Year: 1868

| 4hG 4kE hOC5 ASh PA
tend to have the financial smartness
requisite to pay Immediately the deb
| of $500 millions fastened upon the
backs of the people by the Democratic
! war OF secession, nor TO change 1t from
a burden TO blessing. They propose
TO devote their statesmanship to the
adjustment OF its unavoidable burden,
so as TO tighten it us much as possible
and at the same time to see that the
party which brought this load upon
| their necks shall not again have the
power to ruin the country.


So vast a Democratic debt can not be
paid in u month. nor.in a year. Unless
we heap on taxation to an extent that
| would stop the production, the pay
To reduce the present burden, SO as TO
relieve production, and thus Conlinu-
ally 10 increase our capacity 10 pay,
while we gradually reduce the debt, is
the only sincere, honest and practica-
BILE policy.


Congress passed a bill authorizing
the issue of bonds at 4 per cent. inter-
est, running forty years, payable spe-
cificalIy in gold, and offering the hold
ers of The 20s the chance to exchange
them for these. The 5 2Os are per cent.
bonds, the interest specifically payable
in gold. And at the time of their isSue e
itwas agreed by all departments ofihe
Abab AHC E1A "SS PHy
able in gold. At any rate, the bonds
promised TO pay in money, and not in
another promise.


Should the public creditors exchange
their 5-2Os for the new bonds, il would
be equivalent TO a reduction of one
third of the debt, and it would have
about sealed the debt 10 its gold value,
rating gold as high as so per cent. pre-
MUM. 10 those who intend to deal
honestly with the people it would seem
that the only question in this case
would be whether the bondholders
would accept the exchange, and abato
one third of their just claim. The re-
ducLion OF one-third of the vast Demo.
cratic debt would seem 10 be great
achievement, a thing which would
greatly increase our abilitytO bear and
ultimately pay of the remainder.


But Mr.. johnson defeated the bill by
the pocket veto. And the Democratic
organs aud speakers assail it, not be-
cause it is impracticable,n not because the
bond holders would not accept the
terms, but they think it Is too favorable
TO the bond-holders. And what do
they propose instead? To take up the
5.2Os by issuing greenback legal ten
ders. And what Is a greenbRck legal
tender note? II is promise to pay SO
much money. How are these TO be
paid2 They say they do not intend 10
pay LneSes 4ueh LAoS lhLGIh W CuhBSe
the bonds. which are now in the hands
of comparatively small number of
persons, into notes to be taken by the
people as money, and then to let the
notes depreciaIe and die in the hands
of the people.


Thus the original Democratic policy
of repudiating the debt in the hands of
the bondholders is changed to scheme
10 repndiaIe IT in the hands of the peo-
pie. All the depreciation of this two
thousand or three thousand millions of
greenbacks, will come out of the pock-
cts of the people. And the worst
OF this form of repudiation is
that the depreciation of the money
comes chiefly on the laborer. The
trader and the capitalist can protect
himself by enlarging the margin of
profits, and By speculation; but the
poor man and laborer cannot. He
must take for his. wages whatever is
current in the form of money, and must
stand whatever shave is asked on ac-
count of its continual depreciation.


The Democratic system of changing
the form of debt from bonds to cur
rency notes is therefore a plan to take
the burden of the debt off from taxable
property and capital, and to put it all
on the Iaborer. To relieve capital and
other property from taxation to pay
the debt, the Democratic plan proposes
to plumber the mass of the people to
the whole amount. No such rascally
scheme was ever devised To make the
rich richer, by robbing the l1bOrer of
his wages.-Ci,t. Gazette.