The Cadiz sentinel. [volume] (Cadiz, Ohio) 1864-1911, 1868-10-28
A Radical Senator Well Flayed
And Hypocrisy Unmasked.

i
ceive at the hands OF the Democratic candi.
date for Governor, Mayor Hoffman. Nor
gan made speech at Cooper tnstitute
which he attempted r,ply to Mayor Hoff'
mans financial argument. In the courst
of his speech, after denouncing the pro-
position to pay five-twenty bonds with lc.
gal tender notes, he said:
1T is now almost third Of a century
since | came to this city New York, Ii
ali that time, have found the merchant:
and business men jealous, not only Of theil
own personal credit, but Of the credit ana
commercial standing of our city as well
and equally alive to the Importance Of
maintaining the States and the Nation +
credit"
The other United States Senator, Conkl.
ing, was present and followed his colleague
in speech, saying:
''The public securities agree on their fare
to pay so many dollars. What does the
word dollar mean? Can it mean any thing
except that which in the understanding Of
the whole commercial world it signlies?"
Mayor Hoffman, the Tuesday evening fol-
lowing. made speech at Utica, the resi-
dence of Conkling and. after referring to
Morgan's speech and Conklings question,
/ Mr.. Hoffman proceeded to say:
l think | see Senator Conkling asking
that question. He had been sitting and
listening to Senator Morgan, that great
champion of commercial and National Gre
/ dit, at the Cooper Institute. He had listen,
ed to the talk about the patriotic classes,
and after listening for some time he thought
he would ask question when his turn
came to address the meeting. | think
there was a little malice in the question the
Senator asked. He is a thorough lawyer;
| he is familiar with the decisions OF the
Courts; he knows what they have said On
| the subject of dollars; he knows the
titles Of the cases, and | think, as | said,
that there was a little malice in his question,
or he meant it for joke, which he thought
might amuse his distinguished colleague
Now, propose to show you, my friends,
what dollar does mean 1t is unusual to
read law books in public meeting, but the
case from which Iquote is so pertinent that
| must call your attention to it. By sin
gular coincidence, the parties to this suit
are Il. d. Morgan and others, defendants.
Laughter. Aud this Edwin D. Morgan
is the Senator Morgan who, in his speech
in the city Of New York, set himself up at
the champion for the commercial credit of
the city OF New York for one-third Of a
century, and who made the argument to
prove that the Democratic party are res
pudiators. Recolleet that it was in the
light of this very case that Senator Conkl-
ing, in the presence of Senator Morgan,
asked "What does dollar mean?" Now
in this case Of Morgan, which was decided
in the New York Court, it seems that the
plaintiffs were the owners OF a ship, and
that Morgan aud his partners were the
eonsignees of the cargo, and that by the
terms of the charter party the freight NON
cy was to be paid in gold and silver dollars,
in the city OF New York. One would sup
pose when the ship arrived there, and the
cargo was delivered according to contract,
that Seuator Morgan would have paid the
freight money in gold and silver dollars be-
cause, as Senator Cor king says, 'What
does the word dollar meanY' What do
the "patriotic classes" mean by it when
they lend greenbacksEto the Government?
One would suppose, | say, that Senator
Morgan paid the freight money in gold or
silver dollars. Not he. lie wanted to
establish the law. I do not mean to charge
any thing personal upon him-we are not
dealing in personalities; we arc dealing with
grave question. fie wanted to establish
the law, and so he refused to pay gold and
silver dollars, which the contract called for
IN words and offered to pay in greenbacks.
He goes to Court, and gets the Judgment of
the Court to establish what he considers to
be the law. Remember, this contract was
made after the legal tender act w8s passed,
and called for gold and silver dollars, and
yet Senator Morgan got the Court to decide
Us follows, VS.. .g...
Congress, by the legal-tender act, has
made paper dollar the equivalent Of a
gold or silver dollar. Having the power
Ito establish and regulate the value of coin
lit has deprecated the value Of gold and
"silver, for every purpose cognizable by
courts, to the level Lf paper money, and
''has declared that one Of its notes, repre-
''senting the value of one hundred cents
shall be equal to gold or silver dollar,
representing the same number Of cents,
~ Congress having created paper
money and rendered it nominally, for all
illegal purposes, equal to gold, there no
'longer remains, in legal contemplation,
| :'apy difference between them A
paper having been made equal to gold
'doilar, it must be accepted as such in
satisfaction OF any eoh'fsct lcr 'ne pay,
words can be used by contracting parties
ito give gold dollar legal value as mon
''ey above a paper dollar. A dollar i, one
hundred CENTS no more, ro less, whether
''it is silver, gold Or paper, and when Con
''gress declares that a paper dollar shall
'.be current. and pass for and represent,
"and be Of the value of one hundred cent;
iof an puipISses ., ;e"iaO u. oa9 of payihg ulp1
IL pecouies .he iquis a,el's t VI ono nuiuies
cents IN any other sups'ance u iIo9i