Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1874-12-17
Resumption.


agree in main upon the financial poll.
cy that the country should adopt.
The Presidents plan is three fold.
First, fix day from and after which
all debts contracted subsequent there
to shall be payable in gold. except
Government salaries and contracts !;
second, substitute free banking for
the charter bank or monopoly bank
system; third, take steps to secure
and maintain an increased supply of
coin in the United States Treasury.
"In the interval" says the message,
pending between the repeal and hnal
resumption, provision should be made
s'by which the Secretary of the Treas
''ury can obtain gold, as it may be-
"come necessary from time to time,
"from the date when specie resump
"tion commences. To this mi sht and
"should be added revenue sufficien.
oily in excess of expenses to insure
"an accumulation of gold IN the
1" rressury to sustain it." We have
here recommendation of the gold
borrowing policy. To no other spe
clfic propositions as regards finance
does the President commit himself.
With those suggestions, made so
prominent as to be the distinctive
feature of the message, the subject is
"remitted" to Congress.
Secretary Bristow agrees precisely
and heartily with the first of these
suggestions, and gives languid con
sent to the second. "With the adop-
tion," says the Secretary, "of the
policy of resumption, free banking
may safely be allowed" The Secre-
tary adds to his recommendation of
the first of the points previously sta
ted that "the day from whirh new
CONTRACTS must be discharged in coin
SHOULD be fixed sufficiently tar in adj
"vance to give the people and the
"banks time to understand it and
"to prepare themselves for it. 1t is
"believed that not many months will
"be necessary for that purpose; but,
"to avoid the mischiefs already midi
seated, this day should precede the
"day of final resumption by longer
period" The time should not, in the
opinion of the Secretary be extended
beyond three years, and might safely
be made "as much less as in the juds
"ment of Congress would sufficiently
"protect the interest of debtors and
"avoid the evils of too sudden con
"traction."
Neither the President nor the Sec
rotary recommend contraction. That
is point worthy of special note. The
distinction made by the Secretary,
between total resumption and date
after which debts Of a subsequent
contraction should be payable
in gold coin is highly important, and
shows minute study of the subject.
The Secretary further adds that
''the law should also authorize the
immediate conversion of legal-ten
der notes into bonds bearing a low
"rate of interest, which, while invit
sing conversion, should not be so high
"as to appreciate the legsl-tender
"notes rapidly, and thereby operate
"oppressively on the debtor class"
she thinks that as an additional in
''ducement to the conversion of Uni
''ted States notes into these bonds at
''a low rate of interest, authority
''should be given for making them Sc
"curity for the circulation of national
"banks." again" he says that the
''law should further provide the means
"for redemption of such notes as may
"Ue presented for that purpose when
"the period of redemption shall have
"been reached. "To this end" he
adds, "the Secretary should be au-
"thorized to make q loan not exceed
sing the total amount of notes re
"maining unconverted at the time of
resumption, less the surplus revenue
"to be made applicable to such res
sumption" He believes it'd probable
I that the gradual and continued re
"vival of business will SO far increase
"ihe revenues that a large loan will
"not be required tor this purpose !;
"but it is advisable that the Secre.
starry be authorized to make it in or
''der to meet the contingency of a
''failure of sufficient surplus revenues.
"Such loan should be made by issu-
Sing bonds TO run for such time as the
"wisdom OF Congress may suggest,
Sand to be disposed of from time to
slime as the necessities of the case
'may require" Such are the recon-
mendations made.