The Evansville journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ind.) 1866-1870, 1869-03-27

! not honestly substitute the bond for coin
because of his previous promise.
Morton said the senator from Maineh
i illustration oil not state the case fully,
/ He had no doubt the holders of green
backs would gladly exchange them fol
/ Fessenden - Would that violate tbs
| PLEDGE in the bill 10 strengthen the pubill
I credit?
Morton replied that it would not violate
the pledge TO the individual, but il GER
tainly would to the Government Several
plans had been proposed for tn redemp
tion of the national obligations, and Con-
gress had finally fixed upon his one, and
had solemn y pledged the Government TO
the redemption OF these Obligations. IN
Guiding greenbaeks, in coin. TO give the
law any other construction would be
making it nonsense.
Fessenden complained that the Senator
from Indiana had treated HIM discount
eously, in asserting that what he had said
was nonsense; tuat was not proper lam
guage fJr a Senator to apply to another.
Morton denied having made the asser-
tion; what he had said was, that the con.
structiOn which the senator from Maine
WISHED to put upon the act to strengthen
the public credit would make it nonsense; !;
but even If he had said wnat the Senator
had charged, he thought IL would not have
been more discOul teOIIs than it was for
the Senator from Maine to say when Ire
(Morton) was advocating certain view
of the law that any body could see that the
contrary was the correct view. He had
tor many years admired the Senator from
Maine, but he Thought that Senator never
appeared TO less advantage Tn3n when lee
taring the Senate as he had done IN this
case.
Fessenden- I beg the Senator, when he
talks about my occurring the Senate, to re-
member at so far as any lecture of mine,
to-day, is concerned, it was addre ssed TO
the Senator himself. and beg 10 be under
stood, also, that Re IS not the senate, but
only a very small part of il.
MoFton-That l. also very true, These
little fliHgs L care nothing about. 1t does
not become one of even my age in the
Senate, but the Senator will find that in
this case ne has lectured me uuder mis-
taken idea of what said.
Morton, speaking of the btl to strength
en- the pnOiic edit, said ib had been c ar
r1ed through the House by the pledge con
tanned ia il, that gre-nDacss would be re-
deemed in coin, without which it must
have failed to pass.
Fessenden-The act simply pledges the
Govern meut to the payment of the nat on
al Obligations, in coin. at the earliest day
practicable. The OBJECT OF making this
pledge was simply To assure the national
that the nation would no. .d faith
with them and would not bre tch It, but
would be made at any PARTICULAR date;
therefore, If any OF ths Sc obligations were
pres snted for payment before the Govern
ment was prepared to pay in coin, and the
hing else Instead OF coin. the pledge /
would not be violated. he mad no obje':-
lion to increasing the amount of Interest I
10 be paid 10y the Government, provided |
.he country could gain anything b y doing /
50, and he believed that IT would gain 4
greatly If the green backs could all be put +
ntO ponds at ftVe or SIX per cent. interest 4
The amendment offered BY Williams to /
wilson's amendment, was then rejecte }.
After some further discussion the SEN +
Ite, at 4:l5, went into an Executive Com I
ntttee, ana soon after adjourned Till Mon
lay.