Year: 1867

Hon. John A. Bingham, reputed to
be one of the ablest constitutional
lawyers in the country, made one Of
his powerful speeches to a large con-
course of his felIoW-eitizens at New
Market, on Saturday last, and in the
course of his remarks made the follow
ing exposure of the infamous scheme
of repudiation, unbIushiBg rasaality
and wholesale robbery now proposed
By the Democratic party


They have Of late manifested great
anxiety for the finances of this coun-
try, great anxiety for maintaining the
credit of the Government. One Of the
strangest and most TemaT kable per-
formsnees that these gentlemen who
are In the cause of the organization
known as the Democratic party IN the
State of Ohio, Is that marked anxiety
manifested By Mr. Pendleton about
the redemption of the hve-t8enty
bonds. In his speech, which IS being
scattered like the leaves of autumn
all over the country, he Is telling the
people that it is all important that
there should be issued at once a
sufficient amount Of legal tender notes
for the redemption of all the five, tWen7
ty bonds issued by the Government
for the maintenance of law ard the
preservation Of the Union, ald that
the Government should require their
immediate eztiBgUishment ia that cur
.rency.


Now, my couutrymen, / desire to
say TO you, that the gentleman in the
same speech Is telling the people to
stand By their ConstitutioR and /
wish to drop in a word here from his
own mouth, as an answer to his argU-
ment for the Constitution, and as an
indication of the amouHt of import
anoe that should be attached to his
suggestion on this subject. and that is
this When you had your army of
three hundred thousand men, or more.
ia the field, In the winter of 1862, and
you could not command enough of the
currency then known TO the CONNER
cial world &c sustain that army thirty
days when your bonds which you had
issued on the credit of the nation
were rejected IN State street, Boston,
and Wall street, New York, as c0llat-
eral security, and the attempt was
made by law in the Congress of the
United States to furnish the necessary
supplies to that army, to furnish the
necessary. shelter, clothing, transpor-
tation, munitions of war, to give op-
pcrtUnity at least of achieving victory
Ia the field, and saving the ConstitU-
ton and American nationality. and
every institutiea that you and I, and
ever other man in this land, hold dear
on this side the grave, this same Geo.
FL. PendletOn arose In his place, un-
der the obligations of his oath as a
representative of the people Of Ohio,
and declared that to issue your legal
tenders was unconstitutional. | be-
lieve the Constitution in that behalf
has not been changed from that day to
this: and how comes 1t that to-day he
asks the American people to make an
issue Of ELEVEN HUNDRED MILLIONS
Of this same currency for the redemp-
ton of the $40 bonds, so that the
people may be delivered from the bur-
den of interest on that large amount
of obligations ?


Why, gentlemen, it does not require
any amount of argument to satisfy you
that 1t Is mere device used by him,
careless whether the Constitution is
maintained or broken-it is a mere
device on his part to aftlict this country
with a circulating medium entirely be-
yond the wants of the people, so that
it will be, in the language Of Judge
Ranney and Judge Thurman. so much
useless rags-that IS all. There are
at least eleven hundred millions Of
these bonds, described In his speech,
which have run their FIVE years, and
which the Government may, at its
election, redeem and it is his dispO-
sition that you should issue an amount
of legal teuder notes sufficient to re-
deem them at once, and thereby, as he
says, relieve the people of the interest
accruing upon them. This would, as
you see, add eleven hundred millions
of circulating medium to the eight
hundred millions of bank currency
and legal tender notes, making the
enormous amount of nineteen hundred
millions of circulating medium
When it shall come to that, it will re-
quire about a peck Of legal tender
notes to buy a bushel Of potatoes :. and
then the question would arise, after
| the exchange, whether the fla mer who
gave the potatoes, or the citizen who
gave the peck of legal tenders, suffer
ed the most by the bargain.


I said In that contest what / repeat
to-day, that I would not vote for the
issuance of dollar of paper money,
or of a single bond to be taken by the
people, aud for the redemption OF
which the whole wealth of the nation
| was pledged, except with the distinct
understanding that at some future
time or other the same should be re-
deemed In gold and silver. 1t was Sd
understood at the time all over the
! land and [ propose, for one, to main
tain, so far as In me lies the pledged
| faith Of the nation. I admit that there
/ is nothing in the law-and that the
| honorable gentleman has stated II
! truly, touching the 5-20 bOn3s-that
| there is nothing that would preclude
/ the Government of the United States
from providing for their redemption
10 something else than gold and silver
but the paper in which You would re-
deem them must be fairly convertible


into gold and silver, or they would be


absolutely worthless


My countrymen. il requires no fur


ther word from me to satisfy you thai
this Is a mere trick by which to cheat


the groundlings in the interest of thai
| rebellion which was oYeFthrOWn by


arms, and which is now attempting Il
overcome what was lost ia the field Of


mortal combat. A Government tha


won't discharge faithfully and honest


ly its contract, IN letter and spirit, car
+ not hope long to have faithful and tru,


defenders. Honesty Is the best pol
ieyn amongst nations as amongst indi


vidual men. It is as binding upoI


nations, for the reason that a natioI


at last is but combination of persons


who carry with them into the organi


zation of the State the same obliga


tions of morality and integrity which


ought to control their dealings in pri


vatc lite.


This brings me to make a furthe


remark, that these gentlemen who ar


asking for this expansion of the cur


rency, for this first step toward repu


diation of tho pledged faith of thi


nation faket s ep fur her, and calle'


uDon that simon pure Democrat, g. J.
Yallandigham, TO announce the prop
: Ositou for them, in their State Con
) vention last JaDuarg, that they arr


for equal taxation, They are agains