Gold Hill daily news. [volume] (Gold Hill, N.T. [Nev.]) 1863-1882, 1866-04-03
rur anREnnAoK QUESTION.

xA6
A New York correspondent OF the San
Francisco Bulletin says-in the COURSE VI
remarks on the Anti Specific Contract De-
cision:
I, il only the Pacific Courts that Judges
and no constitutional objections TO green
hacks. II is different East. It Is true
there ia NO law in the Constitution pro-
hibitins Congress from making laws IN
violation of the obligation Of contracts.
This is forbidden to the States; but the
power given to Congress to coin and stamp
money does not give the right to issue pa
per money, and the debates in the Consti-
t~utional Convention. that made the United
States Government plainly prove all this.
The evils of an over.issue Of Continental
money, which was repudiated, caused
Washington and Hamilton and DR.. With
erspoon to take firm stand against Con-
sress again turning banker. Yet. from
what I read in the Bulletin, the Supreme
Court Of Nevada did Eot hesitate to decide
that grecnbacks are constitutional-just
what the Supreme Court OF the United
States had so far declined to do. Here
greenbacks are justified as a war necessity
"a necessity above all law, whether con-
stitutional or otherwise. There was one
decision in Massachusetts, that went so far
as to pronounce, in the absence Of a local
law, that Courts could not enforce gold
contracts. Neither the commentaries Of
Story or Webster on the Constitution, nor
the debates in the Constitutional Conven-
ton that made the fundamental law unit
ing thirteen States under one government,
nor any decision of the United States Su-
preme Court as yet, at all maintain any
authority in Congress to issue paper
money. Government revenue officers de-
cided long ago that when a broker sold
| goods with an agreement that they were
to be paid for in gold coin, the revenue
tax on this transaction, Of $4,000, was
laid on $4,000, as gold was then worth
100 per cent. more than g~recnbacks. The
Collector decided that gold was merchan.
disc. By this it was admitted that specific
contracts made for the purchase Of gold or
payment OF gold were valid, independent
Of all local State legislation. Brokers in
New York have made gold contracts and
enforced them in absence Of specific con-
tract legislation. II was to prevent this
that Thaddeus Stevens got up his very
silly prohibition in Congress making pur-
chases Of gold illegal. 1t was a dead fail
ure.
So we observe that Nevada, by her Su-
preme Court decision actually took a back
step, in the opinion Of most Eastern men
whose verdict is entitled to weight /; GER
tainly went practically against her own
interests. Where are all the blessed fruit.
of o greenback currency which we were
promised: Do we "see them" at all
Only this is to be remarked. II the de.
cision had come at a Spring time, when
people could have conveniently moved on
first impulses, we should have lost a large
per centage of our working population
As luck would have it, the season was
suspicious for a proper trial Of the good
faith of the managers Of the mines and
mills, in adherence to gold and silver pay.
ments. And now the fact is that you are
hardly ever reminded that there has been
such a decision as that y~ouchsafed US by O
majority Of our Supreme Bench. We may
occasionally reflect, that our High Court
is now costing the State 20 per cent. less
than formerly, from and after the first Of
this month,-though Gov. Blasdcl vetoed
the bill which placed the Judges on a par
with other State officers. PROFESSIONALLY
we shall have gIeenbacks more beautifully
supplied as tax pay day draws near ; and
calculations for equalizing will cause folks
to gratefully q remember the change of
base on the currency adoption.
AS will be seen by extracts, elsewhere
published, from a correspondent in New
York-of informed judgment in the prem
ise.-a crash on account Of too much soft
cash is there momentarily and nationally
anticipated. Our currency is not rep.
resented by, nor does it consist in paper
money bu. in stocks and stocks now
are on the middle level.