The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1880-02-07
speeie Dasm act in 1866 put from ten TO fifteen

/
hundred thousand persons out Of employment
in twenty months, how many would the same
act In 1875 put out Of employment in forty.
eight months? II will be seen that there was
al adequate cause in the specie basis act for
the financial distress between 1875 and 9, with
out any reference whatever to the preceding
panic II Is very questionable whether 1t was
even an aggravation.
This suspension of business and men out OF
employment, financial panic" was IN 1867,
and presidential election would take place
in 1868 The Republican party having adopt
ed policy that would give the five.twenty
bondhelders thlrty-thrcc per cent. more than
law or equity required, and having thrown
from ten 70 fifteen hundred thousand persons
out of employment, were two items out OF
which the Democratic party would certainly
make large capital and could be prevented
only by abandoning the policy, which was
done Feb 4th, 1868. The words on record
are: "The authority given to the Secretary OF
currency by retiring and canceing United
States Notes shall be and is hereby suspend
ed" A Washington correspondent said: "The
Ingersoll bill, re-issuing the currency with.
drawn by Secretary McCulloch, has become a
law, but no other financial measure has been
adopted" Date not given.
The platform Of the proposed New Political
Party declared in favor of paying the national
debt in grecnbacks. CA very large and impor-
tant part of this history has from the neccssl-
ty of brevity, been omitted) Mr.. Greely said
they tried to be knaves, but only made them
selves fools, as the debt called for gold" Hon
orable Benjamin F. Butler and Thaddeus Ste
vcns came forward and maintained that the
ive.twenty bonds were payable in greenbacks.
The question, part of Adair's new political
party platform, the Chicago Tribune said was
discussed by "presses, politicians and tinan-
ciers of both parties, in all parts Of the Union"
The chairman of the finance committee of the
Senate, present Secretary Of the Treasury,
came forward to discuss the question, taking
both sides of 1.-THE affirmative before the
presidential election, and the negative after 1t.
| Inc pan, ID an loiioWo.
| "If the bondholder refuses to take the same
kind of money with which he bought the
bonds, he is an eXtortioner and repudiator.
There is no such burdensomc loan negotiated
by any civilized nation In the world rs our
five-twentv bond. if it is to he paid in coin"
The presidential election beng over, Feb.
9th, 1860, one year after the above he came
before the country In the negative as follows:
| &c. it is hereby provided and declared
that the faith Of the United States be solemny
pledged to the payment in coin, or Its equiva-
lent of all the obligations Of the United States,
except In cases where the law authorizing the
issue of such obligations has expressly provl-
did that the same shall be paid in other cur
rency than gold and silver"
The object in giving this narrative is: The
subscriber has been in the County Poor House
and a pauper for the last eighteen months, be-
lievlng that the service he has rendered man
kind and the country in several directions,
entities him to better fare and better associates.
He is IN his sixtyseventh year. After taking
retrospect of his life, the service he has rem.
Government, as above stated, appears to be the
most reasonable and just, for which he should
receive pay. The value OF this service may be
thus seen. Messrs. Wendell Phillips and Dan
iel VOORHEES, estimated the shrlnkage of values
on the twenty-five thousand millions Of prop
erty ut ten thousand millions Of dollars. If
the policy of April 10th, 1866, of returning to
a specie basis by retiring and canceling the
greenbacks had been carried out, the shrink
age of values would have been obviously, ne
cessarily, very much worse-two, three or four
thousands Of millions worse. The evidence
that this change of financial policy of the
Government should be placed to his credit
may be summed up thus:
The Dixon Telegraph speaks OF the New
Political Party as having "but a single plank
IN its platform, which is a strong one" OF
which the subscriber is the sole author. After
discussing and showing its strength and the
erroneous position of the Republican party, it
says the policy "inould be ruinOus to any party
Irresponsible for it. In this light the increment
is a narning TO our C0ngresSmen and the lead
ers Of the Republicans party, phih Mev mtN do
nell not to disregard" 1t is not to be under.
stood that tins new party was to be feared, as
one about to become of gigantic proportions
but that its zone plank and strong platform
pointed om a vulnerable place for assault By The
Democratic party. Another vulnerable place
to wit: That the specie basis policy of the Re
publican party would give the five-twenty
bondholders thirty three per cent. more than
law or equity required. The Secretary of the
Treasury, even after Congress had repealed the
act felt such anxiety on this particular point
to the party on that account, was impelled tc
come forward and show that the tive-twenty
bonds should be paid in greenbacks. Both