The workingman's advocate. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1864-1877, 1874-05-16

Now, IN providing money for the people,
my opinion that II this government must
abandon h, 'lse ~ II, o,rp credit and hire
bankers t. issue money for the people,
do not want "A gold basis of one dollar for
three dollars OF bank notes | prefer
government bond, dollar for dollar. Gov
eminent bonds to cover the whole issue are
a better basis, III my Judgmsnt, than any
com swlndle that has ever been devised III
any country. Some people have An idea
that, AS We have nov suffered for i've Or
SIX months. II would be desirable to suffer
a few months longer. and come down "a
what they call 4" hard pan. They wish to
touch bottom, and then realize the nc
ton Of specie payments.
But, sir, suppose Congress should order
specie payments next month or next year.
The Treasury might start the business, hut
it would not last ten days. cur creditors
in Europe would soon CLEAN from us the
coin we possess. and that would end the
farce Of attempting what We have not the
means to carry out. II would only int
little more money into the pockets ot the
merchants and capitalists " Europe who
have claims against our merchants and hold
our State, Municipal, ana Railway bonds,
the principal and interest Of which are nov
payable here ~ lawful money. They would
then collect gold instead ut greenbacks,
and therefore specie payments would give
great satisfaction % all our creditors in
Europe
Now Mr.. Speaker, why should We waste
time III making useless and visionary plans
about resumption at the present time
The governmental sovereign power
provides money for the people, and Con
gress determines what shall be legal tender
and lawful money to pay debts within the
country. 1t is not the bus ness Of Con
gress to undertake to create money for
the people Of other nations, and our mon
ey is not made for the convenience and use
of the inhabitants of other countries.
have, even III Cuba, offered our gold coin
in payment for breakfast at "A country inn,
ana been nsulted and treated as a sWind-
Ter for 50 doing. had to exchange my
American gold for Spanish coin before
could continue my travels in the West In
dies.
Now, money is for domestic uses, and
more than thousand dollars are employed
IN domestic exchanges and settlements
where single dollar is required for for
eign trade Why should We overestlmate
foreign trade ? Why should we nconve-
nience ourselves and make paupers Of the
American people for a fancitul idea, OF to
please EnglIshmen and others across the
Atlantic | think we shall have performed
our duty when We provide a uniform, sta
Bile, and elastic legal tender, lawful money,
for the people of the United States. Our
greenbacks are the peoples money, and
the best money We ever lad.
They call it irredeemable, but did you
ever hear, Mr.. Speaker, of lawful money
being redeemed II is nonsense to talk Of
money being redeemed 1t is well enough
to talk Of the redemption Of national bank
notes or bank rags but the redemption Of
our legal tender lawful money Of the Uni
ted States is not required, and the people
will not acqulesce IN the attempt now be-
ing made by bulhonlsts and bondholders
to eGtinguish our greenback money. The
greenbacks are our lawful money, and they
pay the debts and mortgages Of our people
and settle all exchanges here at home. A
full legal tender does not require any
redemption, because there is nothing supe-
rlor to it.
Why do not our redemptionists and con
tractionlsts insists upon the redemption Of
our gold eagles and our alloyed silver and
nickel COINS Our coins contain more
alloy than the COINS OF Great Britain and
you know, sir, thai the actual value Of me
tallic COINS in other countries depends
wholly Cd the quantity Of alloy with which
each nation debases its coinage. | have
prepared two statements, which will sub
init the first, showing the changes which
have been made by Congress in the weight
and ineness of American coins since The
establishment of the Mint in 1856 the
: other, exhibiting the weight, tineness and
value Of foreign gold coins. | think this
statement will convince any unprejudic-d
mind that there is no such thing IN fact AS
1.-THE money Of the world, as there is no
uniformity III the quality or fneness of
gold COINS but these conditions depend
wholly on the caprice If each nation, and
subject to the changes Of the sovereign or
national will There are other difficulties
to be overcome before any uniformity"
can be Obtained in the money of the
world in the diverse moneys d account
established by the laws Of each nation
In the United States the dollar is the
unit Of Federal money. (Act Of Congress
July q, l1S5.) Great Britain adheres to
the pound sterling, and the States of the
Latin monetary union France, Belgium,
Switzerland, and italy, to the franc
Germany has provided for a new money Of
account with the mark as the unit, being
of the value of "a. 80 cents, while Den
mark, Sweden, and Norway have estab-
hshed new money Of account with the
crown as the unit, and represented by fine
gold Of the value Of 70. 79S cents in United
States money. There can be, therefore,
no harmony or uniformity" unless all
nations adopt one unit, or an international
money Of account with a uniform standard
Of 6neness or quality Of metal, ard that
event does not appear at all probable
Mr. Speaker, | invite the attention of
gentlemen who clamor for gold coin, or
what they call the g uniform" and recog-
nized money Of the world, to the "uni-
form" fashion of kings and princes to inject
alloy into their gold coins, in utter disre-
gard Of the convenience Of 1.-THE rest Of
mankind" and making the gentlemen's
notions about the uniform money Of the
world" inexplicable uniformity of confu-
sion and nonsense.
III the gentlemen whe indulge in fanci
full talk here about cosmopolitan mon
ev' win study little, they will dis
cover that metallic money the world over
i q variable and changeable in quality a.
The cAprices Of men. ] think they will see