Wheeling times and advertiser. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1839-1849, 1840-09-10

should in like manner bo fined and imprisoned ~
Notwithstanding these acts. the notes continued I"
dcprcciaie. I'LL at last they reached n discount OF twcn- '
", thirty forty, aud nj one time forty one per cent :
What course dI the Government of England ihcn pur- :
suc' Why It paid the public creditors m this dcpre- =
ciatcd paper. aud in soothing else. The loan Ind been
made IA specie.-thc interest was paid in notes at this
enormous deprecation.-;wicc or thrice as great as
that of the bank paper Of the United States during the
last war, o. during the suspension of specie payments
since. IL never entered into the Imagination of the
English Government TO allow for this depreciation. |
and the public creditor knew that IL he did net take
this, he wonld get nothing. And vet the saving To The
Government was clearly understood aud noted: for IL
- calculated by an English writer -Musher,-ihnt
on the debt contracted before 1900, the Government
gaine1-lnd the fund holders of coursc losi,-no less
th,n thirty seven millions sterling. or one hundred and
thirty seven l37 lmilliot,s ofdollars, the differ nc, bet.
wecn the paper and Professionalism the provisions
Of these laws and observe their effect on an American /
who had money due Ia him in Englaal from either
the government or indiN idulls. lfhis fortune was in
the English funds. he received hts interest in paper de-
prcciaicd 10 forty per cent. Bat fine wished TO con-
vert II INTO gold To bring home-If nc changed his notes
TOR gold At the mlrket rate-if when his notc oftwen-
Is pounds was worth only twelve pounds he ~cNchang.
Ell a for gold at any rates less thm the twenty pounds
he was liable To be pat IN Jail and fined. IT, instead of
gold, hc wished TO bring homo British merchandise.
and passed OIhis tweaiy pound not, for less thnl TWEEN
y pounds, when every body know it To be worth only
twelve pounds, or even for ms travelling expenses, cN-
changed It for less than twenty pounds, he was again
liable 10 be put injnil. and fined.
1.-THE debt To hun was from an individual English.
mnn hs case was rather worse, he was obliged 90 re-
ceive uojonly the interest bnt the principal IN Ihs de-
preciatcd paper. IL for a debt Of one hundren pounds
his English debtor offered him paper which was wurtl
only sixty pounds. nc was obliged to take il or get not
hing. But If the Eaglishman was inclined To 10 just,
TO do as the American Safes have done. make up the
difference by paying specie. or its equivalent, both the
cred. tor and the debtor might be found cNpiatGg
their honesty in the sane iail. the oct Of paslian mt
( FnakIuu NJ erfpl,,l -, i,ybt ., l., q, n.vTa, tho -
of Justice which the American States require 10 be
done 10 an Englshmtn m. And yet. 90 short - tho re.
membranCc oi ones own injustice, the English seem
To have forgotten all his, and rail nj their ~ngighhors
fr similar acts, with the most eutIre uncunSciI BUSINESS
|oGwhIi ihcy themselves done Even That most cx c
EFT tempered man, Walter Scott. in his Life Of Ma
pOlcOa, cannot torbear % snccr at the Ercnch,
when he says that "thc rs signals were raised To- pas
10y guiloiining those who sold or bou ;ht ia I'm at less
than their full value.
Hetorgot that during a much 'orgcr pe-iol iEla the
brcci circulation of assiglais IN France, all those who
sold or bought Bank notes in England at less than
Their fail value, were-noi Absolutely CaIllo,Incl, tia
not being the English faShi n-but fined and put in
prison. with this difference too. which might d~iscpmposc
The loyalty Of S,oIt. hat if the continuation American,
who woI,d not believe that sixty was equal 10 one
hundred, was put 10 death in France. IL was done by
JacobIns and terrorists, whereas his countrymln i'm
pr'Sohcd m England for the same offence, had the con
ISOLATION OF knowing that the law which condemned
ann was enacted. as Il graciously purports, "by the
Kings most excellent Majesty, by and with the advice
Of the Lprds spiritual ahd temporal, and Commons, in
This present Parliament assembled" 70 make the case
OF The American States AT all parallel to this. il would
BE- necessary to follow the example of England. and Isl,
forbid their banks rn pay specie; 2l. borrpw from these
banks till their issues become depreciated; 81, then
declare by legislative resolution that there was no de-
probation increased, pay the public debt in this paper.
and force all foreigners to take it m payment of debt,
not merely from the Government, but from all private
American citizens; AMI end, Silly, by cn1ctin-. ihlt if
any Eag'ishman should receive for any debt n ten dol.
lar note for less than ten dollars, ath Dugh it was worth
only six dollars, or having received it, should exchange
il either for specie or goods for less than ten dollars. he
should be fRed ard put in Jail at the discretion of the
American Judges.
Fortunately for America her whole conduct has been
the direct reverse OF all this. One of the fundamental
laws of the linton is that no State shall make any
thing hui gold and SILVER coin n tender in payment for
debts or pass any law impairing the obligation of
ooniracis;' and this power, which is Withdrawn from
the States. has never been exercised by the Federal
government. You remember, nj The glOomieSt period
IT the last war with England that very England.
where ut that moment, and during several years previ-
Gus. paper money was n legal tender-;he American
government declined that measure. The Secretary Of
the Treasury, Mr.. Dallas. declaring, in his official re-
port Of October 18Th. 1914, that the extremity OF that
day cannot be anticipated when an honest man. and
enlightened statesman, will again venture upon the
desperate o~Ipedient of a tender law" No tender
law has, therefore. been passed in the United Stltes-
The courts have never been closed against foreigners.
They have never been forced 10 take paper money
they have never been punished for receiving il, or for
passing 1t ut any rate they pleased; and every dollar
ct principal or interest due to them by the Government
has been paid. How faithfully that principle was car
RED into execution IL seen IN a very remarkable man
mr. IN the treaty between the United States and Eng.
land m the year 1893. IL was then agreed by the L. I
States, that Inasmuch "a British subjects who had debts
cue TO them from American citizens found difficulty ia
collecting them, the United States assumed to make
tIll nnd complete compensation for the same 10 the said
creditors For which purpose commissioner were to
/ be appointed 10 pxafninp and makc aNrards J, tho cI,,r,
ants. "nnd the United States undertake to cause the
sum 50 awarded TO he paid ia specie to such creditor
or claimant Uihiout deduction" Anerward finding
trouble m adjusting the details,the United States agreed.
by convention between Mr.. Rufus King and Lord
Hawkesbuy,F ia 1902, to pay "A gross sum of six hun
dred thousand pounds, which was accordingly done nj
what was then par. four dollar, ani frty.four cents for
the pound sterling. NV lhs payment by the United
states m SPccie of the debts of individual citizens, was
made when the government Of England did not pay
even the interest on its own public debt in any thing
bni Hredcemlble paper. What then. one naturally
asks Is the occasion Of this new denunciationl II IS
this-ihc United States have borrowed abroad certain
sums TO make improvements. That these will he re-
PAID no man can possibly do1bt. On a single occasion.
however. one Of the twenly-siN Sia.es, in the midst Of
a ~iempurary financial embarrassment aud the excite
mentor political contentious, inllvcrtanily suffered the
quarter day 10 pass for tweniy-fDur or fOrfy.eight hours;
out then FASTENED 90 repair the omission by not merely
paying the interest. but by piying It in gold and sill
YER lest the foreigner should lose any thing by the
exchange.
u isa singular coincidence. that, in the very same
year. 1893. when Englind began her papir money
system, which lasted fr more than twenty years. tho
government OF france. too. came in contact with its
public creditors. The debt Of Franco was then about
ninc hundred and siNtysiv 1861 millions Of dollars.
lhe interest about Orty-cIght tfS) millions of dollars
bt IN order 10 continue the invasion Of Germany and
ilhy' tho army required ftysiv millions. t56) aud
ms could only b. hal by taking II from the fund h1l.
dec and 50. as The historian has IT,. 1T was requisite 10
Ihe a decisive measure m regard to the debt" This
decisive measure consisted IN paying of nominally two
ihIis oi The capital in "a fresh AMI worthless paper, and
retaining the onc-tlirl-ihus reducing The debt 10 n.
h1it inrcc hundred AMI twenty-five (332J millions. aud
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