New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1868-08-04
HOW SHALL THE NATIONAL DEBT BE
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BoW SHALL THE, NATIONAL DEBT BE
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We hoo that il be distinctly understood that
tbe Greenback question is not raised by us, but
that we discuss it because those who disagree
with ia will have it so. They insist, not only
on discussing it themselves, but that we also
shall discuss it. The following is one of the
latest statements which have reached us OF
their side of tho question. w. A. b. writes:
"We favor the payment Of the debt Of the United
states according TO the letter and spirit Of the law,
tho nayment Of the fyetwenty bonds in greenbacks,
pledppg ourselves that If 1t can be demonstrated that
such Is not the spirit Of the law, will abandon our po
alton and cheerfuy use our efforts to induce others to
adopt a just view Of the case-yOurs. If that be just
"On the face OF every legaltender note Of the United
States Is the CHARACTERIZATION: This note is receivable for
all dues public and private except duties on imports
and interest on thelpubc debt which, of insist
shall be paid In gold The aye-tweny bonds were bought
with this plain statement staring the purchaser IN the
face from very notes which he paid In exchange
for the vewenties Is 1t not just that he shall receive
his payment in the samef
eve favor the payment Of the fvetwenties In green
backs You ask how, then. will we pay the green
backs In gold TO the uttermost arhing phel zoe cam
but meantime We will avoid the rulnous interest we pay
at present.
But the law declares that we shall issue more than
900 Of grecnbacks Very WE'LL have In crcu-
laton only sa5oOOOOOo We would the othcr $780,.
900 OOO and thus save sSOOoOOO per annum IN gotd as
beginning"
Comments By The Tribune.
Our correspondent quotes few words from
the original Legal Tender act which he thinks
favors his view of the case. Let us quote
several times as many from the first section of
that act:
"And any holders OF said United States notes deposit
ing any sums not less than fifty dollars. some multiple
Of my dollars with the Treasurer OF Inc Gnea 9sSs
for duplicate certificates OF deposit one OF which may De
mspos s no 'o he hod an equal ano Of bonds
Of he United States coupon or registered "a may ny sad
ceniu per annup aud redeemable at the pleasure Of the
United States after five years, and payable twenty years
from the date thereof"
Here it will be seen that, by the express
terms of the original Legal Tender act (Feb.
%, 1862 every Greenback was fundable at the
pleasure of tho holder in Five-Twenty bonds.
How can you pretend that. while every holder
of Greenbacks was entitled by law to exchange
them for an equal amount in Five-Twenty
bonds, those bonds could the next hour be paid
off in his despite in Greenbacksf Do you not
see that this would utterly nullify and destroy
the privilege OF funding the Greenbacks, which
was chief element of their valuef
Now look at another provision of that same
Legal Tender act:
"SEc s. And be IL further enacted That all duties i'm
demand therefor authorized be issued and by law
oevabe n payment OF public dues and the coin 80 paid
shall be set apart as special fund.- and shall be applied
First TO the payment of the interest the
bonds and notes Of the United States
"second To ne purchase payment Of one per ee,'i,n
within year after the day Of July eighteen
hundred and sixytwo, which is to be set apart sink
be applied to the purchase payment Of the public debt
the Secretary OF the Treasury shall from time to time
Third The residue thereof to be paid into the Treas
ury Of the United States"
Here you see provision of coin not merely
to pay all the interest, but to pay at least one
per cent of the principal of the entire Ma
tional Debt, in each fiscal year beginning with
1852. Do you propose to abide by that part of
the bargainf
The act further prescribed, as you quote,
that the Greenbacks "shall also be lawful
money and legal tender in the payment of
call debts, public and private, within the
United States" The avowed notorious OBJ
ect Of this provision was to give those notes a
higher current value than they would other
wise possess. But your construction tends not
to increase but diminish their value. That de-
pended originally on their being Legal
Tender and on their being fundable in Five
Twenty bonds. If, instead of being thus fund
able, the Five-Twenties may be paid off in
Greenbacks, their value would be slender in
deed.
We know that the meaning which our CORE
spondent and others puts upon the Legal Tender
act is not the intent of those who passed it.
Mr.. Stevens, in urging the passage of the Le-
gal Tender act, at least four times asserted
that the Five-Twenties were payable after
twenty years in coin; so said several of his
colleagues on the Committee of Ways and
Means, and no man demurred We thus prove
that no such meaning was intended by those
who framed and passed the bill.
Now, then, let us look at facts about which
there is no dispute.
When the bonds were to be taken, the ques-
ton was publicly asked, How are they to be
"paidf May they not be paid in Greenbacks 7"
and Secretary Chase replied, "NO: they are
" to be paid at maturity in COIN" This salts
fed the doubters and senced the cavilers, and
the bonds were taken on the strength of this
assurance, which was reiterated by Secretaries
Fessenden and McCulloch successfully. All
those whose business it was to get people to
take the bonds repeated these assurances.
Were we not warranted in so doingH Consider
the facts above stated and judge.
Now, then, the bonds were taken on the faith
Of these acts these assurances. The foreign
holders of large portion Of them never saw
Greenback-many of them never heard of
one. They were offered our bonds very cheap,
and bought them. These promised to pay so
many dollars per annum interest and so
many dollars principal after five and within
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