Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1837-01-24

4
conlradisnction to credit, which had formerly been
allowed Just as the same words IN The tariff act OF
| July, 1882, mean payment down, instead ofpayment
secured by bonds when it says that the duties on
certain articles shall be paid in "cash" AS 10 the
second section Of the land law Of 1920, which was
set forth with great Formally in the exposition 10
which have referred, as furnishing authority for
the Secretarys order there is not word 10 It hav-
! ing any such tendency; not syllable which has
any application TO the matter. That section SIMPLY
declares that after the first day ofJuly IN hat year,
every purchaser Of land at public sale shall, on the
day Of purchase, make complete payment therefor
and tho purchaser private sale shall produce re-
ceipt for the amount of the purchase money on any
tract before he shall enter the same at the land of
fee. This is ALL 1t does not say how the pnrtha-
ser shall make complete payment nor IN what cur
rency the purchase money shall be received. 1t is
quite evident, therefore, that that section lends the
order no support whatever
The defence of the order, then, stands thus The
Secretary POUNDS 1t upon the idea that nothing but
gold and silver was ever lawfully receivable and
that the receipt of bank bills has been all along an
Indulgence" against law. For this opinion he
gives M reasons.
The honorable member from Missouri rejects
this doctrine; he admits the receipt of balk notes
TO have been lawful until made unlawful by the or
der ITSELF and insists that The Secrrtarys power Of
stopping then further receipt, arises under the law
! of 1876 and is authority derived from It. But
then, the long and half official exposition which ac-
! companed the publication ofihe order has no faith
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parade Of totally and perfectly nappicable sec
| ton, out of the land law of 1920 Grounds Of de-
/ fence totally inconsistent, cannot all be sound,
I but they may be all unsound and whether they be
so or not is n question which would Willingly
leave to the decision of any Of good sense and
| honest judgment take leave Of tins part OF the
case for the present. may panse at least, hope,
until those who defend the order shall be better a.
creed on what ground to place It,
| MIR President the subject oil the currency is so
important so delicate, and, in my judgment surroun-
! dcd at the present moment, with SO nuch ooh oil
difficulty and danger, that am desrous, before ma
king the few observations which intend, on te ex-
isting condition ofthings and lis causes, TO avoid All
misapprehcnson by general statement OF my opn-
/ ions respecting that subject
am certainly of opinion, then, that gold y silver,
at rates fixed by Congress, constitute the legal
standard oivalue in this country and ihat neither
Congress nor any State has authority to establish
any other standard or to displace this But am
also Of opinion that exclusive circulation oil gold
and silver is thing absolutely impracticable and
if practicable not at all to be desired inasmuch as
It's effect would he Ia abolish credit, TO repress the
enterprise, and diminish the earnings of the indus
trous classes, and to produce, faster and sooner
than any thing else in this country can produce,
| monied aristocracy.
| am of opinion that mixed currency, partly coin
partly bank the notes not issued in excess,
and always convertible into specie at the will of the
holder is, in the present state Of society, the best
! practical currency-always remembering, however,
/
ty Of currency and therefore, that the state of do
nestle exchanges is always matter Of high impor-
lance, and great actual bearing commercial bust
ness.
| admit that a currency partly composed Of bank
no'es has always a liability, and often tendency,
to excess and that it requires the constant care and
| oversight of Government.
am of opinion, even, that the converibility Of
bank notes INTO gold and silver, although 1t be a
necessary guard is not an absolute security, against
occasional excess of paper issues.
| believe even that the confuing Of discounts to
such notes and bills as represent real Transactions
Of purchase and sale, or to real business paper, as
il is called, though generally sufficient check, Is
not ALWAYS so; because believe there is some
times such a thing as oyorIradnS, or oyer-produc-
ton.
What them it will be asked, is sufficient check
can only repeat what have before said, that it is
subject which requires the constant care, wacnfui
ness, and superintendent Of Government. But
our misfortune is that have withdrawn all care
and all superin,endence from the whole subject
We have SURRENDERED the whole matter to eight
and twenty States and Territories. With the pow
er and duty Of regulating commerce, both external
and internal, this Government has little con-
troll over the mass Of money which circulates in the
country, than foreign government. Upon the cXpi-
ration Of the charter Of the Bank Of the u. $. new
banks were created by the States. Sixty or eighty
millions of banking capital have hus been added to
the mass since 1882 All this it easy to forsee
it was all foroseen, and all foretod The wonder
only is that the evil has not already become greater
than il is and it would have been greater, and we
should have bad such excess would perha ps
have deprecated the currency had it not been for
the extraordinary prosperity of the country. No
very great excess, believe mas as yet in fact hap
pened, rather no very great excess does now en-
list. There are sufficient evidences think, of this.
In the first place, the amount OF specie IN the
country is far greater than ever known before,
and il is not exported In the next place, all the
banks as vet maintain their credit, and all pay spe-
Gle on demand, the whole circulation is, in effect,
equivalent TO a specie circulation and The state of
the foreign exchanges shows that the value of our
money, in the mass, is not Deprecated since it
may be transferred without any loss into the curren-
cies of other countries. Our money, therefore, is
as good the money of other countries. If it had
fallen below the value OF money abroad the rates of
exchange would Instantly show that fact. There
has been therefore, yet or al least there exists
present, considerable depreciation Of money.
IT, then, il be asked, what keeps up tho value of
money, IN this vast and sudden expansion and in
crease of it, have already given the answer which
appears 10 me to be the true one. II rs kept up by
an equally and sudden increase in the proper
" of the country, and in the value of that prop eriy,
intrinsic well as marketable. None Of us, |
think have estimated this increase high enough. and
for that reason we have all been looking for an ear
her ldll in price II seems obvious to me that an
augmentation in tue value Of property, far exceed
/ inc all former experience IN any country, even our
own, has taken place ia the United States within
the last few years The public lands may furnish
one instance of this rapid increase. 1t was cstma-
ted last session, by my honorable friend from Ohio
(Mr. Ewiug) that The de hands of actual settlers
for lands for settlement were eight mons Of acres
per nnnum, on an average Of some years. These
eight millions if taken mp al Government prices at
private entry, would cost ten millions Of dollars
Now partly by cultivation, but moro by the contin-
ued rush Of emigration, both from Europe and thl
Atlantic coast, the value Of these ten millions in
very few years springs up to forty millions that
10 saw lands taken up al one dollar and n quarter
an acre soon become worth FIVE dollars an acre for
actual cultivation, and in intrinsic value. And it is
10 Zee remembered that these lands ,hcuab'c,
nm aalrahle, with as little OF form and ceremony
almost rs II they were goods and chauels Now,
if we mako estimate, MOI merely IN the eight mil