Wyandot County Republican. [volume] (Upper Sandusky, Ohio) 1869-1903, 1869-02-18

probation ofthe currency precisely
astheir debts and credits bear to
each other. II they owe more than
they can promptly collect on debts
due to them they must lose to the
full extent of the appreciation, and
they must make this loss good BY
sale of a part of their property at
reduced prices or by contracting
new debtsto be paid in an appre-
ciated currency. AS general rule,
any appreciation of the currency is
injurious to all these classes, for
they are generally in debt, and even
where enough is due them to pay
with vet the delay In payment or
the failure of their debti rs almost
always embarrasses them. Com
mercial and banking usage compels
promptness, so that a merchant or n
banker, however prudent he may be.
Is often compelled to sacrifice his
assets to meet sudden apprecia
ton of the currency. sTs al :.a
;sbut the distress caused by-an APP
probation OF the currency falls
mainly on the debtor class; others
suffer ouly by reason OF his inabil-
ityto pay. What does specie pay.
ments mean to q debtor? 1t means
the payment of S135 where he has
agreed to pay 800, or. which is the
same thing, the payment of 800
where he has agreed to pay seven
ty-four dollars. Where he has pur-
chased property and paid one fourth
of 1t, it means the loss of the prop
erty it means the addition of one
fourth to all currency debts in the
United States. A measure to re
quirefasdebtor now to pay his debt
in gold or currency equivalent to
gold requires him to pay one hun
dred and thirtv-five bushels of
wheat when he agreed to pay one
hundred, and if this appreciation is
extended through period of three
years it requires him to paw an in
terest OF twelve per cent. in addi-
ton to the rate he has agreed to
pay. When we consider the enor,
Observation-Disclosures Of 4 new country
like 'oafs, where capitarisl scarce,
hhI where q credit has heen substi-
tuted in the place of capital, 1t
presehtsa a difficulty that may well
cause us to pause We may see
that the chasm must be crossed, but
it will make us wary of our foot
steps. Good faith and public pol
icy demand that we appreciate our
currency to gold. but in the process
we must be careful that bankruptcy,
di;tress. and want do not fall upon
% our fellow-citizen who have based
their obligations upon your broken
promises. The debtors Of this
country include the active, enter
prising, energetic men of all the
various emplovments of life. 1t is
serious proposition to change
their contracts so as in effect to
require them to pay one third more
than they agreed to pay. They have
not paused in their business to
study questions of political econ
omy. They have based their OPP
crations upon this money, which
you have declared to be lawful
money. You may change its rela-
tive value, but in doing so von
should give them reasonable op-
portnnity to change their contracts
SO as. to adapt them to the new
standards of value you may pre-
scribe for them. aA"
Before discussing the measures
proposed by the committee, which
Senators may consider not specific
enough or not rapid enough, let us
look to history for lights to guide
us in most difficult and dangerous
passage.
The appreciation OF the currency
is far more distressing operation
than Senators may suppose. Our
own and other nations have gene
through this process before. and
always with the sorest distress
Sometimes they have repudiated the
deprecated currency, and. from the
necessity Of the case, fallen back
upon barter and gold. Such as.
have already stated was the case
with the continental money. with
the French asstgnats, and with con
federate scrip. All these rcvolu-
tiona:y movements were accompa-
MED, with the utter destruction of
credit. and trade. We have also to
guide us several examples of the
appreciation of debased currency.
At the revolution Of 1858, in
England. the silver coin, then a
legal tender. had become so depre,
ciated by wear and by clipping as
TO be. worth only seventy five per
cent. of the mint standard, and this
was. practically the only currency.
1t became necessary to appreciate
sscurrency to the mint standard
AS all prices and obligations Of debt
had become adjusted to the. low
cred value of the existing coin, il
was proposed to reduce the mini
standard to the current standard, OF
to issue new shillings at one and
one fourth shillings. This was op
posed by Isaac Newton and John
Locke, the two foremost men Of
all the world" who contended tha
it the loss of recoinage was thrown
upon the mint it would not affec
the individuals at all. This view
was strongly opposed by practica
merchants, but new shillings were
issued and exchanged for the, Ole
saiIlings at par. AS between the
mint and the holder Of the old shil
lings this was all right; but the
effect was Immediately disastrous