The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1869-01-14

Too Much Docsoring OF tho Currency and
General Butler is the last prominent imam
cial doctor on the stage. and in his speech de-
livered in the House Of Representatives on
Tuesday he uses up pretty well Morton and
some others who preceded him. He has some
good notions and some bad. His sarcastic
remarks on the vagaries Of the resumption
theorists are well applied, while at the same
time he launches out into the most extraordi-
nary theories HIMSELF II must be admitted,
however. that he has produced surprising
effect upon some Of the radical clamorers for
immediate specie payments. His holiness and
the controlling position he has taken as .
leader Of the party have dumbfounded them, and
they are afraid to touch him. People seem to
have mania for speaking and writing on the
currency and national finances. We are
flooded with communications on the subject
Every man imagines himself philosopher In
this and is anxious to ventilate his ideas about
it.
All this fuss shows that the question Is not
understood, and that having no practical views
men rush into theories. 1t Is the same In this
as in other things, the pretention and noise are
greatest where there is the most ignorance.
Here is country working out financial sys-
tenn in defiance Of legislative ignorance and
interference working it out smoothly without
. shock to trade, and while we are
all the time advancing steadily in
prosperity and wealth; yet these med
dlers are not content. They must be
tinkering the currency and finances when there
is no necessity for touching them and when we
should get along much better If they were let
alone. The on-to-specie- payment theorists
cry out resume, resume, without considering
the impracticability Of such course, or, If
practicable, the terrible consequences that
must follow. The true policy, as General
Butler said, is mastery inactivity;" is to let
the country grow up to specie payments in the
course of its development aud through the
laws Of nature and trade. In fact, resumption
is merely nominal after all, and there never
was in this or any other modern commercial
nation any real resumption, for the reason that
there never Is specie enough to redeem all the
currency afoat il demanded. This is so in
what may be considered the most stable
specie paying times. The banks pro-
missed to pay specie for their notes and
continued to promise because the specie
was not demanded. Had there been at
any time general demand they could not
have paid It. We pay specie now when
obliged to do SO by contract, and there is no
reason why people should not continue to do
that II they choose to make bargains on such .
basis, just as q man contracts to deliver so
much cotton, -four, pork, iron, lead or any
thing else for sufficient consideration. If
there be any doubt about compelling the per-
Torrance Of such contracts by law let an act
be passed legalizing them. Contracts for
the payment Of specie should be left, however,
to the option Of individuals. As for the rest,
there is no necessity to interfere with the cur
rency. II Is the same for the buyer as the
seller, and no one loses. All values are ad-
justed to that standard. Let well alone should
be the policy of Congress, and in duo time we
shall grow up to specie payments without q
shock to business and az insensibly as the
dews fall from heaven.