The Hillsdale standard. [volume] (Hillsdale, Mich.) 1851-1909, 1879-03-25

finger upon one act OF Congress since
1860 that has in any way oppressed the
industrial classes. You can not do t.
There has been no such act, and you
know il. Not to know il ia To be mex
cusably ignorant. An assertion TO the
contrary is the appeal Of demagogne
aud the people will treat it AS snch. 1t
was wicked. foolish and false state
ments like this that created the riots OF
1877. Men like yon are responsible
for their disorders, distinctions, and
deaths, and so long as such groundless
charges are made they will be con.
tinuous invitation 10 the repetition OF
those lamentably destructive and mur-
derous outbursts You say past legis-
lation " has promoted and fostered the
accumulation Of large fortunes in the
hands OF capitalists, to the detriment
OF all other kinds of property and la
bor." You do not tell us how this was
done. Was il done by legislation? III
so, did not Democrats vote for aud help
pass all such bills? Again / ask yon,
name the acts il there are any such.
You are a capitalist. Has legislation
increased your capital? You ought to
be grateful. It's a mean dog which
bites the hand that feeds him. Did
you and others make your capital out
of land grant railroads q" That was
Democratic policy inaugurated by Ste
phen A. douglass aud vigorously pur-
sued by Democrats while they were IN
power. This assertion Of yours is as
groundless az the others. assert
without fear of contradiction, that
thousands, nay, tens Of thousands, of
men who were poor laborers, mechan-
les and clerks in 1861, and even later,
in 1865, and later yet, in 1870, are now
rich or in comfortable circumstances,
and that thousands of others who were
capitalists in all these years are now
poor. II the legislation OF these years
has aided the capitalists and injured
the poor man, how is il that so many
poor men have become rich and so
many rich men have become poor?
This is fact that it exists, because
your assertion is not true, is even with
ont shadow or semblance of truth. -
Was it giving aid to the capitalist TO
change his six per cent bonds into four
per cents.and take away two per cent
of his interest? Again / assert, and /
defy proof 10 the contrary, that every
farm and every piece OF property in
Michigan, aud in every one OF the
northern States is worth more and to-
day will sell for 10 per cent to 800 per
cent more in gold than ii would in 81.
Since then the increase in the value OF
real estate and in the quantity and val
Tie of personal property has been with
out parallel in the history OF the conn
try. This could not be so il your as
sertion was true. Yet IL is so. IL is a
fact beyond dispute.
Your argument as TO Grantism is
al war with reason. III i hated Grant,
as do not, and il I was opposed to his
denomination, as | am, | would vote
against your coalition ticket, If | had
no other reason than that for doing so,
for ] am confident that its defeat world
be one OF the surest means OF prevent
ing his denomination. IL is only this
agitation, this dread Of the possible
success OF communists and repudis-
tors that keeps him before the people.
If the financial questions now agltatiDg
the country were wisely aud perma-
nently settled, Grant would disappear
a. a possible candidate for the Presi
dency. No thoughtful man with any
knowledge Of the politics Of the coun-
try or the temper of the people can be
lieve otherwise. I know this is the
feeling Of the "soft money Democrats
and / am confident that many hundreds
Of them will vote against you cunning
ly devised coalition, believing that its
defeat will be among the surest ways
Of preventing third term presidency,
aud of securing the nomination OF an
"honest money" Democrat on an
"honest money platform in 1880.
Then, with nominations made by
both parties on sound financial plat
forms, whatever differences Of opinion
may exist between Democrats and Re
publicans can be fought ont on a fair
field. But to secure this field and 10
remove the currency question from the
contest Of 1880, | repeat that the first
step is 10 defeat your coalition, and i
am confident that the "honest money"
Democrats Of Michigan. mindful of
their duty to their country and to pros
perity, will deal you such crushing
blow as will teach all future Michigan
conventions there is such a thing as
conscience in politics.
Now, sir, permit me in conclusion TO
say, YOU have told us many things, but
this Won have not told us: Did you
and your convention at Lansing over
reach the Nationals or did they over
reach yon? Are you the swallowed
toad, or the swallowed fly? Which?
Yours, etc,
o. L. BEARD,
Detroit. March II, 1879.