New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1874-12-31
4 COMMON SENSE VIEW or 1T.

orr fellow-men, great deal more weight Is
given to what they do than to what they
promise to do. Politicians are about the last
| people in the world with respect to whose
! acts and professions this rule should be disre'
| garlcd. 1t is clear that the motives which
influenced Senators Morton, Logan, Cameron,
| Carpentcr, and other Senators Of that stripe
to spring the present caucus Finance bill on
the country are purely political. The pur-
pose of these politicians and their fellows
| is 10 benefit themselves and damage
their political opponents. The restoration Of
| the paper dollar TO its standard gold value is
| q secondary affair with them. They indeed
make use of this question just as surgeon
does of the living body of dog. If they
succeed in their principal design and preserve
! their own political existence, it is OF no con-
sequence to them whether the subject on
| which they have operated comes out OF their
| hands dead or alive. TO us, however, the
attainment as speedily as possible of solid
| basis for the pecuniary transactions OF
| forty-ivo millions of people, whom we
| now see to the last degree dcmOralizod and
distressed after n thirteen years trial Of ire
dcemablc paper. is of somo Importance. The
| establishment of a definite quantity OF gold
called dollar, as the regulator OF obligations
| payable in money. accompanied by the faith
full discharge on the part Of the Government
of its own engagements with its creditors, is
o work of difficulty thing which can never
be done successfully without intelligent prepa-
ration. The bill of the caucus contains no eff
cient provisions for surmountng the difficulties
of resumption, while 1t authorizes increased
<Nf and hoo min IN mi
| proceeds in defiance of Fundamental prin-
clples Should it become q law, and the things
authorized by it be done, every modification
of the present state Of our currency effected
| by it would add to the difficulties of resump-
| ton.
Our purpose this morning is to lay before
our readers some OF the elementary principles
| regulating the value of money, which are
fatal to every important provision OF the bill.
| The supporters of the project are obliged to
maintain a. That silver will circulate III
company with paper, when the value Of silver
as an article of commerce is greater than its
value as n part of tho currency; (2) That 10y
diminishing by $82,OOOOOO the quantity of
legal-tendcr notes, and issuing in place of
them S102,5O0,000 in bank notes, the value of
the grccnbacks relative to the gold curroncies
of the commercial world will not be low
cred (3) That by starting on tho 1st
of January, 1879, with some indefinite
sum of gold in the Treasury the entire
paper circulation of tho country can be sud-
denly raised to par in gold without q reduc
ton of it's volume. We have at this present.
time conclusive proof that our gold coin,
though rated at twelve per cent above the value
% 10,
valued in comparison with tho gold currencies
of Europe. That proof consists in the fact
that it is being exported, which it would not
be if there were suflicicncy of cheaper COM
modities to send in place of it. If gold is now
undervalucd, and cannot be kept in the coun-
try, how can it be kept here when, at one
stroke, its value is reduced to that of the de-
preciated papcr7 But it may be said that the
paper will rise in value during the four years
which intervene before the date fixed for re-
sumption. We are unable to perceive the
shadow of reason for such an opinion. The
number of banks and the paper circulation
are to be increased, and the effect OF aug
menting the paper and ecOnOmizing its use
will certainly be to diminish its value. The
effect of the recovery of credit and confidence
which we certainly hope will take place be-
fore 1879, will be to diminish still further the
value of paper by giving it more rapid cir
culatiop. TO say that the value of paper
money will fall is simply to say that paper
money prices will rise.
The condition of mercantile credit being
supposed not to change, tho value of money
depends OH its quantity. Increase the quantity
and you lower its value. In estimating the
To fl,a uhnln nd Of a
mart. The money of the country is the sum
of the legal tenders and bank notes. and not
the legal tenders alone. "When q currency
Consists partly of tho precious metals and
"partly Of paper Immediately convertible
Unto them, any 0vcriSsue of the latter de-
"prcsses not merely the value of the paper
"money, but Of the coins which circulate along
"with it. Those coins, therefore, are converted
Unto bullion or exported" The penalty of
issuing such an amount of convertible paper
as to raise prices above their level in other
countries is the loss of the specie part of the
circulation, and an end Of cOnvertblity unless
the volume of paper be reduced. But in the
case of one kind of paper convertible into
another kind, both must deprcciate with tho
oyerissue, and remain of the same value SO
long as the cOnvertibility is maintained. Just
as increasing the amount of convertible paper
will depreciate gold and expcl it from the
country so will increasing the amount of
bank notes dcprcciato the value of green
backs. though, unfortunately, these last cannot
be driven from the country. Nothing could
give greenbacks a superior value to National
bank notes as money, except a suspension of
payments in greenbacks by tho banks and
a refusal of the people to receive and use