Year: 1878

! greenDaCK money, De upon d DdSE


equal to gold and silver, or upon Z


gold and silver basis, which means the


same. 1t is charged against me that
l have said, in my speeches in Scott


and Lee counties, that wanted these
! greenbackS made equal to gold and


silver. l plead guilty to the charge,


and repeat, my fellow-citizens, that


do want the greenbacks as good as


gold and silver. l want no gold


gamblers or silver spectators, but let


us forever close the doors against them


by making the greenbacks full and


complete legal tender for all debts and
dues, as above stated, and that will be


accomplished. | want the greenback


dollar to perform all the functions of
| the gold or silver dollar, or, in other


words, to do whatsoever the gold and


silver dollar will do-then we have a
| sound, stable currency, which protects


the laboring man as well as the pro-
ducer. | never have said, nor do |


ever expect to say, that | want the


greenbackS upon an actual gold basis,


that is the gold actually in the Treas


ury to redeem them with, because that


would lead to contraction instead of


imitation. | shall favor the abolition


of the National Bank system, because


it is ruinous in its operations and in


the highest degree oppressive, and the


issuance of legal tender greenbackS to


take the place of the national Curren-


cy as it is Withdrawn from circulation.
| shall heartily endorse and favor


any measure looking to the repeal and


destruction of that most detestable


system of Internal Revenues, which
operates the groSSest injustice to the


people of Virginia, and requires her


people to pay for the support Of the


Federal Government near four mil


lions Of dollars annually, more than


her Just quota, which tax is in viola


ton Of every principle of justice and


fair dealing. The tobacco growers by
that system pay tax upon their lands
and also upon their products, and are
forced to contribute largely to the
support Of the government, while the
northern people pay no such tax, and1
thus the Virginia people are made to
bear an unjust and onerous burden
which they ought not to bear, and
shall not, if can have any influence
in giving them relief The same may
be said as to the diStilation of Brandy.


l shall also enter my earnest protest
against the TuCker-Hunton bill, which
has for its object further grant of
power to the Federal Courts to exer-
else a supervisory jurisdiction over the
decisions of the Court of Appeals of
Virginia. The Virginia people are
competent to take care of themselves,
and propose to retain and maintain |
what little of States rights is left them. |


1t is well known that | am in favor |
of fair, equitable and just settle
ment or readjustment of the Public |
debt of Virginia, and especially do
want speedy elimination of the nine |
millions of war and reconstruction in |
terest, which, in 1866, was taken from |
the people and given to the Bond |
holder-a sum of money that we did
not owe then, do not owe now, and
never intend to pay and for that |
measure Capt. Newberry, one of my |
competitors, voted, and when the |
charge was made against him his |
memory did not serve him, and never
would until the record was produced. |
That measure, fellow-Citizens, is the
prime cause of all our financial trou-
bles in Virginia, and yet Capt. New
berry has the temerity to ask you to
send him to Congress. have always |
the Funding Bill, and never |
will consent to pay the Public debt as
defined and ascertained by it. The |
question was asked if | favored the |
Barbour Bill, which was answered in
the affirmative. The principle of the
Barbour Bill was nothing new to me,
for when | was in the House of Dele
gates, IS74-5, | then voted for a
measure to require 10 cents of the
taxes to be collected in money for the |
support of the schools. | am an ad- |
vocate of popular education, and look |
upon the diversion of the school fund |
from its legitimate and constitutional |
channel as a wrong and great public |
calamity. One now seen and felt by |
the whole country.


Now, my fellow-citizens, l have
thus briefly defined my position upon
all the questions in issue. l submit |
it for your calm ard careful conside- |
ration, and believing that you will |
judge me from an honest standpoint,
| fear not the result. Many of you |
know me personally as a citizen and a
soldier. | entered the Confederate |
army as an Orderly Sergeant and re-
tired from it at the close of the war
Colonel of the oath Va. Regiment,
and then identified myself with the
great Conservative party of Virginia
at its formation, and with it have act
ed ever since the party that took the
shaCkles from so many of our fellow
citizens and gave them political liber-
ty the party that met the hordes of
political vultures who came in the
wake of the federal army to feed and
fatten on the dead carcass of Virginia,
and drove them from place and pow
er. 1t is to this party, SO sacrafcing
in spirit, so irresistible in action, so
splendid in its achievements, SO glori-
Gus in its history and SO magnanimous
in the hour of its victories, that l be-
long and, although my competitors
may denounce it, and say that it has
lead the country into bankruptcy and