The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1868-12-22
SPIRIT OF THE PRESS.
EDITORIAL OPINIONS OF THE LEADrNe JOURNALS
UPON CURRENT ToPIos-CoMPIBD EVERY
DAY FOR THE EVENING vELEGRAPH.
Resumption.
A LITTER TO SENATOR MORTON.

Hon. Sir:-I was absent from the city when
your speech on the currency appeared; but
did not the less read IL with joyful apprecia-
ton. To find your great abilities and just
influence arrayed on the side of q resumption
of specie payments was to nae theme OF re.
ioioing. II was not what you said in favor OF
mption-though that was OF course well
and forcibly said-bdt the fact that you said
it which gave me unalloyed pleasure. For
am sure you will admit that, if an irredeema-
BILE paper currency be indeed the baleful thing
which you have declared and | believe 1t,
there should be no avoidable delay in super
seding it by better. We need to differ, then,
only as to the practicability of prompt resunp-
tion. You think it cannot be effected; be-
lieve ii can be.
Let us consider what you say on that point.
Here it is:-
Another obstacle to the adoption of any
plan 1oT % rg Cav 70 5 SPeSe Is to
at once. have labored to find that this means
anything but the indefinite postponement ot
resumption. Every one must comprehend thaJ
the Government cannot redeem the greenback
currency without first collecting the gold TO do
1t with: that IL cannot return TO specie pay
ments by contraction Without taking time TO
contract, with all Its attending caiamities; tnaJ
done however ruinous that does not involve
time. II the Government should pay out the
$40 900 900 surplus gold now in the Treasury In
tine redemption of an equal amount of green.
backs the whole country would know that 1t
was not prepared to redeem any more. The
gold paid out: would pass into circulation but
sink back into an article of merchandise, the
Improved, and the net result of the operation
would simply be the contraction of the cur
rency to the extent of S70,000,O0O, and the inde'
finite postponement OF the redemption Of the
balance"
Bear with me, Senator, while show you
why think you here in error
You assume that, if we resume, the Gov
ernment must "redeem the greenback cur
rency." l think not. Our banks have re-
peatedly resumed, after months and even
years of suspension, and have never been re-
uuired thereupon to redeem their outstanding
issues. On the contrary, the fact OF their re-
sumption has uniformly precluded all desire
or disposition to exact such redemption. Yet
their notes were not legal-tender, had not
the Federal Government behind them, but
were the mere promises-the long falsifed
promises-of private corporations. Yet we
all went on receiving and paying them out
without asking for specie to the extent Of one
dollar in twenty OF the notes thus suddenly
made redeemable in coin. II you think the
people, who have so often shown faith in and
forbearance towards private moneyed corpora
tions would not now evince at least equal faith
in the Government-that is, in Themselves
you have given me no reasons for sharing your
distrust.
Now you seem to ignore the fact that most
of our greenbacks and bank notes are kept
in perpetual use in performing an important
and necessary service to industry and trade.
This service nowise results from the fact that
our currency is irredemable: on the contrary,
it is embarrassed and hampered by that fac.
In Texas, in California and throughout our
vast Territories, neither greenbacks nor bank
notes are current-they are simply merchan-
disc, and are seldom seen. Let US resume,
and Notwithstanding equal in value to
gold, and being far more convenient for cheap
and safe transmission would inevitably coms
into use there to forty times their present
amount. Men would send US 81, SO, So, $40,
and $40 greenbacks for Irib,meS who do not
now send anything, because they have no
paper money and will not risk the transmits
sion OF specie. Every hour, after resumption
had become a fixed fact, would witness
wider and stronger demand for greenbacks
in that western half of our country, where
they are now almost unknown.
Mr. Morton, can you really believe that we
workers and traders-captains of industry aud
distributors of wealth-are 80 short-sig ghted
and foolish as to stop working and trading in
order to run the Treasury dry OF gold We,
for example, pay out nearly all the money
we get--in some years, quite all OF it--in pay
ments for the materials and labor required in
our business. As the money comes in, it is
wanted to be paid out again. Do you think
we shall withhold it from our paper makers,
our workmen, ETC., and run to the Sub
Treasury to convert it into gold Do we not
know that this would be to bring all business
to staDdstill, our own included Do you
suppose men in business to be natural fools
Yet II is by us-nOt by brokers and gold
gamblers-that money is kept in circulation.
i doubt whether the aggregate money pay
ments of the United States are so little as one
thousand millions per month, Ninety-nine Of
every hundred pay out as fast as they receive
only the merest, fraction hoard money. Do
believe, Mr.. Senator, that money is kept
ahoat because it is needed, and performs a
bene6cent function, and that this was the
case before gusper sion and will be after re-
sumption.
Let us suppose the Government to resume
tomorrow, or if you choose, on the first of
January at hand--who will hasten to drain
the treasury OF its seventy millions of coin !?
Not you and ], certainly--not the great mass
of our busy, active workers and traders for,
the money in our hands being now equal to
coin, We have DO induc 3ment, no motive to
do so. We should go on working aud trading
receiving and paying out, precisely as we now
do; only sending to the Mint or the Treasury
for little coin as change or to satisfy some
other need. The fact that our money was at
par with and would bring coin at will would
divest us of all desire TO exchange it.
But there would bs a class-I am sure not
a large nor a strong one-who would rush
for coin, either fearing that the Treasury
would, or desirous that it should, be run dry.
How soon, think you, could these gamblers in
national insolvency raise money enough to
drain the Treasusy Of seventy millions Mind
that every public officer, every pensioner,
every solvent banker, every bondholder, every
man in an honest, useful business, every rail