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Editorial and Clippings. Wli It It it it It It It It Ith ki It li It li It It let? Reply to the Sentinel on that Bond issue. In the last issue of the Griggs Sen li :iel appears an editorial con demning the issuance of bonds by the United States government for the purpose of raising reve nue 1.0 pay for the expenses in curred in our war with Spain. In times of peace when there is no (jc^ision to raise large sums of money for public business than can be raised by the ordin ary method of taxation as pro vided for by the revenue "bills, we should most emphatically agroe with the Sentinel that a bond issue was not necessary and should oppose it, but in these war times when the gov ernment is in need of hundreds Of millions of dollars for war pur poses in addition to that needed for running the ordinary expen ses of this government, we can not but. candidly admit that a bond issue is the only proper and just method of raising the money. The Sentinel says: "The American people cannot too vigorously condemn the proposition to meet the war debt by a bond issue, which seems to be the plan of the republican party at the present time, are abundantly able to pay We able to pay for the war as it comes and the ad ministration should take steps to carry that into effect. The Civil War was surely fought in vain if this nation and its legislative representatives have not learned from it a valuable lesson in fin ance. It is certainly safe to say that that war has cost this nation three times the original sum, and yet we stand no nearer hav ing it paid for than in 1865." Surely the editor or editors of our esteemed contemporary do not want intelligent people to be lieve a statement of that kind—a statement that any ten year old boy could refute in a -second. The Sentinel says that we stand no nearer having the debt of the Civil War paid than we did in 1865. Well let us see if that is a fact. In 1868, at which time our national debt reached its highest point, brought on by the civil war, it amounted to $2,6U,000,000( making a per capita of $67.10. In 1892, after 24 years of republican rule, our national debt was re duced to $585,000,000, or a per capita of §12.86, a reduc tion of $2,126,080,000. Isn't that a grand record for the paople of this country to make—a record that no country oifthis green earth can duplicate or come anywhere near it. Who paid this two billion and more dollars of debt? Did the govern ment tax the people to pay it in SO many years? No. And if they did it would have amounted to a confiscation of property as property owners could not stand such a burden of direct tax ation. Posterity has paid that money—you and I, my friends. And so we should. Wei are and should be willing to pay for our heritage left by the war—which 15 notwithstanding the rivers of blood smiled during its progress —was the grandest war and obtained the grandest results of any war yet recorded in history. It was a war for right and our peopleare not kicking on the. cost. After looking back 37 odd years does the Sentinel still insist that the war was in vain. The Senti nel further says, speaking of Secretary Gage: Does he not know that this patriotic people can be relied up on to voluntarily contribute their hard earned savings, if need be, in order that the war may be vigorously prosecuted to a speedy close? Surely we are not behind the people of Spain, the uncivilized and ignorant Spanish, as we term them, in this respect. Is the Sentinel serious in mak ing this statement? Let the edi tor or editors start out with a subscription paper and see how much will be donated in cash to pay the present war debt, and he will find that those who are op posed to bonds would give the least. He compares this country to Spain and insinuates that Spain raises the money to pay war ex penses as she goes. The daily papers of June 1 contain the fol lowing: A special dispatch from Mad rid says a decree has been pub lished there authorizing the issue of an internal loan of 1,000,000,000 pesetas at four per cent. A loan of two hundred million dollars. Does that indicate that Spain pays as she goes with her own money? When your treasury is empty the proper and only bu siness-like way of getting money is to borrow it, and that is what las been proposed by Secretary Gage. It is estimated that the expense of the present war is about one million dollars a day and it is estimated that if the war coutinues one year the govern ment will need somewhere about $369,000,000. Does any populist, democrat or republican believe that he ought to be taxed right out for that amount (pro rata of course) or make an out and out contribution to the government to pay the debt. It would wipe up the property of every farmer in the county, practically speaking, to be taxed right out to pay thedebt It is all very well to talk of our millionaires contributing to pay the national debt, but if they did (they are not built that way) they would only throw in their share and the people would have to do the rest. Every sane taxpayer believes in paying his share and also in letting posterity help pay for the benefits received. That a republican form of government has been able to raise enougt revenue to pay the running ex penses of the government and reduce the national debt in the bargain, is demonstrated in .the following figures. When Presi dent Harrison went into power in 1889, he inherited a national debt of $829,853,990. When he relinquished the reins of government in 1892 he had re duced it to $585,029,330. And now comes the deadly par allel. When Cleveland went into power in 1893 he found the na tional debt to be $585,029,330. When he went out of power in 1896, the national debt was $857,363,890 or a difference of over two hun dred and fifty million dollars in favor of the republican adminis r, tration—Cleveland issuing bonds for $262,000,000 "*4 in time of peace. No one con demns a bond issue any stronger than the Courier in times of peace but at this time.when the country cannot see its way to pay as it goes on account of the enormous debt incurred by the war now in progress—a struggle in a righte ous cause and one in which nearly every American citizen is willing to shed his life blood, we think it is the proper and safest way to conduct business. Let us get nearer home and come down to local affairs. In 1887 our farmers had no seed wheat.. A great big mass meeting was held in our courthouse and the senti ment of that meeting was almost unanimously in favor of bonding for the purpose of procuring seed wheat. Hon. Fred Adams, then our representative to the legislature, was instructed by that meeting to get a bill through the legislature allowing the coun ties to bond. He did so and Griggs county sold $12,000.00 worth of its bonds, and every leading populist, or nearly so. in this county today, VOTED TO BOND in order to get his seed wheat. If it was all right to bond for that why is it not all right for the government to bond now that the war has emptied its treasury so that a righteous and humane war can be prosecuted. If the Griggs county commissioners had compelled our taxpayers to pay that $12,000.00 in say two years, the taxes would nearly eat up each farm and the commis sioners would have raised such storm about their ears that would never end. As it is, old settlers and new settlers and set tiers to come have helped pay those bonds and last Feburary, thanks to our able board of com missioners and our hustling county treasurer, those bonds were paid in full before they were due. Had this country not been thrown into war no bond issue would have been necessary, but now that it is necessary we cannot help but see that it is the only just way to raise the money to let those who come after us help pay the debt. The trouble is this cry against bonding for war revenue is not because of its injustice but because the op position want to use the slogan for campaign purposes because that is the only straw they have on which to build their hopes. Prosperity has come and scat tered all their isms to the,-four winds. The Finley Golden-Slope makes a stab at the Courier in one col umn and then asks us to forgive it in another. Davis, old man, we are afraid that you are fickle minded. The editor of the Finley Gold en-Slope says that there is hope of Mark Hunt, of the Fessenden Free Press. We have always looked upon Davis as a sort of a humorist, but we are convinced that he is one now. Editor Cushing, recently of the Langdon Republican, is reported to be starting a new paper at Langdon to be called the Times. The newspaper boys all over the state will heartily welcome Mr. Cushing back into the editorial fold. There are few spicier writers in this state than the genial Walt. GRIGGS COUNTY, N. D.. FRIDAY. JUNE 10, 189. I Spring Opening. Stock Larger More and Complete Than Ever. prices tbe lowest in tbe Dtetorg of Coop* eretown. Bury the Hatchet! It will save you dollars. If you IReport to flfee sonalls. If you think that all merchants their goods have any grievance money and well established ^credit together with pay the same prices YOU ARE MISTAKEN. experience in buying and selling merchandise TELLS THE STORY. I "Want "YOUR TRADE. If we are not already, now is the time to get acquainted. Call, look my stock over and decide for yourself. ft* ft* ffcij* for 28 years JOHN SYVERSON. Si.5« PER ANNUM, &. vs WHEELS, We Me 4 Too! MILLER RODE ONE2093 MILES IN 132 HOURS The Eldredge $so.oo The Belvidere $40.00 Superior to all others irrespective of price. Catalogue tells you why. Write for one. NATIONAL SEWING MACHINE C0„ M9 BROADWAY, Naw York. Factory, BELVIDERE, ILL. I FARMERS ATTENTION! WELL DIGGING—I have a first class well drill and will drill wells at any depth at reasonable prices. Write to Ole C. Larson, Hannaford, N. D.f box 91. Water guaranteed or no pay. ..i