The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1867-09-05

of the Legal Tender law OF February
Is, 1862:
"Such notes herein authorized shal
be receivable in payment of all taxes
| Internal duties, excuses, debts, and de
mands of every kind due to the United
| States. except duties ON i'm ports, and q
all claims and demands against the
| United States, OF every kind whatsu-
ever, except TOR interest upon bonds aud
notes, which shall be paid in coin"
Every 80 bond was originally paid
for in legal tender notes, and the buyer
was told that for at least five yeas II,
should have six per cent in coin, bul
| that after that time the Government
might return him the identical notes il
had received from him. AS these bonds
are dated all along from 1862 to 1867
the period OF five years will elapse al
various dates, from 1867 TO 1872, and the
Government can, without any breach
OF faith, redeem them in paper as quick
AS they mature. But under the rules
we have enunCiated, this redemption
would cease to be honest, If the Gov
ernment should PurpOsely issue IA large
sum in legal tenders, to make the re-
demption with, and thus lessen, and
so to say, dilute the value of the cur.
rency with which it may take up the
bonds. Everybody, except Mr.. Nc.
Culloch's own small clique, would
agree in first applying the surplus In
the Treasury to the proposed redemp'
ton, of course selling the gold coin for
paper money at the market rate; and
thus hundred or "A hundred aud tiity
millions OF the bonds might be taken
in; but how are we TO get the green
backs with which to take up the other
eleven hundred millions sottive-twentles
as they mature, without increasing the
volume O the currency two or three fold,
as Mr.. Pendleton proposes, without, i'll
fact, smashing things generally? The
answer is very obvious. All that Con
gress has to do, is to issue II new gold
bearing loan ut a iOLUer rate of interest.
AS five twenties, with all the danger oi
immediate paper redemption hanging
over them, are now quoted at about lUS,
besides accrued interest, there is every
reason to hope that II five per cent. loan
payable, principal aud interest in lcoin,
could be placed in the market at par.
and that 1t would bring in enough OF
the greenbacks now in circulation,
with which to take up the six per
cents. And in two or three years from
now, as our credit goes on improving,
it might be practicable to convert
greenDacks-withou lessening their
exchangeAble Value-intO 1our per cent,
or even three per cent. gold bonds.
Thus we can materially lessen the
burden of our debt, avoid an imitation,
with all its evils, material and moral,
fulfill our obligations to the letter; and
by doing all this, take the wind out OF
the sails of pestilent demagogues, like
George II. Pendleten and George Fran
els Train.
FiGth-A large portion OF thenaiional
debt is evidenced by bonds, or certiti-
Gates OF Indebtedness, payable, prInGi-
pal and interest, in "lawful money.
This Interest is generally seven and
three-tenths per cent. According to
present rates, this is equal to little
over five per cent. in gold. Seven and
three -tenths bonds are, however, held
mt high premium, because the Gov
ernment volunteered TO make them
convertible into IA sic per cent. gold
bond. under Mr.. McCulloch's generous
policy of paying the bondhulder's
more than we owe them. This ought
to be stopped. Our financial measures,
regarding these bonds, will only then
be honest to both parties, hondhoider
and tax payer, when they fix the mar
ket value of the bond at, or very near
ly at, par. -.-
Lastly-The non-interest bearing
debt, consisting OF legal tender notes,
commonly called greenbacks, aud
fractional currency, and amounting To
about 42O millions, oughtnot to be dis
turbed aL all. 1t forms with the 300
millions OF national bank notes, the
currency of the country. Gold and
gold producing notes have ceased To
serve as money, ns the better currency
Is always driven out by the worse. 1t
follows that these 720 millions of treas
ury and national bank notes must he
practically our only currency till specie
payments are renewed-say for ten
years to come. For all that time our
population will. most probably, grow
at the rate OF 21S or per cent, our ma
ierial wealth nj the rate of 81 TO ! per
cent u year. II the volume of curren-
cy remains the same, this yearly growth
Of population and wealth, will in itself
constitute II yearly relative contraction
of at least three per cent. Anything
beyond that will make the bones crack.
l.. n. d.
LOUISVILLE, KY, Aug. 80. 1867.