The weekly Ottumwa courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1857-1872, 1867-10-17
Butler on Finances.

Of every contract it has made with
its creditors. | would advocate h6tkssl
Ing short of this, andiusticc and good
faith require nothing more. 4
] asserted that che 5 20 bontlswero1
payable as to their principal in cur
rcncy, and not in gold. This the
Tribune denies; bat insists they are
payable in gold.
The whole question is--what was
the contract between the government
and its creditors? u go :.
The first fifty million lean, of Aug
ust 1861, was issued 1t Z 30 interest;
principal and interest payable in
gold; was SO taken andso paFt, Whom
the 500 loan was passcd,it made the
interest nj s per cent; payable in
gold, but sastnothiHg as to tho cur
rcncy in which the principal was to
be paid: 3: i,s..;-...xssa 80
. Whsn the $50 ban was before
Congress, Judge Spaufaihg Of Ohio
asked Mr.. .Stevensy chairman ,.of the
committee on appropriation " no
reported It, il the principal Of these
bonds was payable in gold as well as
the interest? To which. Mr.. Stevens,
replied that the principal was not
payable in gold. -,
At the same sessi8nf,: when thefret
s. 20 loan bill was passed, the legal
tender act was passed, providing for;
the issue Of what are now known as
greenbacks. It was there provided,
and so printed on, the back Of every
note, that tits legal tender for every
debt public and private, except duties
on exports and the interest on the
public debt. 1t it was not to be re-
ceived for principa! Of the public debt,
why except the. interest?
Besides, the act made it receivable
by the United States for all it's loans:,
Again: In the following Congress-,
while a portion Of the 5 20 loan was
yet untaken, another ~ 40 loan was
authorized, at tper:. cent. interest /;
both principal and interest of which,
by the terms of+the act, 'werc made
payable in gold. .ss. ...
Now, il it was the Contract of the
government that the 6 per, cent. s 20
bonds were, interest and principal,
PAYABLE in gold, although directly the
contrary rns stated on their face, why
was it that the, government offered
10 40 loan at s por cent.,interest and
principal both payable IN golt?
\ In other words: How could the
government expect tho : s. per cent
gold bearing loan TO be- taken hip
when it had the six per cent? gold
payable and gold bearing loan still
out. Z - !:
You say that the Tribune swas
largely, zealously Instrumental, ut the
request Of government: through its
tletthe government have Their money
for these bonds We assured them,
day after day, tina. every one would
be- paid in full, in coin--principal and
interest"
| Now, the 10 40 Joan was put upon
the market by Jay Cooke, rs tic
agent OF the Treasury and, if you
will consult the files OF the Tribute
containing the advertisement of that
loan, you setll find that.Jay Cooke adj
pertisedt the 10 40aloan as the only loan
Of the government the principal and in.
terest Of aohich ,oere payable IN gold.
: / have not seen that advertisement
in the Tribune. but it was 50 ADVERT.
tsed and assume Jay Cooke took
advantage of so valuable medium
Of advertising Us yourpaper, to make
! known that important fact of tho de-
STABILITY of the 10 40 loan, as he cor.
tainly did SO advertise, in other; pa
pers.
You further say:
General isatler uttered no WORD
Of dissent them"
/ Aye, when the loan was upon The
market: True !; because there was
no occasion. And still another anc
perhaps equally. available answer
General Butler at that time; had 9th
er public interests in another branch
Of the service to contemplate. -ane
try to save.
! Again, you do not .,leny that this
S 20 loan, in whatever it is payable
! is now due ut the option of the y. 5
That is, the Ave years have epasscc
at the end Of which. by their terms
the U: s.; reserved the rightato pay
!. them; and the government'has thu
right TO pay them to-day in what
ever cnrretley,t he eontracte calla &Or,
whether gold orpaper. !,
! If these bonds are payable in gold
why arc they selling are from l0Sat
liz in currency when gold is'wortt
lid TO l4tYsl u ~ 80.
i Let us see.howw' your theory wol'd
Operate in practice. 1t would seer
to be wise to exercise our right Y
nay these bonds, because, being nm
taxable, they are hearing, in fact, an
interest from one to three per cent
above their nominal rate Of six pei
cent. Bnt, if We should choose to
exercise this right. according to the
Tribdno's theory, the government
Ought IN. justice pay, in gold or its
equivalent, from thirty to forty pei
cent. higher than any one else can
buy them iorl
/ Why should the taxpayers be
called upon to pay the holder from
thirty to forty per cent. more in or
der to redeem these bonds than the
capitalists ia now. willing to sell them
for to anybody else? i.
i Assuming, what no man can doubt
lin view of this leuislatiOn OfCOn1reSs