The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1879-10-02
WENDELL PHILLIPS,
HIS OPINION OF THE REPUBLICAN,
PARTY.
Dishonest and InCapAble-The Honey Power Con-
trolls the Politician Statesmen Sher.
mans Coin ResuMptiOD
Explained

written letter to solon ChaEe explaining his
views on the present financial cODdilitn of the
country. 1t is intended So reply to 81 cretary
Sherman't great speech In Portland, which has
been so widely ciTculsted. He says:
You ask me what / thirk OF the Republican
party. The term Republican party is g very
general one. Do you mean the Republican party
Of 1S6l-the party Of Sumner and FtssendeD, Of
Wade and Lincoln, of Stevens, Andrew and Gid
dDgs? That party honor. With ell its short
comiDgs-and they were many-it was still the
nOblest political party this country ever saw, and
achit we'd graDder results than any other party
ever attempted. Or do you mean The Republi-
can party Of 1897 Well that party distrast
and despise. 1t has, either Intentionally or heed
lessly, sureu deIed 10 the enemy two.tbiTds Of
what the war gained at cost Of 800 900 lives and
s5 900 100000 1t has made rich and prosper
Gus nation practically a bankrupt Some say
this party is honest; 1t has done the best 1t knew
how. Others think 1t only tipid. hSve watch
ed politics for fifty years, and my judgment Ia
that the fault Of this party Ia
oNETHIRD IGNORANCE AND Two.THrRBs
KNAvERY.
But there are other interests besides those of
civil and personal liberty Of which great party
has charge. Among the most important Of these
are the financial and Industrial affairs Of the na-
ton. 10 the Management Of these the Republi-
can party, even in its best days. never showed
any ability. Most Of its leader honest, end some
Of them, Th addeus Stevens and Hooper, marvel
ously sbrewd and able on such kubjects But an
party, they, early In the war, were thoroughly
csjoled AM subdued by the money power, sold
out to 1t, and were dragged, contented and de-
luded victims, at its heels.
Mr.. Secretary Chase, an honest man and an
able lawyer, was mere child In fnapce. After
a few in d. ctual stiuegltR, he yielded himself
quietly 10 the control Of the money kings. Your
own FesseDden for long tine refused to be
Chase's successor, sfhrming that he was tolally
ignorant Of finance. Forced at last to accept the
Office, he was during the short time he held,
obliged to content himself with
PROTESTING A(ANtT THE TYRANTs,
Which he had then no power to resist. McCuI.
loch took the re ns, and, Copcsttd ss he was,
and dis Fgracefuly ignorant as be now allows
hlmtelfto have been, yielded the whole control
to the Banks, and was the first Secretary of the
Treasury who used his office TO fill his own
pockets
No observer can fail to see. In the measure
which the Banks forced the Treasury 10 submit
to, or deuded 1t into adopting, two distinct in
teDtiOns. During the war, o. d while the Nation
was borrower, every tfiort was made and every
trick used TO artihcially and uDDecess rily de-
press the National Credit 30 that Capitalists Goa
buy its Bonds al the very lowest price, As soon
as the war stopped and the Nation, uessipg 10
10 a.
debts into permanent shape every expedieDt was
resorted to by Capitalists holding itS Bonds to AZ
tHclally quickly and upnaturOlly Talse its credit
aud increase the burden Of tue debt which they
had bought, partly on account Of the Nations
and largely through their own man
agemeDt at less than 50 cents for the dollar, For
Instance,
THE oRIGINAN TREASURY NOTE WAS RECEIVABLE
FOR DUTIES AND IMPORTS
And could be exchanged tor a $50 bond. The
money changers forced the Government to 70.
peal these two provisions, making the Greenback
not receivable for duties and cutting off its con-
nection with the bond. The Capitalists then
forced the government to create two methods Of
payment, one to its common creditors contras.
tors, soldiers, lahOrerp, ETC., in Greenbacks; q
second to Bondholders whose interest was to be
paid in coin. These changes probably cost the
nation q thousand million Of dolls.s, and pat
that amount into the pockets Of the BondholdeEs
during the war.
After the war or Just al It's close, the bonds
were relieved Of taxation and, in 1869, made pay
able in coin. It Is far within the truth to say
that these two measures u justly and unnecessa-
rily increased the burden Of tie peoples debt By
another thousand million of dollars. Then, in
1866 began the policy Of coHiTaCuon, with the
intention of returning TO specie payment; and, in
1873, silver was demODei2ed two measures
which have cost the nation atleaet double what
the war cost. probably ten thontaDd millions OF
dollars, by the bankruptcy which they have cre-
ated,
This brie fly, is the history Of the Republicans
financial m anagemeht during the laht eighteen
years.
THE NATION BANKRUPT,
What are its results2 In 1866 the property OF tho
nation was estimated at S2j, ,OOJ,OO0 In the opin'
ion Of the best judges the nation Is bankrupt To-
dsy. That is, II called upon to day to pay its
National State, city, county town and corpora
tion debts, and for that purpose is property sold
at present values there would not be realized
from such sale enough to pay those debts II tho
nronertv could be sold at It's real worth, amply
wonld Il pay our debts. But II sold at the prices
to which Republican folly has reduced 1t, we arc
bankrupt.
Further, real estate and railway property have
sunk to half their former prices, the value Of
manufacturing stock often wholly destroyed,
hundreds of savings banks broken. Thus have
the rich men succeeded in fulfilling the threats
uttered BY the journals they own tthe New York
Tribune and others) that the people should soon
find themselves as heavily chained as Wholy
s,bdued as he Labor Classes 10 Europe. That is no
idea Of mine. got 1t from Mr.. sherman. He
was placed in 1869 that he could effOHd to point
Dut that all Eng and gained, after destroying bu-
'iness and spreading ruin among all classes in
1917 and 1921, was to have her Government able
" borrow at three per cent.
Prices the world over were never 90 low 40
low Yet your producing classes are unable TO
produce, and their wages are so low that We are
orced to export to nnd q market, and our ex-
,orts exceeded our imports, . very rare thiDgi in
,ur history. Were Il to be 90 when Ian prices
yreat reason 10 n jOice But when nation only
leeps it, spiDdlek moving BY selling goods 10 for
,ign nations at cost, or even below cost or SENDS
is products abroad because is people are too
poor 10 buy or use them a. Il Gland has done for
/ cen ntury-suoh fact means loss not prosperity.
lsl (CoahaAed on second pd0s)