The Cadiz Democratic sentinel. [volume] (Cadiz, Ohio) 1854-1864, 1864-01-06
"NO More Paper Money, Wise
Alchemy"


million dollars ''more." He put on
paper until it deprecated in the mar
ket to sixty-six cents on the dollar
and then sold five.twenty year stock
payable principal and interest in gold
for that paper, dollar for dollar. IL,
has the right to redeem the stock il
gold after five years. Suppose it cal
be done at the end of ten, there vii
then be paid one hundred and sixty
dollars in gold for the use of sixty,
six dollars in gold ten years, or nin'
per cent. per annum interest. This
operation that gentleman calls ga WISE
alchemy" and he plumes himself up.
on."wisc alchemy" which he practices
in the manner denounced by Richelieu,
the wise cardinal, Sin the crucible
called debt, and in a most wonderful
manner. When he advocated green
backs, he set forth their advantages in
his first report thus:
''They are loan without interest
"Thcy are uniform currency"
They are constantly equal to spe-
cie."
They are less ruinous than bank
paper.
They are Government promises. "
"They are a legal tender -
The people understood this and sub
mitted to the issue, until, notwithstand
ing their constant equality to specie, %
they are at discount of thirty>four
cents per dollar. Mr.. Chase now
proposes pet bank circulation of
which the chief features are as follows:
"They cost the Treasury per annum
eighteen millions of dollars gold in>
terest. s..s.
"They have two thousand shades Of
uniformity" ',
They are never to be fsil in spe-
cie."
They are more ruinouss tlEsnS Eni,
ted States notes. ..sss
"F..ey are promises Of unknown
persens. y t'-
They are not a legal tender" "
Mr.. Chase advances these features
Of the new currency as reasons why
they are superior to the United States
notes. Thus indicating the singular
alchemy" of his mind. But We are
told two hundred and twenty-six mil
lions of dollars of this irredeemable
and "disastrous issue" are to be put
at'oat, because the United States
notes have reached the limits prescri>
bed by law.
"And the Secretary thinks it clear
ly inexpedient to increase the amount.
When circulation exceeds the legiti,
mate requirements for real payments
and exchanges, no addition to its VOL
ume will increase its value. On the
contrary, such addition tends inevita-
bly, to depreciation: and depreciation,
if addition be continued, will find its
only practical limit in the utter worth
iessness Of the augmented mass. "
Now this understanding of the ul-
innate results Of the paper system is
correct, but<in inaugurating system
of two thousand banks with two hun
Ared and twenty>six millions dollars of
capital pledged to continued suspen-
sion, the Secretary knows that he is
creating a power which will compel an
increase of the limit of capital in the
same manner that he himself deman>
ded the original limit Of fifty millions
Jnited States notes, to be raised sue.
cessively to two hundred, three hun
dred, four hundred and fifty, nine hun
dred millions, his present authority. 1t
is always the noture Of dependent pa
per to demand more currency. This
principle the Secretary himself recog,
nlzes,
''fhe Secretary proposes no change
Of this limitation, and places no rei-
ance, therefore, on any increase OF
resources from increase of circulation
Additional loans, in this mode would
indeed, almost certainly prove illusory
for diminished value could hardly fail
to neutralize increased amount. ]"
When his two thousand politica
banks have invested their money upon
inflated values, and have reached theil
limit, resistless clamor will arise fol
aDore money ''to meet the demands 0.
business" the stereotyped cry in sucf
cases, and this cry will involve tht
41r:if of the national credit.
But Mr.. Chase's "wise alchemy
manifests itself in other wonderful
sFays. lie pretends that the four hun
adred million interest bearing lega
tenders which he asked Congress fol
are not currency, and will not initiate
prices. The law says:
"And the said Treasury notes ma,
be made a legal tender to the same ex
t9nt as United States notes, for thei
face value, excluding interest. :" .
He pondered over these notes from
March third to August thirty-frst, ant
then asked the New York banks t.
lend him fifty millions on them at 81:
per cent?, aad wrote as follows: 4
-eysTheissues of them will be read,
during the month Of September" W
mot ready yet, December twenty
.ffth.l s.aio5 gz,aa -
''Being legal tender for their face
excluding interest, they cannot fal
below the legal tender par. Bearint
interest they cannot materially aifec
the circulation with reference to gold