Year: 1877

Ant NAusts Dh tnt UtntE0E DfDEtrrl0m-


Only Bondholders Protected.


Worcester (Mass.) Press.l


The opening of the late presidential cam
paign found the industries of the country in
a sad state of depression. Hard times"
were upon the country, and the dawn of
better times had not begun to brighten the
future. The suffering masses OF the people
were unable to explain the cause of these
hard times or to suggest a remedy; these
questions led into matters beyond their in
formation. But they knew that their great
want was something to cure these ''hard
tinIes"-something to lift the burden of
this business depression-something differ
ent from the governmental policy tha: had
been pursued; and they expressed this want
as best they could in the cry 1--WE want a
change" 1t was this popular desire for "a
change that gave the democratic ticket
majority of 10000 on the popular vote. The
Hayes administration came into power
through the triumph of fraud, and with it
came "a change"-such as it was. But are
the people satisfied? Are times" better?
Is the burden of business depression lifted
from the country? Have the people found
the change they. wanted? Manifestly they
have not, or the country would not still be
groaning under the burden of "hard times"
So the change that came when the
Hayes administration came into power
not the Change that the people
WduOcu II tucy WOulu give bnclT dlbcullOn
to a few plain facts with regard to the man
agement of the finances of the country they
would come TO an understanding to the
nature of the change" they wanted, and
would be able to express their want more
definitely. Let them ask themselves the
question, Who are they who do not want "a
changer" They will find that the men who
do not want "a change are the holders of
government bonds and the owners of ma
tional banks. These-barring a hundred
thousand federal officeholders-are the only
ones of all the people of this republic who
are not looking forward to some change"
that shall relieve the industries of the coun-
try from the burden which rests upon them.
Does not this fact offer some clue to the ma
ture of the "change" which the people
wanted last year and which they still want?
III any man will take the pains to examine
the financial policy of the government under
republican rule he will oe forced TO the con-
clusion that the finances of the country have
been administered according to the dicta-
thought of the demands of the business in
terests of the land. He will find that the
national bank system has amounted to just
this: The government has paid the national
banks about twenty five millions of dollars
a year in gold for the rare privilege of in
dorsing their notes and making them as good
as greenbacks, and this sum of twenty-five





upon the industries of the country, for the
moneyed men were exempt from taxation.
He will find that the managers of the coun-
try's finances have, under the guise of pro.
tecting the credit of the government" sim.
ply projected the holders of government
bonds at the expense OF the industries OF
the republic They have kent the property
of the bondholders from depreciation, and in
so doing have caused depreciation of from
30 to 50 per cent. in the value of all things
else. The holder of real estate has not been
protected by the government; on the con-
trary, he has been robbed Of half of his for
tune In order that the creditors of the gov
ernment might be protected. The manufac-
turer has not been protected, nor the mer-
chant nor the laboring man; all these have
suffered and are still suffering. But the
holder of government bonds has been pro
tected with a fidelity that has nearly ruined
everybody else. The man who FIVE years
ago held real estate to the value of a hun
dred thousand dollars can now count him
self worth scarcely more than fifty thousand
dollars; but his ueighbor who five years ago
held government bonds to the extent of a
hundred thousand dollars has been so pro
tected that he is wealthier than he then was,
and this process of protecting the credit of
the government" is still going on, to his in
finite satisfaction. The secretary of the
treasury is at present engaged in two mag





ton of the governments creditors. He
is rapidly exunguishing the greenback
circulation and substituting national
bank bills. and he is working
against the payment of the government
bonds in silver. The result of his first
scheme will be this: The industries of the
country will be assessed for sufficient
| amount to enable the government to pay the
national banks for the privilege of indorsing
their notes TO the full extent Of the circula-
ting medium required by the country. The
result of his second scheme will he this 1t
will take about 10 per cent. more to pay the
national debt; and this sum, too, win be as
sessed upon the industries of the country.
We have briefly referred to the financial pol
icy of the government under republican rule
during the last decade, and to what the
present republican secretary of the treasury
p opposes TO do In the future. We shall at
anosher time continue this subject and show
that the change" which the people wanted
last fall, and srill want and will continue to
want until il is accomplished, is this: The
abolition of the national banks and the de-
termination to compel the holders of govern
ment bonds to accept silver as the tender in
which thew are to be paid