The Portland daily press., 1869-02-02
Terms $500 per anm,.ns. In ad,ance.

| y ~ NPNAdllOn.
The Secretary of the Too.
ized 10 reissue these coin notas ae,a, irn.
nave been received into the Treas,,...,s .st lucy tuey
maturity IN payment of public dues or 20
issue in their stead the same amount oS / i,o
notes on time. This discretionary mower ai
though not an important feature OF the pIan
may be found necessary to be used, and no
valid objection to its use exists, as notes re-
ceiyed in payment of public dues are actu.
ally paid or redeemed by the United States.
A like discretionary authority to issue notes
on a shorter time than one year, but not on
less than three months, is to enable the Sec
Tetary to hasten the time lCr resuming, il he
| finds it practicable TO do so, after The maturi-
ty of the notes first issued.
Having thus stated the general pfoyisions
of the bill, it is proper to consider what will
| be its genera effect:
First, can these coin notes be paid accord
ing to their tenor? and second, what will be
| the effect upon the currency OF issuing them ?
Let us now see what means the Secretary
| viii have, at the maturity of these notes, with
| which to redeem them:
| Tue amount Of coin in the Treasury jan
uary l, 1869, was. s...................S 500 1C3 3e9
Deduct coin certificates l3,O63,O 2
Leaving net balance OIL ........... zoo, ,270
10 which add estimated receipts IN coin
over expenditures TO end Of The fiscal
year ending June 80, 1870 ........... 90 900 600
Which viii give the amount in the Treas
ury on tire maturity of the first coin
Aots;, notes issued sue .144 4,7CO 276
com over expenditures Tor the year end
ing June 50, loIl ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 80 co. 900
And we have. Observation-Disclosures 7G, %, ,27G
with which to redeem the S1SO,OOO,OOO falling
due during that year, and this without any
| purchase OF coin by the Secretary, There
can be no dOuttof the ability of the Secreta-
| ry OF the Treasury TO maintain redemption
| after commencing, as he would, without any
purchase OF coin, have during the first year
alter specie payments actually commenced
nearly one hundred per cent. in specie OF the
whole amount OF coin notes redeemable with
which to redeem whatever notes might be
presented. And maintaining redemption
through the first year would undoubtedly
bring the whole volume eff the currency to a
par with gold. Indeed, believe the first
monthy redemption would have this effect:
for demonstration oil the ability OF the gov
eInment to redeem would so establish Lublc
confidence as to settle the whole question.
Deeming these resources OF the govern
ment amply sufficient to maintain the re-
demption of these coin notes as they mature
and are presented Tor redemption, now pass
TO the second question: What will be the el-
feet of their issue? This is, in substance, to
ask whether the community In general will
estimate the resources OF the government for
the payment Of these notes as have estimat-
ed them. Will their issue inspire general
confidence in their promise to pay? Upon
this point propose to take, first, the testimo-
ny given by an opponent of the bill, the gen
teman from Indiana, Mr.. Coburn, who, in
a speech made in this House last week, ex-
pressed himself upon it as follows:
will the issuing of Treasury notes PAYABLE
in twelve months in gold, in lieu of the green
backs and bank notes taken for taxes and
dues to the government, have any tendency
toward the resumption OF specie payments?
This proposition has been made in all seri-
BUSINESS by decided opponent of contraction
and is put forth as a measure in aid of that
view. To my mind it is the strongest meas
ure of contraction yet proposed, amounting
to nearly half million day-in fine, to the
entire amount of the revenue raised in pa
per; for this paper is at once retired, and in
its stead is issued currency which calls for
gold in twelve months, and which at OF ce is
worth more than twenty-five per cent premi-
um; currency which would be locked up as
soon as issued, and only see daylight when
put up for sale by bankers or at the end of
twelve months, when presented at the Treas
ury.
Who that holds such note will give it in
exchange for greenback and throw away
his twenty-five per cent? Who will pay it
out? Who so infatuated as to yield up such
a golden advantage? In one year $50 0L0-
900 OF our currency would be safely locked
up, and the whole geenback circulation
would be elfectually retired at the end OF two
years."
These objections of the gentleman from In
diana-who represents class of objeetors-
are iull of expressions OF the confidence
which is 10 be reposed in the notes which
this bill proposes to issue. They are that
these notes will ''be locked up as soon as is
sued"-"sately locked up"-not paid out, but
boarded lor the golden advantage" which
they will afford to their possessor, put up
for sale by brokers" "beariVg a premium OF
| twenty-five per cent" Whatever may be tue
actual operation, there is no mistake as to
what these objectors assume will be the effect
| upon the pubic mind OF the issue OF the pro-
| posed gold notes; they assume and object
| that the notes will be at par, or nearly at par,
| with gold; and l ask the attention OF the
House to this point. The objection is a most
forcible statement of the public confidence
which will be reposed in these coin notes, for
there would be no such appreciation of these
| notes toward a par with gold unless the pub
lie had full confidence that the redemption
would take place at the time promised; and
the percentage of appreciation would be the
| exact measure of that confidence.
The gentleman from Indiana, therefore,
| comedies that the bill would effect the very
object ior which it is intended, namely: the
extinguishment of the premium on gold by
an appreciation OF the paper currency. Ac-
cept ng the gentlemans statement of tn e
credit which these notes viii WIN as correct,
let US consider the effect OF that credit upon
the currency. Will it produce that COL trac-
| tion which the gentleman apprehends?
think, if at all, only temporarily. For as all
the legal-tender notes are in process Of con-
version, and all national bank notes are re-
deemable in legal-tender notes, the one issue
cannot be be appreciated without drawing up
| with 1t the whole paper currency OF the coun-
| try. The confidence which these coin notes
would inspire would express itself not so
much in the form of premium on those
notes above the value OF the present natior al
| currency, as in a reduction OF the premium on
| gold. cannot better express my ideas of
| the effect which the issuing of these coin
notes would have in reducing the premium
on gold than by quoting the following ex-
| tract from speech made by me in introduc-
| ing the bill, in March last:
with the steady conversion of the green
backs into notes redeemable in specie at
specified time, and with the certainty OF the
ability of the government to redeem them as
| promised, the whole volume of the currency
| would begin to appreciate. The boarded
| specie would come out to realize the premi-
um, which would every day be reduced, end
at no distant day be entirely extinguisbed.
| The notes, PAYABLE in specie as they ap-
preached maturity, would probably be tenn
porarily boarded, but only to liberate the
same amount in specie. AS fast as they ma
tured and became redeemable in coin they
would remain in circulation as specie; being
received for payment OF duties on imports
and convertible into coin at the will OF the
holder, they would be received in payment
for interest on the public debt and tor all
other purposes for which coin is now requir-
ed. Whenever any amount OF these notes
was actually redeemed the same amount OF
coin would be liberated from the Treasury,
where it now lies dormant, and become Use
full to the community Once place inns paper
E circulation of the Government upon spee.e
basis, and establish public confluence III ns
peImanence, and we have pracllcaiy auueu
e95o 0Oo OOo of speeie to the amount now In
o;ro,,to Iion ond thus furnished medium for
tbo REDEMPTION of national bank notes"
An aronments which l have seen urged
oo,oirst the bill start from the same point as
t5ose of the gentleman from Indiana, namely
Thai the notes are Immediately to appreciate
and some of them include another objection
which the gentleman did not name; that this
appreciation would create a difference be-
tween this issue and other notes in circula-
tion, and inure to the advantage OF the credi
tors OF the Government. As have already
said, believe the appreciation would be ex'
pressed in the reduction OF the premium on
gold, rather than by any premium on this
particular ISSUE But admitting the force oil
the argument which comedies the practical
| b;I;ty ~ onDraciotino the laoal tender notes