The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1867-09-13
THE FINANCES.
The Payment Of the J-2Os i'm
ran Greenbacks.
Ben. Butler and Stevens Indorse Mr..
PendlctoE's Opinion.

of the Just obligations of the Govern
ment. He took the position that there
was nothing in the law providing for
the issue of the 5-20s which could be
construed into promise on the part OF
the Government that these bonds should
be paid in gold. While the Govern
ment had distinctly promised to pay
both principal and interest on all other
descriptions of bonds in gold, it had
only promised to pay the interest on the
5-20s in gold, and had reserved the op-
tion to pay the principal in greenbacks.
Hon. Johu A. Bingham, of Ohio, a high
Radical. authority on questions of
finance, agreed with Mr.. Pendleton in
his construction of the law; but at the
same timo contended that the Govern
ment was bound by some unwritten and
mysterious understanding on the part
of the bondholders to pay both prin-
cipal and interest of the 5-20s in gold.
Mr.. Pendleton's view of the obliga.
tion of the Gov, rnment is sustained by
no less an authority than the Radical
Chairman of the committee of Ways
and Means, who publicly expressed the
same opinion at the very time the vari-
ous loan acts were passed. To show
what ground the purchasers of the five
twenties had to expect to receive gold
in payment of the principal of those
bonds, we make the following extract
from debate between Mr.. Thaddeus
Stevens and other members of the House
in June, 1867:
Mr.. Spalding-I desire to ask the gen.
tleman if in his judgment the principal
of the $500, ,000, 900 OF five-twenty bonds
is payable in gold.
Mr.. Stevens-It is just as clear as any
thing is clear that the interest is payable in
gold, but the principal in laICfUl money.
Mr.. Spalding-I ask the gentleman if
he knows whether that is the opinion
of the head of the Treasury Depart
ment
Mr.. Stevens-Well, sir, l have not
consulted him. kROU that a great many
legal gentlemen Of distinction agree Tith
me IN the opinion hare expressed. | sup
pose should bow to the opiaion of the
Secretary of the Treasury OH the sub
iect if had it and it was right, but l
have not. ........-
Mr.. Pruyn-I would like, with the
permission of the gentleman from Penn
sylyaxia, to ask the gentleman from
Ohio (Mr. Spalding) whether he has
anv information that the Secretary of
the Treasury has decided that the prin-
cipal OF the ive-twenty bonds was pay
able in gold. ,l.-.. -
Mr.. Spalding-If may be permitted
to reply to the gentleman from New
York, / will say that have this morn
ing learned from the Secretary of the
Treasury that, in his opinion, the prin'
cipal of the five-twenty bonds is paya-
Bile in gold.
Mr.. Stevens-TheR, sir, his opinion is
entirely different from the ld~. These
bonds are made payable in money by the
express terms of the law, and if legal tender
notes are money then the notes are payable
iR that. But, sir, if both principal and
interest are payable in gold, then the
difficulties in which the Government is
becoming involved are all the more az
gravated.
Mr.. WilsOn-Was not the statement
inst now made by the gentleman from
Pennsylvania based upon the payment
of these five-twenties in gold!
Mr.. Stevens-Upon the payment of
the interest in gold. There is 10 doubt
that the interest is payable in gold.
Mr.. wilson, speak of the principal.
| understood the gentleman to say that
there were now about eight hundred
million dollars of the public debt paya-
BILE in gold.
Mr.. Stevens-No, sir: the interest is
payable in gold. / say that no man '1hO
is a lacyey'-and / could not say that the
Secretary of the Treasury is not laTyer--
who riH carefully read the lac can poso'-
bly come 10 any other conclusion than that
the principal Of these Jfre-t,reaty bonds IS
payable in currency. The law says eX-
pressly that the interest is payable in
coin and that the principals payable i'll
money. The difference in the terms EN-
ployed is as distinct and definite as If it
had been, in SO many words, that one Is
payable in coin and the other in paper
currency.
Now in addition to this we have the
opinion of no less a Radical magnate
than Ben. Butler. We have already
published extracts from his views, as
reported in the Boston advertiser, on
other topics. In that report he is rep
resented as attacking the financial sys-
tenn of the Government with great pow
er, and declaring that any party at
tempting to sustain it would surely
break down. On the subject Of equal
taxation, and the payment of the 5-2Os
in currency, the report puts him down
as follows: s T. 81 EFESl
THE FINANCES.
After dinner, and after a stroll along
the beach, I lad another long talk, OF
to be more exact, another long listen.
ing. on the subject of finance, taxation
and the national banks. 1t began by
a question of mine as to his opinion OF
the issues that would succeed the re.
construction and impeachment debates.
.The next great Question" he said,
"upon which parties will range them
selves in this country. and the solution
of which we are to look forward to with
as much interest as any, is the question
of finance. While it is true that the
resources of the country are unbound
ed, and, viewed in the light of future
prosperity, the national debt is compar'
atively trifle; yet the expense of the
Government in the future must neces
sarily be very large, and we see that
the people are very Impatient of taxa
ton. While it is probable that We pay
more, voluntarily, for the support of re-
ligion and objects Of religious charity
per capita, than the people of Great
Britain for their Established Church
yet the taxation of one quarter the
amount by Government for such pur.
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