, 1870-05-24
PROMISES NOT TOPAY,

ne OF CHf contemporaries, OF the Dem
ocratc persuasion, talks in this loose and
nonsensical manner in regard to the cur
rency question
"Twcnty millions OF dollars q year could be
saved by abolIshtng the National Banks, aud sub-
sIitut1ng Treasury notes for tho bank circulation
The banks low furnish but about thrce-sevenths
Of the currency. The remainder Is furnished by
the government and it Is absurd, In the face OF
this fact 70 say Tint the government cannot, With
Win equal propr1ety mud safety, furnish 1t RlL"
No man is fit to be trusted with an ed
itorial pen to discuss financial topics who is
SO ignorant Of the first principles of the
science as to suppose OF assert TINT demand
notes can lie issued by any person, corpora
ton, OF government whatever, and made to
pass ut par, unless they are redeemed on
presentation or made to bear proper inter-
est or are e1changeab,e into some other Sc
curly which is at par in the market.
An issue Of three hundred millions more
lrredeemab1e shinplasters would reduce the
purchasing power of. the existing currency
by not less than two hundred and fifty mill
ions and the people would lose that much
in the value of their money. Instead of
saving twenty millions a year, as
simpletons assert, they would
have their business thrown into
conyu1sions, their money deprecated one
third or onehalf the value of national
and all other corporate bonds could tum-
BILE down aud widespread mischief and
misery would be inflicted On the communi-
ty-au as the result Of the insane attempt
to make ts something out Of nothing;" to
force printed picture promises not to pay,
on the public as the equivalent of gold.
It is truly surprising how recklessly some
! men Will write, who set themselves up Us
teachers Of the people in financial science
The writer Of this extract conveys tho idea
to his renders that it would be perfectly
/ harmless for the government to knock the
National Banks in the head, wipe them out,
and then to print and issue three hundred
millions of lrredeemable notes or Sprom-
ises not to pay to supply the place of the
circulation Of the banks which were abol-
ished- This project is put forth with dog
matte confidence in its infnlhbi1ity.
It seems never to have entered the mind
of the writer that the government has any
| thing to do, except to destroy the National
| Banks with one hand, and to fling into cir
culation with the other, several hundred
| millions of printed promises of not to pay
| on demand, or at any time. There is not
| the faintest hint in The article from which
wa have copied, that such thing as pay
ment, or redemption of those tspromises, y
was deemed Of the slightest consequence,
| OF had even been thought of in connection
with the proposed summary destruction Of
seem to be aware that the Treasury notes
already in circulation are at henry dis
count, and that their value is as uncertain
as the temperature of the atmosphere It
appears never to have entered his head that
tspromise to pay the bearer, which bears
no interest, must be redeemed in coin on
presentation, to circulate Mt par AZ money
To possess fixed value, it mrst be con-
vertible into gold at some specific time, or
It must be convertible, ut the pleasure: OF
the holder, into some gold bond, or
other security, having certain and
definite value equal to gold A greenback
is Treasury note which promises to pay
the bearer so many dollars, and the idol
lars mem gold dollars 1t would circu-
1ate at equal value with gold, if this prom
ise were not violated But, being violated,
these notes tsgo to protest." and are
bnwked about at Tariable discount; to-day
they are sold at so per cent, tomorrow per
haps -, and next month only GO. The gold
brokers who fz their price, would quickly
r,uf 1oyFn their rnarEat 1a7ua If ronfyresa