The Daily Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Or.) 1876-1883, 1881-03-31
Secretary Windem and the Bulls
and Bears.
EDITORIAL CORRESPONDENTS.

round the Capitol while an eight
hour resolution was under consid-
Grafton, and should threaten some
dire disturbances in the country
unless their wishes were obeyed,
alarm and Indignation would pos
sess all minds. If the opponents
of any measure were to swarm in
the lobbies Of congress, and rush
into print with infamatory threats
Of disaster and destruction to busi-
ness interests if that measure
should pass; and if they should
actually begin the work of destruc-
tion, with view to demonstrating
the sincerity of their threats and
their ability to execute them, would
it not be pusillanimous in congress
TO change front under such a dis
play of ruffianism? The last con-
gress was chosen by upward of
seven millions of voters. ltrepre-
sented the people so far as there
mere .Tree elections. For any set
Of men to club together and, for
the furtheraRce of some scheme Of
their own, to seek to intimidate
congress and prevent the passage
of such. laws as the majority deem
wise and proper, is to substitute
the rule of a mob for the rule of
the people. This was done boldly
and shamefully during the month
Of February. Provision had to be
made for meeting some S20O.0O0,-
900 of bonds soon to become due,
and common honesty dictated pro-
vision for redeeming some $780,
100000 more, which the govern
ment can soon exercise its option
10 pay, because it is known that
we can borrow money at a. low
rate and extinguish a higher rate
OF interest which these bonds are
now bearing. The government
never sells its bonds above par.
Those who hoped to buy the eight
hundred millions at par were,
therefore, interested in having
them made worth as much more
than that as possible, which could
only be done by putting up the
rate of interest they were to bear.
The opinion prevailed with a large
minority in congress that three and
a half per cent. was as low a rate
as would insure the sale of bonds
at par. This was the belief of
most of the republicans, and may
have been correct. But a majority
IN each branch Of congress believed
that three per cent. would sell at
par, and voted accordingly. The
national banks are more than two
thousand in number, and, taken as
a whole, they have gone along
about their business, and left the
representatives of the people to
exercise their own judgment on
the suject under discussion. They
have a circulation of about $780,
100000. But one hundred and
thirty-eight of the banks lent
themselves as the cat's-paws of the
sharpers who undertook to legis-
late instead of congress. The
brokers had decreed three and a
half per cent. as the rate, and filed
the air with remonstrances against
a lower one. They spoke through
the press under their control, and
swore that three per cent. bond
would not be tolerated by the
national banks; and that If they
were not allowed to dictate the
funding legislation the banks
would precipitate a panic by with
drawing their circulation under the
law. This menace had no effect
on congress. Then, in order TO
induce a veto of the measure,
these one hundred and thirty
eight of all the banks in the coun-
try, a fraction of about one
twentieth; were induced by the
handful of operators alluded to to
actually deposit about eighteen
millions Of greenbacks with the
treasury and give notice that they