, 1870-06-10
TIE NEW FUNp[N9 BILL.

to recognize at last o satisfactory and 3D.
mi1able measure. It indicates that the
elaborate criticisms of this and other Jour-
mails upon previous bills, have been atten-
lively studied at Washington, md have
been made in the main tho basis of the
new bill AL coercive measures to compel
holders Of any class of bonds to exchange
them for those bearing 10 yer rate Of in
terest are omitted. All provisions allow.
ing lower interest bonds to be issued for
greenbacks, or. at less thnn their par in
gold are omitted, and any such contingency
guarded against All provisions for hiring
people to peddle the bonds in foreign
marlets, and for raising fund
to pay brokers for cajoling capital
lists into taking them unwares
and against their interests are omitted,
The new bonds are redeen,ahle in ''dollars
in coin Of the present standard value"
and not in francs, pounds sterling, tha1ers,
forms, ronh1es, rupees, piastres, or pearls
of the New Jerusalem Avoiding these
indignities and errors, the bill authorizes
81, ,0o0, ,o0O, 600 Of per cent bonds, redeem
able at par, at any time after 80 years, at the
option Of the government, exempt from all
national, State, and local taxes, payable at
the Treasury, but not to be issued IN, such
q manner as to increase the principal of tho
debt Among the other noticeable pro
visions is that, though the bond is redeema-
bic at the option of the government after
thirty years it is not payable at any particu-
lar time until the Secretary makes it pays-
| bic by notice. In this respect, the bond
very nearly corresponds to the British
consol. which is interminable, the only dif-
ference being that the consol must be pur-
chased by the government in order to be
e1tinguished, while the proposed bond can
a1xays, On notice, be paid of at par. The
advantage of this form Of bond is, that
when the debt is once funded into it, the
government is not obliged to borrow over
again the same valne. It is supposed that
by making the bonds that ate first pur-
chased to be the last payable, they will be
more sought after, as having a longer time
to run The Secretary is authorized and
instructed to employ the surplus gold in
the Treasury unfortunately, the act leaves
to him to determine how much Of it is sur
plus) to pay of fve-twenty bonds at par.
It will not injure the national credit that,
instead Of purchasing and dickering, the bill
proposes to pay. The sinking fund is to
be abolished, and all the bonds collected in
it to be destroyed. This viii end the hocus
pocus by which the Secretary pays with
one hand into the other the interest on
bonds, which have been bought up by the
Treasury which owes them, the sole motive
Of the extra bookkeeping being to furnish
an excuse for taxing the people to pay in.
terest on the whole debt, after a cousideta-
ble part of it has been iquidated Finally,
the Secretary of the Treasury is authorized
to issue gold certificates, beazing per cen'
interest, for any gold that may be deposited
in the Treasury By private parties, and t.
devote three-fourths Of the gold SO dePos
tied to the purchase Of 6 per cen
bonds On the gold with which th'
government buys the bonds unde
this arrangement, it would pay per. cent
while by the purchase Of 6 per cent bond
it would stop an interest of per cent
This is in strict analogy with the genera
purpose of the bill. It is reasonable t.
suppose that such gold certificates woult
be largely held by the National Banks 70,
their reserves and, being redeeuable OF
ten days notice, the feasibility Of main
tanning their redemption with . gold re
serve of one-fonrth, would admit Of NJ
reasonable question. As the governrnen
would have on hand, in addition to the q
per cent gold reserve, the ive-twent..
bonds purchased with the 10 pc
cent Of deposited gold which
it had expended, the utmost ef
feet Of a run On the government
for the redemption Of its gold certificates
would be the necessity of restoring few
of the fve-twenties it had purchased. Tn
feasibility Of maintaining redemption
therefore, admits Of no serious question
and if seems probable that this measur
would cause flow of gold into the coun
ty by giving it that utility here in connec
ton with our currency, and as reserves
which it possesses in other countries. Th'
; bill, especially when compared with tn
czudities which have preceded it, is wiset,
conceived, and We trust the Senate vii
, substitute it for their own. It is muc1
, more than we had hoped