The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1892-10-05

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the sound doctrine and destroy the good
works Of the Republican party.
During the war the Democratic Bour
bons opposed the fight for the flag because
it was conducted under Republican adj
ministration; It opposed the legal tender
greenbacks, because they were device for
quickly furnishing the government by .
forced loan with the sinews Of war; after
the war these same Democrats favored the
unlimited issue Of greenbacks because the
Republican party, the stress OF war over.
sought to get back to q sound financial
condition. The Democracy had no ''prin.
cipie" about their opposition to green
backs in 1862; no principle" about their
favoring Of unlimited greenbacks in 1874;
in both cases 1t was the Democratic doc.
trIne of negation: to deny and derids
the Republican doctrine. The greatest
service that Samuel J. Tilden, hard money
man and protectionist Democrat bred in
the school Of Jackson, Van Buren, and
Wright. rendered his country was his In
sstance that the national Democratic
convention Of 1876 should repudiate the
irredeemable paper money delusion,
which in 1874 Was generally supported by
the Western Democracy both within and
without congress-. It took two years Of
the enormous influence Of ulden, speak.
ing from the vantage ground Of the COVER
norship of New York, to secure the down.
fall Of the paper money delusion in his
party. A man Of less brain and marvel.
lous political skill would hardly have &C
complished it, because the leaders of the
Western Democracy believed that fat
money promised victory to the Democratic
party, just as its majority in both house Of
congress believed In free silver at its last
session and recorded their belief by their
votes.
The Democratic party not only opposed
the war measures providing for the issue
and ultimate redemption Of legal tender
greenbacks, and for the establishment Of
the national bank system, but after the
war they opposed the refunding and re-
demption acts; that is, the Democracy
would neither permit US to create a debt
to pay for the conduct Of the war, nor per-
NIT as to promptly and honestly pay that
debt after the war was over.
The record of thirty years Of Republican
financial legislation since 1862 il that We
have paid more than half Of our enormous
war debt honestly, according to the terms,
expressed or expressly implied, in which
wepromised to pay. and we have national
bank system under which not dollar has
been lost to . note holder and only the
smallest fraction to depositors. Hero are
some figures which contrast our condition
in 1865 with our situation today. The
public debt then amounted to $78 per
capita: now 1t is only $l2 per capits. Then
the annual interest charge was "a. % per
capita; now 1t is SO cents per capita. In
1865 the country had a foreign commerce
amounting to $500, OOO, 900, in which the
balance of trade was $4,000. 600 on the
wrong side; now there 10 q commerce
amounting to nearly 81. DOC, 000, 900, and .
balance of over $2Oo. 600. 600 on the right
side. Our exports in 1865 were only $780,.
100000. and our imports $23S, 0o0. 600: today
our exports for the year just ended are
81, 030, 000. 900. and our imports are ss27,.
100000. Not only have we rapidly dis.
charged our debt to our bondholders,
but We have rapidly discharged our
moral debt to our soldiers, 90 far
as it is practicable to discharge
a perpetual moral obligation by payment
of cash. In 1865 We had pension list OF
5000 soldiers or soldiers widows and
orphans drawing $500. 600 a year; today
we have q pension roll of 300 900 soldiers
or soldiers widows and orphans receiving
an annual pension payment of $14o, o0a, 900,
and know that they have received in the
twenty-seven years since the close Of the
war $500, 100000 in pensions. The pen.
sion Office disposes today of claims at the
rate of 100000 per year, against less than
half that number under the preceding
Democratic administration.
In accomplishing all this great work the
Republican party has had to contend with
the opposition of the Democratic party,
the party Of negation and obstruction.
The funding act of 1870, which achieved
an enormous saving in interest, did not
get single Democratic vote in either house
Of congress. The resumption act of 1875
was opposed by every Democrat in both
houses. The national banking act was
denounced by the Democracy thirty years
ago, and return to the pernicious inferior
currency OF state bank Issues and wildcat
money is advocated by the national Demo-
cratic platform today. aud a majority Of
the Democracy in the last congress favored
unlimited free coinage of silver.