The Iowa plain dealer. [volume] (New Oregon, Howard County, Iowa) 1867-1895, 1883-11-29
POLITICS OF THE POOR.
Al 0psn Letter to the Editor Of Harper !
Weekly, New York.

| II - stlQ 10 DC very noIlccaDle now the poll
tics q the poor yho have any politics iat NJ;
conntt OF ideas braring On The p.acticabiity u
getting at the wealth OF the upper classes. The
arst slimmering Of political interest among
, rap sgreed-Ha'pers Weekly, aor To-
ns m fd s Of W HsFssA a TssaS Ss% ges
Ing the truth of the above statement,
desire to call your attention to several very
good reasons, which. IN my Judgment, will
Justify the middle and poorer classes ri
American society IN rrtertaininH thn sc,tl.
menta with you ascribc 10 them. II these
Or any other causes have produced or are
now producing such Objectionable senti-
ments. then the proper way TO correct the
evil is to remove Its cause, by instituting IN
opposite policy. Snecrs and prosecutions
will not correct. but may aggravatc the esil
complained Of
| l. In 1861 the country was I'm the midst of a
war to suppress the greatest and most ched
rebellion the world had ever seen. Meh aid
money were needed Coin and COIN basis
paper were inadequate to met ct the cmergcn-
cy. II was resolved by n patriotic Congress
| tn issue treasury mites, legal tender for I'LL
debts and receivable by the issuing Govern
| ment for all dues. Sixty millions Of such
notes were issued and during the entire war
these notes never deprecated below coin.
but were preferred to coin in all large trans
| actions, and were, on an average, during the
war about twice Us valuable as the United
States FER cent. coin bonds. On tho faith
| of this action of Congress, and rs an agent of
the Government, Gen. Scott, Sept. l and 3,
issued order No. IL, promising all soldiers
who would enlist in the service Of their coun-
4 try "payment in coin, or treasury notes n
good MS coin, ut all banks and Government
| Offices within the United States" Under This
authoritative and twicc-issned order 10000,
men, more or less, enlisted to save the coun-
try. The next issue OF treasury notes, and
4 all subsequent issues OF treasury notes. in
Guiding Ss30. 600, 900 of $50 bonds used rs
| currency, were, by law, rcpudiated in the
custom-houses and in payments of interest
to the upper class = holders of Government
bonds This legal Reputation of the treasury
notes on the part of the Government and on
the part of the rich reduced their value
about one-half; yet, in the face of Gen.
SCOTS order No Ii, these deprecated notes
were used TO pay the soldiers at their face
value. In 1880 100000 American citizens
petitoncd the American Congress TO make
good to the soldiers and sailors OF the Union
their losses through the depreciation Of the
partially legal tender treasury notes, rs for
mer Congresses, through the petitions of
! Gen. Washington, Gen. Knox and others hal
made good to the Revolutionary soldiers
their losses from the depreciation of the
continental currency. The American sol
der, whose nominal pay was $l3 per month,
received not over 81 per month. and when the
\ W6kVS WcTc Eulseu W &tO, TIT cOll SdIut
| Of the paper notes was about So per month.
| 2. The American Congress has utterly re-
/ fused to keep faith with the soldiers under
contracts Of cnlistments OF Sept. and ,, 1851.
! Yet toward the rich bOndholdcrs Of the world
! this policy OF the Government has been re
| versed. Bonds that were originally sold for
half-price currency, were, in 1862 made BY
law payable in coin. Thus. then, the private
| soldiers, working ut 'poor mems wages,
were paid about half the contract price; rich
men, not working ut all-mere spectators
invested half-price currency, and are. by law,
paid interest and principal in coin. is there
anything in this bad faith calculated TO excite
the prejudiccs of 1.-THE poor against the
rich? We ask the question in the utmost
candor.
3. 1t will be noted that, by the law of 1850,
Ill United States bonds, except the remnant
of the 1-3Os, were, by law, made payable In
"coin." In 1870 Il law was passed for re-
funding the bonds, making them payable In
"coin Of the standard weight OF July IA,
1870" This included the gold and silver dol.
lars as then coined; and the silver dollar OF
4l2i. grains of standard silver was then the
unit of value, as 1t had been since the forma-
ton OF the Government. 1t would seem that
this last law, doubling the first cost OF the
bonds in the hands of the holders ought to
have satisfied the "rapacious greed" of the
rich for the earnings OF tho poor. but 1t did
not. In 1873 law was passed making the
fiuctuating and rapidly approaching god dol
lar the unit of value, while the stcadicr and
slowly approaching silver dollar was dropped
entirely from the coinage: demonctizinY Nil
future coinage Of silver In sums above 81.
This made all United States bonds payable In
gold coin alone. Gold has now appreciated
about 30 per cent. above its value in 1870, and,
practically the bonds are still paid in gold or
Its equivalent, at the option OF the holders.
The soldier who has been unable to collect
above half of the agreed price for his services
during the war, liz now taxed to pay the gold
interest and principal on bonds that have
been appreciated By ldm to nearly three times
their first cost. Is there anything in this to
cause 1.-THE poor" to desire to ..get at the
wealth of the upper classes"
I. The contraction Of the currency-thc
burning of the peoples money-and issuing
Its face value in bonds to the rich. from 1866
to 1873, produced falling prices, which re-
suited In general panic In ls.3. The law of
1873 against silver, and the law Of 1875 for the
further retirement OF the greenbacks, en-
HANGED and perpetnated the evils of the panic.
Money and securities were vastly enhanced In
value. Property and homes OF the debtor
classes passed rapidly into the hands of the
rich mt mere nominal prices. The latorers of the
country were turned into tramps by the mill
lon, and the upper classes and bondholdcgs
became millonaires. In 1877 the country en-
tered the dark shadow Of anarchy. Men re-
fused to starye quietly. Cities began To
burn, and law was fast losing its authority.
UtChuSt pUOT humanity COuIu NO more.
1.-THE politics Of the poor" cried for mercy.
The politics Of the rich said feed them ON
the rifle Diet" Both prayers were partially
answered, neither of them fully. Reprcssivc
measures kept an Unsurpassed silence until
two remedial laws were passed in 1873. One
restored the silver dollar to the currency of
the country, but not to Its ancient place as
the unit OF account The other stopped the
further retirement of the greenbacks and
virtually repealed the Resumption act. These
remedial measures put us on the rising grade
and have ultimately made times better, and
life among the poor more endurable.
5. Since 1873 every administration OF the
party in power and every metropolitan Wall
street journal, both secular and religious.
have continually demanded the repeal OF the
remedial measures OF 1873. They demand
the demonstration Of silver and the utter
extinction of the greenback as lawful
money. They continually demand the aboli-
ton of oil monetary rights among the people
In this country. except as TO the holders of
gold coin. With lawful money in hand the
debtor possesses monetary rights which his
creditors are bound to respect. With valuable
property, gold or silver bullion, trade dollars.
or non-legal currency In hand the debtor
possesses no monetary rights which creditors
and the holders OF lawful money are bound
to respect. According to the s'rapacious
greed Of the politics OF the rich all law
full money ie to be abolished except gold coin.
gold coin are ut once reduced TO the condition
OF the slaves under the bred Scott decision
they have no monetary rights which creditors
and the holders of gold coin are bound to
respect. This is the monetary policy insisted
upon by the upper classes" trying to '.get
at" the earnings of the debtor classes. Is il
any wonder that the politics Of the poor
who have any politics" should be of an
opposite nature.
8. Under the present state Of the laws,
silver dollars Of the standard weight OF July
IA. $50, are due and payable on United States
bonds-this il the law and the contract--but
the party In power utterly refuses 10 tender
these dollars to the bondholders. They pile
up and hoard the dollars ut great cost, in
convenience and risk, and continue to pay
the interest and principal of the bonds in
scarce and dear gold. The authorities defy
and disobey the laws In this manner under
the false plea that silver has deprecated In
value. A plea that Is shown to be false by
the leading statisticians and financial writer's
OF Germany, England and America. Since