Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1886-02-04

public faith and credit, as he truthfully
and Indignantly said. Mr.. Stevens,
then the leader Of his party, denounced
their claim still more fiercely, and
threatened TO abandon his party and
join the Democracy, even with "Frank
Blairn on the ticket, rather than
countenance snch an outrage on public
decency. ,. .D t. .3slL -1..
The subsequent legislation by Con-
gress only proves the truth of Macau-
lays observation that iflarge pecuniary
interests were concerned i'm denying
the truth of the attraction of gravita-
ton that most obvious of physical facts
would be strongly and ably disputed.
1t seems to me that any set of men
who would deny the fact that the le-
gal-tender note. Endorsed as it was and
Is, which had purchased the bonds at
its face value should be received again
by the bondholder in payment of the
principal of the obligation he held,
would not hesitate to deny the truth Of
the attraction of gravitation.
Yet these men not only denied it, but
in 1859 procured the passage of an act
of Congress, against the vote and pro-
test Il am happy to say of every Demo-
crat in both Houses, declaring that the
principal of the bonds should be paid
in coin-in gold and silver coin, as both
are named. Legal-tenders were only
worth so cents on the dollar in coin
when the bonds were bought; they
were worth from 66 to 20 cents when
this act was passed. The act was sim
ply legalized robbery. The bondhOlders
and their attorneys in and out of Con-
gress knew it, and knew that no court
would sustain such law. The in
dorsement could neither be erased nor
sworn off the back of the legal-tender
note, and nobody could plead ignorance
of the law or the fact that it was to be
received at par in payment of the prin-
cipal of all our bonds.
Therefore they caused the act of July
IA, 1870, to be passed, extending the
time of payment reducing, the interest,
and exempting the new bonds in ex-
press terms from all taxation, State,
Federal, or municipal; and to prevent
all mistake or misapprehension as to
the character, quality, and weight of
the money in which payment of the
new bonds should be made, they caused
to be printed on each bond as part of
its obligation, "that it shall be paid in
coin of the standard value prescribed
by law on the 14th of July, 1870" The
present gold and silver coin are both of
the standard value prescribed by the
law of July IA, 1870, and were then ais
now both full legal-tender for all our
obligations. All the bonds that mature
in 1892 and 1907, amounting to about
$10,0 900, 900, stand to-day unchanged,
and payable as required by the act Of
1870. The remnant of those PAYABLE
now have been changed, the interest has
been lowered, and the time extended,
but the same provisions govern them,
and the same conditions are written
out as part of the contract in all of
them. Let me read. Inscription on
face of bonds of the 5 per cent. funded
loan of1S81:
This bond is issued in accordance
with the provision of an act of Congress
entitled "An act to authorize the re-
funding of the national debt, approved
July IA, 1870, amended by an act ap-
proved January 20, 1871" and is re-
deemable at the pleasure of the United
States after the first day of May, A. d.
1881, in coin of the standard value of
the United States on said July IA, 1870,
with interestIin such coin from the day OF
the date hereof,at the rate of per cent.
per annum, payable quarterly on the 1st
day of February, May, August, and
November, in each year, The princi-
pal and interest are exempt
from the payment of all taxes or
duties of the United States as we'll as
from taxation in any form by or under
State, municipal, or local authority"
In the face of these facts it is simply
absurd for anybody to assert that they
are payable in gold alone, or that the
taxpayers of the country are under any
obligation, express or implied, either
to demonetize or stopthe coinage of the
silver dollar, which is of the standard
value required by the act of July IA,
1879, or to increase its weight thirty,
forty, or any other number of grains,
because England, to whom we have
ignominiously surrenered the carrying
trade of this country and the world,
with her 200, 100000 of serfs India and
elsewhere, and Germany, after extort-
ing 81 ,000, co. 900, of gold from France,
have combined in the interest of their
money-changes to depreciate silver, OF
put up the market price of gold SO per
cent.
[ooNcLuDED NEXT WEEK.