Year: 1877

him to put his SIC, 900 in government bonds
as they were paying fully sixper cent. in gold
b. said O. had two farms and he had thought
of buying one for $40, 600, which would be
very low but as the U. s. bonds yield ed
about as much as heoould make off a farm
he thought he would live athis ease for two
or three years. After several years rolled
around, and the system of contraction had
been put in operation, B found A back
ward about his interest, and finally that he
could not pay at all so B accosts him and
tells him that he will have to put the Sher-
If on him. This is done, and nobody is
willing TO pay so much as BIS mortgage
and interest, and therefore he gets the farm
back for one-half he sold 1t for ten years
before. A asks B what he did with tho
$4,000 he paid him on the farm. B points
to his U. s. bonds. A reminds him that
he talked of buying one of C's farms for
$4,000. Yes, says B, but 1 bought bonds,
and they have gone up while your farm
and C's farm have gone down. The bonds
have paid me a heavy gold interest all this
time and l expect to realize ON them in a
day or two handsome advance. bought
them at rs and they are quoted at S1:22 g.
C's farms will both be sold by the Sheriff
next week and expect to buy them both
for the s1o,o 900 got from you, and I shall
have about 81, 200 left to stock and improve
them. So you see my investment has been a
very shrewd one, while IL has given me no
trouble at all, and never cost dollar OF
taxes. G said 1t did seem little strange
and hard too, for he and A had worked all
ha frNan hnr a
made nothing but had lost all they had
made before they bought the farms. The
reply of B to this was that he had
aud navar lived so easy and well in his life
AT this point Mr.. hugnes might pe suppus-
ed to step up and illustrate the matter more
fully with his clear and forciable way OF
charging the shrinkage of real estate and
the consequent expansion of the value of
the bonds to the terrible system of "contrac-
tion forced so suddenly and rapidly upon
the country by the Radical party leaders by
means of the U. S. Banks and the with
drawal of greenbacks at the rate of about
million day in some periods.


Whether Mr.. Hughes proposed plan will
prove cure for the hard times or not there
is nothing more certain than that contrac-
tAoi Ahe put lllOustuus OI men III Ifle laHQS
OF the Sheriff in almost every State in the
Union.


His plan will not be listened to. 1t will
not betried and therefore it cannot be known
whether it would be a good one or a bad
one. But everybody knows that govern
ment bond which was got by the sale of a
house in 1864 will now buy two such houses.
While every merchant finds the remnents
OF the stock of goods laid in year ago de-
preciated until they will not cover COST
Every thing has to bear an immense tax
except U. S. bonds while capitalists invest
ments in bonds pay larger dividends than
any other investments. But astounding as
1t may seem they pay no taxes. The cur
rency is contracted to make them equal to
gold and the people are taxed to pay their
interest in gold. Truly If the government
was run for the bondholder's especial bene-
MT we cannot see how it could do more than
II does in his favor. The bonds should be
taxed. If the present policy OF favoritism
Is continued party of reputation NAV
arise before some people are aware of it,
Such party would no doubt have a long
road To travel But it might be "A paying
one 70 corrupt leaders as they would be sure
of being bought of whenever Il pro>p eel OF
success became apparent.