, 1869-05-20

ready to be offered for gzoenbacks the
higher would be their price il gol1, hence
the hishsr t.e bones, Tho higher the greer-
backA
But Secretary BoutEell's policy Of buying
bonds only, tnl letting the greenbacks
alone TO fall Of their own -~e!ght, tends
to enhance the price Of bonds, oonse-
quentty to iuGtase their export, conse-
quently to accumulate the gold in the
Treasury with which to buy 1nore bonds.
and 70 On od infnitum. But nowhere in
ihis programme Do the greenbacks como in
ft1 any Titalizing share Of the value-ciyino
poser Of gold. :. Tho umbiEeal cord which
hs always heretofore connected the eroen-
backs with gold is severed, and no pape,
money wholly severed from the redeem;np
influences Of gola can maintain ita value
Hence, We have, for the first time in The
history Of onr g1eenback currency, the re-
narkable fact that while bonds are adyanc-
ing, gold is also advancing-. T., green
backs arc declining. The two securities Of
the government, the intesest-bearing bond
and The Notwithstanding promise,
which have heretofore travelled aide by side
and borne the same Ealue, subject only to
tho difference Of interest, are now running
away from each other. On the 5th Of
April our bonds at Frankfort were
worth 874, while gold here was 1871, or
greenbaels we're worth Il; in gold Today
the price Of our bends at Frankfort remains
substantially the same (e63), whle gold
reaches li3}, md greenbacks are 6y3
i. e., greenbacks hive declined, r.il-
tirdy 10 donds, about six cents in
gold value per dollar OF currency, or
alout 3 per cent No such phenomenon rs
this has occurred before in our currency
operations. It brings 1lr. Boutweu's pol
icy, whatever may have been thought
about it before its application, squarely
face to face with its results, It's results
arc depreciation Of per cent in the
%nlue Of the entire greenback currency Of
the country, and Of MI values Of which
greenbRcks are the standard OF measurement
This result is certainly not merely unsatis-
factory, but it is portentous, mud cannot be
Eerseyered in without disaster. It teaches
| that the moment the greenback currency is
| separated from The vivifymg and redeem-
ing power Of gold, it goes down, down, and
thAt continually until there will be no
\ more value left in it than in the Conti-
mental money or the French assignats.
This is the direction in which We have been
sinking Hnee Mr.. Bontwells policy was
announced. II the cause Of tho decline in
gold is that We have stated, and We arc uu-
nblc to see that it is any other, then it viii
continue 10 operate with increasing rapidity
IN the same direction. Evidently such
policy is blunder in the mode in which
Secretary Boutwell, applies it, and needs
speedy qualification or amendment. II it
were 30 far qualified as to carry out the
suggestion made by a1r. David A. Wells in
his report, which recommended that one
haI the available gold be applied to pur-
chase bonds, aud the other half greenbacks,
the two forms Of government indebtedness
would more nearly preserve their relative
equilibrium But ut present il looks very
much az il our entire currency Was rapidly
On the why to the lowest point attained dur
ing the war, and gold to the corresponding
high figure, notwithstanding our national
credit never Was better, nnd the country
never Hnce the war more prosperous in
crops and general industry.