Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1874-05-15

A gentleman from Boston called upon
President Grant on Monday last to thank
him for his veto message. A conversation
followed, in which the President e1-
pressed himself quite freely on financial
matters. He said. as reported in the Bos-
ton Journal:
On the question Of using the reserve for
the purchase of long bonds what he wished
particularly to present was the fact that as
the taxation was then producing a revenue
ia excess Of expenditure, and still the
national credit abroad and at home was not
directly strengthened by that fact, he had
fixed upon the policy of buying, or, in other
words. paving the long bonds, for the
reason that this improved the credit Of the
nation wherever these bonds were held
which extended throughout the financial
world and the bonds, moreover, them
selves were then 0rerdue in one sense, as they
had then become payable at the option OF
the Government. and the Government having
a surplus OF revenue this option to pay
became legal obligation.
The President further said the legal tend
err acts themselves should now be repealed
they had worked out their whole ofhce; they
had carried the country through the war,
and were no longer necessary, and he
hoped that Congress, during ITS present
session. would repeal ali the legal tender
acts sneh repeal to take effect January ,
1875. and that thereafter all contracts
should be made on a gold basis. He said
it would seem that this could be done with
out any disturbance of the commercial or
financial interests of the country, and once
accomplished all temptation to imitation was
ended. As to taking away from New Eng
land the excess of bank circulation,
he said that it really amounted to
nothing. The banks from the East We're
now returning their circulation and with
drawing their bonds much more rapidly
than there was any demand from the Wes,
and the South tor the circulation. lie
thought the figures 1ould show within the
last few months that more than double the
amount of circulation had been returned
from the East that vas asked for by the
south and West. liz said that he did not
think the currency bill if he had signed it
would have produced imitation in the pre-
sent condition of the country, as there was
no demand for additional currency, and No.
use for a large proportion OF what We now
had but the danger was in the future, and
it was step in the wrong direction, that
any increase of irredeemabie paper would IN
lure vitality the national credit. while on the
other hand an unlimited issue of redeem
able currency could do no harm. He wa
in favor of free banking, but with it and a,
an inseparable accompaniment he insisted
that we should have redemption, and be
was willing to give to the West and
South free banking based on redemption,
and this he wished and had taken pains that
his friends in those sections should under
stand.
The President said he was in constant re-
ceipt of communications from business men.
bankers and public men at the West and
South, expressing on the part of the writers
their original anxiety for the passage Of
this bill, or some similar measure a.
means OF relief at the present time, but
nearly all of them assured him that the
effect of the message had been to restore
confidence and give permanence 70 the
future course of the government, that Wa
fully as great relief and more satisfactory
To business interests.