Year: 1868

y
it to uphold military despotism. We
see clearly that a state of affairs which
will compel you to take debased cur
rency, will force every laberer, farmer
mechanic, and creditor TO take a de-
based currency as well.
IF your claims were all wiped out to
morrow by an issue of greenbacks, il
would not relieve the fear of patriots;
labor would still be cheated by false
dollars, our standard of value would
still be shifting.


Taxation would be kept up by the re-
construction policy, for it is despotism
more than debt that makes taxation SO
heavy. Nothing would be settled. The
judiciary would still be trampled under
foot, the Executive would still be man
acled so that it could not punish crime
nor protect innocence. But strike down
the Congressional policy and all will be
set right.


Since the war closed in 1865 the gov
ernment has spent for its expenses, in
addition to payments on principal or
interests of the public debt, the sum OF
more than 81, ,00O, ,000, 900. OF this sum
there has been spent nearly $500, ,0O0, 600
on the army and navy, and for mil
itary purposes. This is nearly one
third of the national debt. This was
spent in the time of peace.
The cost of our navy before the war
was about 100000 each year. Since
the war, when our shipping has been
swept from the ocean by taxation, the
annual average cost has been S3O, O,O0O,-
900, although we have now 40 carrying
trade to protect. While money is thus
wasted without scruple upon the army
and navy, if any aid is sought to lessen
the cost of transportation for the farm
ers of the West or to cheaper feod for
the laborers of the East, we are at once
treated with Congressional speeches up
on the virtues of economy.


If from this amount there had been
saved and paid upon the debt the sum of
$500 900, ,00o, how changed wou d our con-
dition have been. With this payment,
which would have cut down the debt to
about S2,0O0,0O0,000, our credit would
at least have been as good as that of
Great Britain. 1t is because we did not
thus apply this money to this purpose,
but spent it upon negro policy, the
military despotisms and other abuses
of government, that our credit is so
low.


The world saw we were violating our
faith with the public creditors and the
taxpayers alike, when the money was
used for the partisan purposes of keep
ing the South out of the Union until
sham Governments could be mannfac-
tured by military violence and Con-
gressional action.


TIE world not only saw the mon
strous diversion of the money, wrung
from the people by taxation, but it also
saw that it made, through long series
of years, still greater annual expenses
unavoidable.


When the entire control of the South
ern States is given over unchecked by
the intelligence of the white race, To
untutored negroes, whom the people OF
the North have said were unfit to he
voters, when the unfortunate Africans,
drunk with unusual power, and goaded
on by bad and designing men, shall
make life and property unsafe, and
shall shock and disgust the world with
outragcs, we shall be forced to raise and
pay stlll greater armies.


Up to this time the South has had at
least an intelligent tyranny in military
officers.


Every man who is not blinded by
hate or bigotry looks forward with her
ror to the condition Of the South under
negro domination.


The bad faith to the public creditor
aud taxpayer in thus unsettling our
Union, of keeping the South in n condi-
ton where it cannot help the national
prosperity, but is made a heavy load
upon the country, is the real cause OF
our debased credit.


The taxpayer was told the burdens
put upon him where to pay the debt;
but the money was not used in good
faith to him, for the debt still stands;
nor in good faith to the creditor,
for he was not paid when he
shoald have been; but it was used in a
way which harmed both, in q way that
tainted the nations credit, kept up tax
alton by keeping mp the rate of inter-
est, while it sank the value of the bonds,
and with them carried down the paper
currency, and thus wronged the laborer
and pcnsioner.


But for the policy of bad faith of par
tisan purposes, mad folly, We conld to-
day borrow money as cheaply as Great
Britain; but we have cursed the tax
payers, the laborer, the pensioner, the
public creditor, for the sake of cursing
the people of the South with military
despotism and negro domination. .s Z.