New national era. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1870-1874, 1872-11-28

sure, which, when needed, must almos
necessarily be made by the press. Now tina
the canvass is closed, it is well to look can
didly at the question referred to.
! Without any knowledge Of the opinions O
the law officers of the Treasury, or that O
the Attorney General, whose advice must BIZ
presumed to have been taken in such trans
action, it is not difficult to see in the laws
| governing United States notes very strong
grounds for the belief that the reissue O.
greenbacks, withdrawn for any reason, with.
in the limits of four hundred millions of dol.
lars as the total, is in the discretion of the
Secretary Of the Treasury. The law of Feb.
ruary %, 1862, under which legal-tendel
notes were first issued, distinctly says that
''such United States notes shall be received
the same as coin, at their par value, in pay
ment for any loans that may be hereafter
sold or negotiated by the Secretary of the
Treasury, and may be reissued from time to
time, as the erigencies of the public interests ma,
require" The act of July IL, 1862, authoriz-
ing second issue of one hundred and fifty
millions, also authorized the Secretary of the
Treasury to exchange for these notes, "on
such terms as he thinks most beneficial to
the public interest,"" any fve-twenty six per
cent. bonds, (which have been or may be
issued" and declares that he ''may reissue
the notes so received in exchange" The
act of June 80, 1864, limiting the greenback
issue to four hundred millions, contained a
general authority to the Secretary to redeem
United States notes issued previously, and
to substitute in lieu thereof equal amounts of
other United States notes.
These provisions, continuous and harmo-
NOUS as they are, would seem to repose in
the Secretary's discretion the power to reis-
sue any United States notes which from time
to time may return to the Treasury. On the
18th OF April, 1866, law was approved au-
thorizng the Secretary to dispose of bonds,
the proceeds to be devoted "to retiring
Treasury notes, or other obligations, issued
under any act of Congress-" Under this law
Mr.. McCulloch retired forty-four millions of
greenbacks. 1t contained no provision as to
the future of these greenbacks if not can
celed, and it did not provide thatthey should
be Cancelled. AS matter of fact they were
not Cancelled. Subsequently, February 4,
1868, another law was passed, suspending
1.-THE authority of the Secretary of the Treas
ury to make any reduction of the currency by
retiring or canceling United States notes."
1t will thus be seen that the discretion of the
Secretary of the Treasury with reference to
reissue, which was explicitly declared by the
laws previous to the retirement of the forty
four millions, was left unimpaired by the laws
relating to that retirement; that it was also
In his discretion to retire and cancel, or to
retire without canceling, or, indeed, to refrain
from retiring at ALL Notes not cancelled ap-
parently might be reissued under the general
provisions Of law.
But while this appears to be the law with
reference to the subject, the question whether
the Secretary ought to have such discretion
as he enjoys, or ought to exercise it if he is
clear that he has it, is one of much wider
scope. The power is very vast, and does
not seem to be of the nature of those the
Secretary, in his New York speech, said
would not be diminished, though he wished
he could diminish them. 1t is also a power
not absolutely indisputable, and the Secre-
tary may well hesitate to employ it on this
account. But what is most important, the
employment of this power is step away
from specie payments. 1t is a step toward
expansion, and therefore dangerous step,
only to be justified by the most extreme ne
cessity, if justifiable at all, and only be
taken, if taken at all, very deliberately, and
with the most careful attention to the wishes
of the country.
1t is not to be denied that the retirement
of greenbacks under Mr.. McCulloch was re-
garded as permanent. 1t was authorized in
Difference to a demand for contraction. 1t
was directly designated as PRODUCTION of the
currency" in the statute suspending tho au-
thority to continue it, and in the general
opinion of the country there has never been
the slightest suspicion that the retired green
backs could or would be ressued. The re-
issue of them, therefore, partakes of the char
acter of an original issue; is sure to be ac-
companied with much the same results; and
is open to objections which, we are strongly
no authority lower than that of
Congress, exerted definitely with reference to
the reissue, can adequately remove.-New
York Times.