Knoxville weekly chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1875, 1873-12-31
OUR CURRENCY NOT AN "HSGRAyED
.daff1ii LIES, ttliNltf 4''
u ''Can not be Made worthless by
.....rr Sneers." .....

........ Sneers." .......H ....
In the Senate debate, on the 18th inst,
on our currency, Senator Morrill, having
pronounced our currency an engraved
falsehood," Senator Ferry, of Michigan,
eloQucntly and forcibly defended the faith
of the Government in the following lam
guage:
can not understand why, on the one
hand, Senator can with elaboration de-
clare that our currency is an "engraved
falsehood :" and, on the other hand, an
other Senator, representing another part
of the country, can declare that it is
counterfeit currency" aud in order to
cast odium upon circulating medium
which has served such value 60 the coun-
try, can declare it also stuff" If i mis-
take not, during the midst of the panic, it
was such valuable stuff that citizens
throughout the country, not excepting the
Senator himself, were too glad to stuff
their pockets and vaults with this same
pitiless " stuff.O
Now, sir, there are two methods of test
ing the value of this so-called "stufl." /
do not now propose to enter at large into
this discussion, but to draw attention to
the fact that if it had not been for this
very currency. called "stuff," We should
have failed in the war, rebellion would
have succeeded, and you would have had
no country to use or appreciate any Kind of
currency or money. 1t was the eNer-
else of constitutional power in this
very issue which YOU are conforming and
ridiculing that enabled tho people to carry
you successfully through the war when
you had no other alternative, for you had
no coin, and were driven to suspension :.
y OH were CONF elled to fall back upon your
credit for resources, and you did it triumph
antly.
ask your attention to the two ways of
measuring the value of this currency.
What are they? Go into the markets /;
question Wall street; and the answer
made in the midst of the panic was that
the value of this currency was only 6 per
cent. discount-04 cents to the dollar i'll
gold. ask the Senator from Wisconsin
Mr.. Howe whether that be stuff
whether that be counterfeit money ~
And / ask the Senator from Vermont,
Mr. Morrill,, if such is an engraved
talsehoOd' o If in market, in the midst of
the panic, it was worth 81 cents, and to-
day, l believe, is worth so cents in coin /;
then strictly, according to the epithets and
estimate of these Senators, it would be 10
cents lie and so cents truth.
Mr.. President, / am willing to go to the
country with the Senator from Wisconsin
or the Senator from Vermont on this ques-
ton whether this currency is lie or
truth. The people have decided the value
of this currency in the shock of battle and
in the tolls of peace. Pronounced good by
the people it cannot be made worthless by
sneers. During the panic but little of it
was converted into gold, showing that in
their Judgment they considered the cur
rency nearly equal to gold. And / reiter-
ate right here the fact which L stated be-
fore, that in that very period and moment
the currency brought 81 cents in the mar
ket of the country in coin. How much
this is "lie' and how much truth" /
leave to the mathematical astuteness of
the Senator.
Now, call attention to. the other method
of testing this currency, and it is by the
Government itself, the author of the issue.
1t gives to the National Banks 80 cents of
currency upon its bonds. 1t either values
its promises to pay in the form of bonds
payable in the future at 80 cents truth and
10 cents lie, or else it considers the currency
10 cents lies and 80 cents truth. You may
take either horn of the dilemma.
| am not discussing with the Senator the
intrinsic value of this currency any more
than / am discussing the intrinsic value of
coin. Gold is commodity, and finds its
value in the market. This evidence of
debt, this promise to pay is not commod-
ity, it is measure of exchange but it OBJ
the aggregate wealth of the whole country
in pledge for its security and ultimate pay
ment. Therefore, | say that the exchange
of bond for this currency is merely put
ting oil the period of payment. 1t is your
greenback of to-day promising to pay in
the distant future. In reality, it is begging
the future to come to your rescue, saving
that now you cannot pay, but by and by
you hope to pay.