Western Reserve chronicle. [volume] (Warren, Ohio) 1855-1921, 1869-12-01
General Garfield NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.
Views on Banking and the Currency.

-A1hH -N@A
that ape with a conversation had with
our member OF Congress on the financial
question. General Garfield is Chair
man OF the House Committee on Bank
ing and Currency, and a he is reported
IS saying that il is his intention to make
his committee the financial M of the
House. in the matter of giving shape
TO the financial policy Of the country,
opinions proceeding from him are Of ex-
traordinary interest. Wegive the Wash
ington letter in full, as appended:
WASHINGTON, Nov. .. 1859.
Just now, when we are wlthin a week Of
the meeting OF Congress, and when the pub
lie press is Duslly engaged in discussing the
arguments for and against the resumption Of
specie payment, II may be OF some interest
10 know Iue views OF General James A. Gar
field, chairman of the House Committee on
Bankingand Currency. HeretofOreth Com
mittee Of Ways and Means has set itself up
not only tOprOvide ways and means for rails
IuG revenue, but 10 shape the financial poll
cy UI The country. II Is the intention of
GeneraI Garfield 10 make the Committee on
Banking and Currency what he believes 1t
Vas intended to be-the financial committee
Of the House. General Garfield, though a
western man, has never been an advocate of
paper money, much less has he been in favor
VI an illimltable ~Xpansio OF the volume Of
the currency. lie is Of those who believe
hat the resort TO paper money was q war
measure, Intended only for a time Of war,
and to be ado as soon as the wal was
over.
Your correspondent found the General in
his committee room at the Capitol porting
mittee-oi which General Garfield has been
acting as ~chairman-for taking the next
census. Garfield is a courteous, scholarly
gentleman, with a fine presence, an unusu-
ally large head, firmly set on a vigorous,
athletic body, with striking but regular fea-
lures. Our conversation was about as fol-
lows
CoRREsPoSDEST-General, wha are your
opinions on the question of reSuming specie
payments9
General GARFIELD-Weu. 1 have not been
correctly reported on that subject. saw q
statement the other day to the effect that 1
was in favor of Immediate resumption.
Now, thai is not true.
CokRESPoSDENT-Ihen you don't believe
in Horace Greeley's theory, that the way to
resume Is to reSume2'
General GARFIELD-Not exactly; but 1
think we should set our faces towards re-
sumption. Congress should take some action
that would indicate to the people that we In
lend some time 10 sun This would pre-
pare the people for 1t. IL would give stabili-
~ TO trade and restore confidence There
are those who believe we can resume at
once. Chief Justice Chase has always be-
iieved that we could resume in six eeks.-
This has been his opinion since the close Of
the war. He regards the legal tender act as
a war measure, not Intended for time OF
peace. and so do /. But l would not do any
Thing that would suddenly unsettle values
and create great financial distress That is
what / believe a sudden resumption OF spe-
Gle payments would do. Besides, when we
resume 1 want il to be lone in such a way
that We shall not be compelled to suspend
again.
CoRREsPoNDENT-Do you hin that IL we
should resume without a sufficient amount
Of coin in the Treasury TO pay out dollar
for dollar in gold for greenbacSs there would
he a run upon the Treasury for gold.
General G~ARFIELD-NOt necessarily. But
II we should resume with our present vol
ume OF currency and our present reserve Of
we would be compelled to suspend again.
The very knowledge Of the fact that we were
trying To do what everybody knows we can
not do would create a want of confidence in
the public mind, and men YOU say, "Well,
ne government would be compelled to sus-
pend again; and now, while 1t is payin gold
we will get all we can, and hold It." ThiB
would create a panic, a run on the Treasury,
d IL would be forced TO shut its doors.
CORREsPoNDENT-What is your plan, Gen
eral. Tor resuming3
General GARFIELD-First of all, I think,
there should be a contraction of the curren-
cy, not violent, but gradual. You II member
mat in loJ6 Congress passed q resolution en-
dOrsing the policy OF Secretary McCullOch
IN favor OF contraction. McCullOch, hOw-
ever, was so spasmodlc in his efforts that
after a short time Congress passed another
AESDAuA4OA lNGAALh Thai LNAG SAAOLAA bG NJ
further contraction of the currency. Con
traction, to be beneficial, should be gradual
and regular. The business community
should know Just how much the currency is
TO be reduced and when it Is TO be done.
This subject OF contraction, however, Is one
which requires TO be carefully handled. My
plan is for restoring the standard OF value
and resuming specie payments is contained
in the following BILL
BE il enacted by the senate and House of
Representatives Of the United States of
4 marion in InnnrnGE assam laH That IN
and after the-day Of Is, the Secretary
of the Treasury be and is hereby authorized
and directed to pay gold coin OF the United
states for any legal tender notes OF tine
United States which may be presented al
the office OF the Assistant Treasurer ~ New
York, at the rate OfOne dollar in gold for one
dollar and thirty cents in legal tender notes.
On n after the day Of, Is the rate
shall be one dollar in gold for one dollar and
twenty-nine cents in legal tender notes: and
al the beginning Of gnd during each succeed
inc month the amount or legal lender notes
required in exchange for one dollar In gold
shall he one cent less than the moun re-
CURED during the preceding month, until
the exchange becomes one dollar in gold for
one dollar IN legal tender notes; and on and
aner the-day Of Is, the Secretary of
the Treasury shall exchange gold for legal
tender notes dollar for dollar.
General GARFIELD-Of course with his
and as a prerequisite there would have to be
some provision made fora contraction Of the
currency.
CoRREsPoNDEST-Do you intend to intro
duce the bill at the mex session?
General GARFIELD-YeS, l shall probably
Introduce that or something Very much ike
il, lido not claim originality for this plan
1t Is modelled after the bill introduced in the
British Parliament in 1873 by Robert Peel,
which subsequently became q law, and I'M
der which England resumed specie payments
after a suspension OF nearly n quarter OF a
century. You see the process is gradual. II
would enable every person tosquare his bus
mess and prepare to transact II on q specie
basis Under this Act or ole similar TO IL.
England resumed two years before the time
fixed 10y the law. As soon as we resumed l
would be in favor OF o free banking act, SO
that every SET OF men who chose might go
into the banking business, under proper re-
Strictions, of course, as to their reserves and
liabilities.
UuRREsPoNDENT-General would you be il
favor OF retiring the legal tenders or the ma
tional bank notes should q policy Of contrac-
ton be adopted?
General GARFIELD-On hat point my
mind Is net fully made up. Formerly l was
in favor Of retiring the legal tenders and in
creasing the national bank notes Lately,
however. / confess my mind is Inclined the
other way. Ihave had numerous consulta-
lions recently with amember Of the Cabinet,
whose name am not at liberty to mention,
and 4 that he is strongly in favor OF retir.
ing the national bank circulation and sub
stituting in its place legal tenders of the
United States notes. This policy has its dis
advantages as well as its advantages. 1t
-WOuld put great power IN the hands Of Con-
gress and be the means of great temptation
TO them. For instance, suppose that, on the
eve Of an election, it should be found that
there was q deficit in the amount of revenue.
The question would be how that deficit
should be met. You know there are but two
ways of meeting 1t. One is by taxation u
and the other by issuing an additional sup
ply of g~reenbacks. The first the people
would feel immediately, while the last would
only be felt after a TINA in the depreciation
of the currency. Now. suppose 1t should be
a time when the elections were likely TO be
close. The party in power would say, Don't
let us ask the people for any more taxes;
why can't We as well turn out the amountin
~greenbacks?" You see the injury which
would ultimately be done to the people.
COKRESPoEDEST-pon't you think Gener-
al, that the national banks would opposet the
retirement of their circulation?
General GARFIELD-Probably they would.
The large city banks would not feel IL much,
because theirs is more of a regular banking
business, But the country banks that de-
pend a good dealOntheir circulation for their
profits, would feel it sensibly. But, as / said
before, my mind is not made up on this sub
ject. With regard TO resuming, however, my
opinions are fixed, and 1 think If during the
administration OF General Grant, we do not
resume we shall have lost the greatest oppor-
tunity OF the age.
@-The everlasting railroad wars,
stoek-gsmbling, stocl-watering and cor
ner gouging OF railroad managers, has
become q public nuisance, and people