to the
introduction given him by the PRESS and said
he proposed to turn the PRESS guns against
itself. He said the bills mentioned by the
PRESS were presented by request of Mr.. Childs
of Kentucky and the editor of the New York
Review. He didn't endorse them fully, but
from the tenor of his subsequent remarks it
appeared that he at least did not object to
them very strenuously. The bill to create the
Greenback currency first provided for retiring
the National Bank currency, and Mr.. De La
Matyr couldn't see why the issue of $1,000,-
100000 of greenbacks was a crazy scheme when
the National banks could issue 81 800, 900.
in notes
This was the first gun turned upon the PRESS.
This wasn't very heavy gum for before this
amount of bank notes can be issued the bank
ers have got to buy considerably over 81 $780,
100000 of bonds and deposit them in the Treas
ury, and even then the bills that are issued no
one is compelled to take-they would not be
legal tender. Mr.. De La Martyrs scheme
proposed to force into circulation 81 900 OO0,-
900 of legal tenders, practically redeemable in
nothing Cfor of course resum ption must have
been overthrown by their issue). And how
did he propose to force them into circulation?
He proposed to furnish them to certain corpor-
ations to pay laborers with for digging canals
and buildings railroads. This was his scheme
for assisting the laboring men, and a nice one
it is certainly Mr.. De La Matyr further said
(and thus we supposed turned another gun)
that the corporations which were to receiv
the benefit of his bill were the same ones that
Republican commission in 1874 reported in
favor of aiding. Did that commission propose to
aid them by issuing legal tenders to them, Mr..
De La Matyr?
Mr. 10 To Matvp dad IN of tho
country was oppressed by the Money Power.
The Indebtedness of the people was totally
beyond their ability to pay. Ii resumption
be sustained the burden of debt will increase
unless repudiated. AS he denied that he was
in favor of Reputation, it must follow that his
method of relief is by the overthrow of re-
sumption. Mr.. De La Matyr thought the
Republican party had endorsed reputation by
passing the bankrupt lava law which he
didn't seem to think much of. There
were number of Greenbackers On the stage,
respect for that law than the speaker, probably
because they knew more about it.
Mr.. De La Matyr then undertook to review
the policy of the Republican party since the
war. When the war was over the people
should have been kept at work to earn money
to pay the debt with. This could have been
done, according to the speaker, by issuing
sufficient currency. He did not go into the
details of the process but contented himself
with asserting in effect that when the demand
for the products of the mills and factori es
created by the war had ceased they might have
been kept going by the issue of currency. Per-
hapsh intended to turn them into paper mills.
During his remarks on this point a number in
the audience started to go out, whereupon he
said he was always glad to see men go out, it
showed that his arguments hit. This cheap
piece of impudence won loud applause, He
was so proud of it and so afraid that his
audience would leave him that he resorted to
the same trick again before the evening was
through
r The speaker drew an exceedingly gloomy
the farms were all mortgaged and laborers
were being ground down by the Money Power.
Multitudes were going about trying to sell
their labor, and the land was all getting into
the hands of the rich. In this connection he
repeated that old New Era forgery on the New
York Times about tenant farmers, and charged
Gen. Hawley with describing the laboring man
as the ragtag and bobtail, something which
Gen. Hawley never did.
Mr.. De La Matyr said he expected to be
abused by the Republican press. Abuse, he
said, was the only weapon left the Republicans.
The Greenbackers never INDUCED in it be-
cause they were rich in argument. In this
connection we want to call your attention,
Mr.. De La Matyr, to the New Era, one of the
Greenback organs of this city. In recent
issue of that paper John Sherman was called
"Judas, !" "the most unblushing, INSCRIPTIONS
and unprincipled knave who ever tortured the
human race" 1.-The worst and most dangerous
scoundrel that can curse people, y zone of the
greatest rascals that ever lent himself to the
work of torturing humanity" and "the un-
blushing and presumptuous rascal" Now,
Mr. De La Matyr, we want to know if you
consider this abuse, and if you do why do you
say that the Gree nback papers never abuse
anybody.
Mr.. De La Matyr said all the Republicans
claimed to have accomplished was resumption.
"If man had $50 in greenbacks and he paid
the expenses of a trip o New York he could
get gold for them" This was all resumption
meant, said Mr.. De La Matyr. If he really
believes that this is all that resumption means
we pity his ignorance. If he knows better he
is falsifer, which is not becoming in man
who has been "teacher of ethics for so
years." as he says he has been.
After telling what the Republican party
have done, he explained the programme of the
Greenback party. 1t was the old fiat plan.
Money was to be issued based on the wealth
of the country" not in carloads, but in reason
able amounts. He judged $50 head would
be about right, but thought experimenting
would be necessary to fix the sum per capita.
He thought that if members of Congress
couldn't manage the currency as well as the
bankers they must be fools.
He then pitched into the Southern question,
and said that education had done the negro of
the South no good, but much harm. He then
wandered into his religious experience, and in
formed his audience that he is still On good
terms with his Creator.
Mr.. Murch was then introduced, and said
that he wondered what he was there for, and