The times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1882-1897, 1885-03-20

stead legislation, it opened the public
domain TO the poor free of cost, and
that wise policy has added to the
Nation several millions OF population,
entire States. and hundreds of millions
of dollars worth of taxable property.
When the Republican party came
into power every State had its banks
and currency, which impeded com
merce and inflicted great loss upon
the people. The Republican party
has established 4 National banking
system which has ensured TO the
whole country financial system and
a currency which facilitates trade and
ensures absolute safety to the bill
holder. When the Republican party
came into power. California and
Oregon were scarcely better than
foreign States. Almost entirely by
the policy adopted by the Republican
party, three lines Of railway now bind
together with indssoluble bonds the
two sections, making San Francisco
and Boston as near together in time
and cost Of transportation as were
Maine and Florida IN 1860. The post
al system was an exceedingly crude
one in 1860, now it is by far the most
perfect in the world. AS tie result
of Republican legislation postage has
been reduced IS, and system of
money orders established and per,
fected which has proven to be of in
calcuble benefit TO the people of the
country. At the same time the
charges for carrying small mercantile
packages in the mails have been re
duced to such an extent as to make
their use well nigh universal for that
purpose; while in thousands of cases
the weekly mail carrier has given
place to the daily mail transportation
by steam. Treaties have also, been
negotiated with the leading Nations
of Europe, in which the rights Of
natives of such countries to become
citizens Of the United States, have
for the first time, been fully recog-
nized. When the war terminated
the interest bearing debt of the Ma
ton was Sz,756,45L57I, and the in
terest thereon was at the rate Of $780,
o776s7 year. February 2Sth, 1885
the interest bearing debt was SI,Io6,-
$50, the interest Of which is now at
the rate Of S47,oI4,o4o. On the 3Ist
day of August, 1865, the public debt
Per capita was S7S.a5, and the yearly
interest SAG. July rst, 1884, the
public debt was Sa5.8o, and the
annual interest sc cents to each in
habitaDt, or reduction in 10 years
of more than three. fourths; all this
has been done by the Republican
party. And this revolution in insti-
tutions of the Nation--its preservation
the overthrow of slavery-the cast
ing out of all recognition of slavery
in the constitution of each and every
S,ale-the maintenance of the public
credit-the payment of the National
debt, and every other reform of the
last quarter of century, have each
in turn, and all of them from time TO
time, met the violent opposition of
the Democratic party, at each step
and every point. Besides all that,
the National prosperity of the coun-
try during the period in which the
Republican party has been in power
has surpassed anything heretofore
recorded on the page Of this worlds
history. Thss growth we believe is
very largely due to the protection
extended to American industrial in
terests, by the change in the tariff
laws in 1861. BY the census of 1860
we learn that the value of all the
property in the United States at that
date, June Ist, 1860, exclusive of
slave property, was $4,000, 900, 900;
in 1880, as shown by the census of
that year, it had increased more than
200 per cent, being So, 100000, 900,
an increase in twenty years of $3o,-
600, 100000. In the same period,
despite the devastations of the war of
the rebellion, the increase in popula-
ton was about Ga per cent, from