Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1881-07-15

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FRIDAY MORNING. JULY Is. 1881.
Those gentlemen whose duty it shall be-
come to represent the Democratic party in
discussion with Col. Cameron will lind a
great deal of assistance in the record he
has made as Debt-payer of the EXTREMIST
type. Not'that his present inconsistency
will be an overwhelming argument against
him, for inconsistency is not IN itself an
unanswerable charge. The world moves,
the times change, and with them circum-
stances. But they will find in Col. Cam
eron gentleman who fully understands
the disabilities his inconsistency entails.
Many of his followers hardly know that
there are two sides to the question that
has been agitating the state for six years.
Having first.taken an interest in public
affairs when REIMBURSEMENT was brought
up, and taken that side they have gone
on unquestioning. and given little heed
to even the strongest and almost I'M
disputed advantages which would accrue
from preservation of our state credit.
When these have been presented to them
in language however earnest, conservative
and respectful they have treated them as
the mere articles of politicians who
sought position through them. This they
were taught by their leaders. But Col.
Cameron is not one of this sort. He is
familiar with the subject and with the
history of the state debt question. He has
fully realized the Importance of the pres
ervation of the state credit and has urged
it in the most extreme way on those to
whom he is now talking in different key.
Here is what he wrote in 1867 about the
Importance of debt-paying:
s'It is not alone, nor most strong in law,
that we are bound for the discharge of
this Indebtedness honor of the State,
which, while left to the control of it's
founders and descendants, had suffered no
shadow of disgrace, is at stake. The word
of Virginia-that Virginia which had the
first thought of every living, the last of
every dying son-.has been passed to the
world for redemption of these bonds, and
though q Shylock held the debt, and the
ouiyering flesh from the breasts of her chill
dren had to bend the swaying balances In
their satisfaction, we should still say, take
advantage of no bubble of law-the law is
wrong if in conflict with honesty. PayI
Pay to the uttermost farthing, to the last
pound of flesh, to the last drop Of blood"
This was written when the State was
poor indeed compared to what she Is TO-
day. What wonderful changes have oc-
Cured in Virginia since thenl Her soil
has been striped with railroads, her bar
bors are filed with shipping, her Dopula-
ton has increased fifteen per cent, her
mineral riches are being developed. How
much more able to pay without taking her
.'uttermost farthing" is the Virginia of
to-day than the Virginia of fourteen years
ago! But for all this Col. Cameron is ad-
vocating eliminating" about one third of
her ascertained debt. The difficulties Of his
position are insuperable. He must be
able to show that a broken up State inst
emerged from disastrous war was better
able to assume a financial responsibility
than one that is now conceded by all to
be prosperous. He must be able to show
that the moral obligation to pay debt is
less binding on prosperous State than on
an impoverished one. He cannot plead
that under the rule of the Democratic
party he despairs of an effort to compro-
mise with the creditors and settle the
question; the only efforts to settle this
debt aoith the creditor have been made by
the Democrats, and the only bill that
gained their assent was passed by Funder
and Readjuster Democrats.
The history of the Democratic control
of the State for the last five years has been
an effort to settle the debt with the credi-
tors without taking the ''uttermost farth
ing" the "last pound of flesh" or the ''last
drop of blood' of the State to do it with.
It is true they did not adopt the principle
that Virginia should say what she should
pay without reference to the creditors, for
"the word of Virginia" so sacred in not
only COL Cameron 8 estimation, but in the
estimation of every citizen of the State,
had been gwen that this should never be
done.