, 1862-10-25
Legal Tender.

The following are extracts from the opinion of
the Attorney General of California on Legal Ten
der notes:
"The Government may draft citizen for milf
tary duty, may take his property for military use
may quarter soldiers in private domicil does
suspend the writ of habeas corpus and the right
of trial by jury declares words to be treason; re-
strains the license of the press; mprsons without
trial and discharges without hearing, and does
many things which, in time of peace would be
hateful to the people and in contravention of law.
These things are all defensble upon the one plea
necessity: they are all necessary war measures.
The Legal Tender note enactment is war meas
ure Currency is necessity to conduct the war.
The War Department and not the Courts is the
tribunal to determine the legality of the Legal
Tender notes. | maintain that they are legal
currency, because the war bas made their issue an
imperative necessity, and therefore the Courts
will sustain them as legal; and further, | maintain
if the Courts do not sustain the Government in
its currency, the Government will put down the
Courts and declare martial law.
Government should have revoked at the last
Congress- and will revoke at the next all bank
charters suppress the issue of all paper money
except from the Treasury of the United States !;
make its paper receivable for all dues to ITSELF If
it needs gold to pay coupons to foreign holders,
let it purchase it merchandise. This Legal
Tender question is only war between the Gov
ernment and Eastern bankers, brokers and mon
ey dealers, and the Government with the
strong arm exerts its authority to sweep rags of
private banks from the money circles, so much
sooner will give value to its own issue.
This paper has for its basis of value and secu-
rity the pledged honor of the Government, the
future revenues of great commercial nation, the
labor of 2O,000,000 of people, millions of acres
of public lands, thousands of value in public mines
and more than twenty billions of dollars of pri-
vate wealth. Why should not the notes and bonds
of the United States of America pass among its
own people at par ? Yet the merchants and
bankers of San Francisco make merchandise of
Government bills, refuse them in trade, reject
them at their counters, dishonor them and take
them at discount or drive them to the broker.
The Chamber of Commerce has repudiated them
by formal resolution. Yet the merchant pays his
Eastern debts in them. RENTS gold to buy paper,
buys in New York with greenbacks, pays freight
in greenbacks, and prints on his bills payable on
steamer day in gold coin of the United States-
Yet Gen. Hooker and Col. Matheson, who are
fighting our battles and the five California regi-
ments who are protecting the frontiers of Cali
fornia, or tramping the burning sands of Colorado
at $l3 per month; and the 9th regiment of In
fantry who garrison our forts; and the Sd regi-
ment of artillery, which at Acatraz defends our
city-officers and men are all paid in Legal Ten
der notes, which when used to sustain themselves,
their wives and their families are receivable at 10
per cent. discount. This is neither right or legal,
and the sooner the people of this city understand
their rights the sooner they will assert them.
There is perhaps moral obligation to pay in
coin demands that were made in coin. Every
person must be the judge in his own transaction
before the tribunal of his own conscience; but it
is lawful to pay all debts now maturing in Le-
gal Tender notes. No matter if the obligation
is written for gold coin, or for bullion Of certain
weight and fneness These contracts are void,
and no contract can be so worded or guarded as
to invalidate or depreciate the paper currency of
the United States. The cigar man who paid for
gas in Legal Tender notes was right, and the Gas
Company can not remove his meter nor shut off
his gas without invalidating their charter. The
water companies of San Francisco are compelled
to take their pay in Legal Tender notes. The
omnibuses and Wells, Fargo & Co.'S express,
steamers and stage companies, and all public
hotel-keepers and common carriers can neither re-
luse receive the notes nor to do service for
them, nor can they discriminate against the notes
in prices. The principal and interest of all mort
cages is payable in these notes, the install
ments due loan and savings banks, all rents,
board bills and running accounts. To sum up
the whole matter Every Legal Tender note is
worth its face, and $40 or $50 bill of paper is
as lawful and valuable currency with its print
and pictures as $40 or a $50 coin, stamped in
the mint Of the United States.