The workingman's advocate. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1864-1877, 1874-05-02
FINANCE CURRENCY.
Speech Of Hon. Moses w. Field. Of
Michigan, In the q. B. House Of
Representative, April 8,

currency and TO establish free banking, and
for other purposes
Mr.. FIELD said
Mr.. SPEAKER desire to call the attsn-
ton Of the House to a memorial Of the
citizens of Detroit presented few days
ago by my colleague Mr.. WARDENl In
presenting the memorial my colleague
said
| ask consent to present memorial from
the citizens of Detroit ON the subject of the
currency, and take occasion to state that it
Is signed by nine tenths of the merchants,
manufacturers, produce dealers, railroad
managers, and vessel-owners Of that city; in
tsct every branch of commercial and business
industry is represented in it. The memorial
is the expression of nine-tenths of the active
business men Of the city of Detroit aud l
believe am justified in saying that it ex.
presses, in the sane proportion, the business
sentiment of the state of Michigan. | ask
Tor the reading OF the memorial
The memorial was read, as follows:
''To the House Of Representatives Of the URi-
ted StGtes
I'VE, the undersigned, citizens Of Detroit,
Michigan, respectfully represent to your
honorable body that We are opposed TO any
imitation Of the currency, and are in favor of
return to specie payments at the earliest
practicable moment
This statement surprised me, for 80 Der
cent is nearly the whole part, and 1 did
not think any one hundred and forty eight
men could be selected wealthy enough and
great enough to represent 80 per cent Of
the entire business interests of that great
city. Having resided IN Detroit for many
years, | am tolerably well acquainted with
the gentlemen who signed the memorial,
and can form tar opinion as to their
representative character but desiring to
be as accurate as possible, | have obtained
other information with the view to ascer
tam whether the representations of my
colleague were true. There are l48 sigma
lures to the memorial, consisting Of l6 bank
ers, ID lawyers, 90 persons Of unknown or
no special business, and GA business men
"''4 h''as and tind, instead Of bearing
The sigmHures ~ ssis.-,v-.--.ss 81 the mer-
chants, manufactures, produce dealers,
railroad managers, and vessel-owners of
that city, it did not In fact contain even
one-tenth part of that numerous class of
people, nor did IL express the sentiment
of one tenth of "the active business men
u Detroit on the currency question. 4
feel It to be duty, therefore, to correct
the statement, particularly as have since
that time received and presented to the
House petition of the citizens and busi-
ness men of Detroit III favor Of an in
crease of the currency, and which believe
represents the true sentiment of q large
majority Of the people Of my district upon
this question.
My colleague not being a resident of
Detroit, but residing IN the village of
HIllsdale, about one hundred miles dis
tant, was doubtless imposed upon. 1t 10
not at all likely that he Is acquainted v it'll
all the parties, nor with every branch of
commercial and business industry" in that
city, and under such circumstances my col
league WAS easily deceived, and no doubt
unwlttlngly made the exaggerated state
ment to which | have referred
| do not make this correction with any
intention to impugn the motives Of the
gentleman nor to intimate that there was
any intention to misrepresent or oVerstSte
the importanc. aid weight of the memoir
ial | have no doubt his statement was
made ON the representations of his Detroit
correspondent So much for that memoir
ial and with referen nee to others of the
same character presented here from New
York, Boston, and other cities, have to
say that if they are all as much exaggerated
and OverestImated as this to which | have
referred, | warn members against being
unduly influenced by them.
Mr.. Speaker, in this debate we have
heard it many tiIIres stated that our green
backs are deprecated and that they are
below par The gentleman from COnnecti-
cut Mr.. HAwLEY stated the other day
that greenbacks were IL per cent below
par. Now | wish to contrOvert and deny
such statements;s for they are not true l
adnu that gold bears premium and huc-
tuates wnh the price of foreign exchange
III the market but deny that greeubacks
are below par, for the SIMPLE reason that
they are the lawful money Of the country,
and therefore must be at par If 1t be
true that greenbacks to-day are IL Der
cent below par, then, on the same theory,
when gold coin was at 90 Der cent
premium our greenbacks we're 80 per
cent below par; when gold was 100 per
cent prumiuIh these greenbacks were worth
othIug-a dollar of lawful money would
not buy even a wooden nutmeg. Accord
ing to this mode Of estimating the value Of
greenbacks, when gold was 100 per cent
premium, the poor man, having ten dollars
of good greenbacks III his pocket, would
have to Jay five dollars to have them taken
of his hands
| have received a letter on the currency
question from a gentleman uf large busi-
ncss experience, and whose views upon
this subject will have great influence IN
this House and Throughout the country,
and ! send it to the Clerks desk to be
read
The Clerk read as follows
WASH, GroS, March "a, 1874.
DEAR SIR: As recorded in the COMPRESSION
al hecOrd, IN a debate one day last week, an
honorable Senator inquired OF another
honarable Senator why greenbacks were II |
per cent below par, and after repeating the !
question several times, he said the ans wers |
were not satisfactory.
TINS reminds me Of an AnecdOte Hon. |
Samuel l.. Mitchell, of New York, learned |
medical professor, was accustomed to ask his /
students u PROFOUND any question they /
might select, when one of them asked whv
there was always black sheep in every
hsck. The learned professor Immediately |
commenced giving what appeared to him - |
scientific reasons for the TACT hut which did /
not appea' to satisfy the students if they did |
himself. At the close Of the lecture one Of |
the students inquired if it was fact that |
there was always one black sheep in every
flock. 1t appeared that this idea had not oc- /
Cured to the learned professor /; but TO be /
sure, he immediately wrote to . number Of /
farmers. making the inquiry, to which thev
All reDlied that il was not the fact at ALL
II the learned professors who have been
lect.. ring on political economy, in both Houses
Of Congress, on the assumption that green
hacks were below paF, should inquire Of /
practical business men If it waa the fact, they |
wouId receive the same answer, and perhaps |