Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1864-01-16
Legal Tender.

Inc question OI HIdkiiiS SFceHoaChn
the currency of this State promises to bo an
exciting topic during the present session of the
California Legislature. In reference to this
matter the San Francisco Jo"rnal seems to
be the leading advocate, while we eee no
strong opposition from any portion of the
State, though there no doubt is strong oppo
siion lying dormant, on tho score of patrio-
tism, which will be brought out when the
matter is discussed upon its merits. The
great sticking point will be whether Cali
fornia, gold producing country, would be
the loser, and if not, there can be no serious
objection to the legal tender currency. The
journal in one of its articles OH this subject,
says:
BY discarding greenbecks, they become
commodity, snly disposable on such terms as
the spectators dictate; and the forced dimi-
mutton in the amount of money enhances the
rate of interest. thereby enriching the lender,
and impoverishing tho borrower. Now the
tendency of the action proposed by the
agreement, to produce these results, was per-
tectly natural--so natural, indeed, that the
moment action was taken, the results imme-
diately followed. That they were predicted
is most certain, and that the conspirators
srought to bring them about, is what we
suppose none of them will be so silly as to
deny. But be that as it may, the evil is
upon us, and the men who imagined it and
matured it are in our midst, busily amassing
iniquitous wealth, and now and then; as If
to make amends, donating a portion of it to
the country whose laws they are violating.
All the while, too, they magnify themselves
beyond conception. They Seem to. fancy " Iho
world and tho rest Of mankind" under i'm
mense obligations to them, and hence, on all
occasions, festive and sanitary, they sit in
the highest places, Or lead in the dance, and
look so many heroes or sufferers who boast
of victories they never won or Witnessed, Or
who makes n merit of hardships Of losses they
have never felt. OF hattery they never have
a surfeit. and puff from DR.. Bellows is more
priced than tho divine a6iatus. Their motto
| is we are the State," and to their mastery,
the people OH this coast are to bow. The
commerce of the State is in their hands, and
they count confideutially on controlling its
legislation. Our conviction is that this
should be checked and defeated. and we
know ofno mode so effectual as an instant re-
peal Of the disloyal and unconstitutional statute
which they did so much to have passed.
The Stockton Independent, in an able ar
ticlc on this subject says:
San Francisco dealers buy all the goods in
New York with greenbacks they can 10y
prescribing grcenbacks in San Francisco
and sell the same goods here for gold at an
increased price over that paid with greenbacks
in New York. Thus they not only make
the premium on gold, which is from 40 to so
per cent, but also their per cent. on the mer-
chandise, which is from so to 100 per cent.
more. Buying in grcenbacks themselves, as
above explained, they nevertheless have COM
bined together, and established rule to re-
ceive nothing but gold for their goods. II
any interior merchant or trader offers to pay
his debts owing to them III legel tenders, he
is prescribed inexorably. and can never again
obtain credit to the amount of one dollar in
San Francisco. among their class, which real.
ly includes all the large dealers in that city.
Thus the paper currency Of the United States
is virtually excluded from circulation as mon.
ey in this State, and one arm of the Govern
ment paralyzed on the Pacific Coast.