Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1875-10-14
Specie Payments.
. we need . NasisuaI Dasks

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Specie Payments.
De we need . National Da.ks
lFrom the Bankers Magazine Tor october.l
Our national banking system. though not
perfect In all its details. Is yet for the most
part based upon sound principles snd
adapted to the circumstances OF the coun-
try. Ii contains 1.-The promise and poteu-
cy" OF much yet unrealized good. With
bank note currency secured by deposit
OF United States bonds worth their face in
gold or more. run upon the banks BY the
DILL hold-rs is scarcely likely to occur. One
of the greatest dangers to which our bank.
ing system was previously exposed is thus
eliminated. The notes OF the national
banks are thus made uniform In value
throughout the Union with each other land
with the legal-tender notes In which they
are redeemable. This, whether any one
chooses to call IL uniformity OF value. or
what amounts to the same thing. "uu-
formity Of depreciation" Is no small con-
venience To the community. An absolute
ly fixed and Interchangeable standard OF val
Tie Is Nhat no economist has yet discover
Ell. IL bank-notes conform IN value to the
iegal-tender standard which the national
authority has established. more canuot be
required of them. Relatively to the unsta-
BILE legsl-tender basis on which our mon
etary system rests, the bauk-note issues
were never before so well regulated as un-
der the present system. For making thst
legal-teDder basis what il Is. ihe nation Is
responsible. not the banks.
Ii Is not SIT ange that with our monetary
system thus vitiated at tn. very founda-
ton. There has been no adsptability de-
veloped In the National method for a re-
turn 10 specie payments" OF all the dis
orders that can infect a currency. IL is
doubtful whether any other can be found
SO insidious aud so obstinate in resisting
cure as the dehasement OF the monetary
standard by making irredeemabIe paper
money legal tender. Neth,r the Bank
of England nor the Bank OF France ever
had TO struggle against such an impedi-
mrnt 10 specie payments; and we venture
10 question whether solitary instance can
be produced in which any bsLh, or any
system oil banking, has succeeded in main
tanning specie payments while such lc-
gal-iender system remained. Nations VII ch
commit this glarIng sin against economic
and moral pi inciples. seem doomed Ia pun
i>hment TO chronic suspension. aggravated
and prolonged by the rank growth OF .y-
cry economic heresy and OF every species
OF commercial immortality.
Like the United States. Austria and Rus
ia nave oo'h "'eu tue Experiment fach
"' 'oi "-"' 'e"s .HJ'H 'n t"e oies>ihS Oh
80 '1"'I'.u '."'.uH ->A''onaA DAM
ia "'i'he' mas sueh an organization de'el-
'P'" any uap'Ao''.y '"i t"'hth U" >p"-
''r P'' :" ~ Russia iI'" i--Hr> OF
- pat'i nav '.'oa',u "''h Ct'.ot>,-
- iuo''. y" 'nc - "' January 1901 70
1850 4oi iuDits on the l't oil JANUARY,
1873. and though the sD..cta r, had ia
e'easeu al lhe iatlrr date.to I90 9oi 5i5 me
'A''' i"o'es' tue state mas tue power 10 use
u III paying current expenditures a. 1t has
done before he notes are at a discount
o' from 10 10 " per cent Australia had IN
June ie'o aiesal-tender circulation 81 $751;
$1,000 800 n''ti''s oI reashfy notes ahd S'o.-
.VV'oVo horihs oi oanh-hotes. Austria aud
RUSSIA III sp'e oi theif Nauohai banks are
S'ti e"n''o"teu Win .tne same pfooiem 10
""'c" aueiicAh s'atesuiahshiP mas proved
unequal anu seem quite a inlch at loss
10 solfe u. u u that great national crime
OF continuing me use or lrredermaOle pa
per money as ieSAi tehuer' that has made
our npahoial fecupetHtloil and theirs so
SOW. p"t ior tnis there Is no reason 10
uouot 'ia' sPeoie Pa'uhe"'S "ouIu nave
oeeh Iesuheu "thln nfe years after The
close OF the war anu mat without Ma
tiohai BANK. Inc one nha,clal remedy re-
CURED (ahd no DINER can be adequate). u
10 go TO the root OF the esil. ana provide
either Tor the WITHDRAWAL oil the iesaI-ien-
Der notes or Tor paying them according TO
thelr TENOR On demand IN specie II Is the
want oil constituencies shown by the nation
10 TINS pinine>t dictate OF commercial hon.
or, .that mas prevented more rapid im-
proSenent III IT'S credit what has made
American craftsmanship ihcspao'e OF crap
p"h2 successfully Win our hhanciai DIM
culties' Is It's uehciehCy. hot SO ihuch 10 M
tehlsehce' Is IN mora sense, IL upon
tue eioiha'ip" Oh the iesai-tehder OASIS
tha1 tue l'lehu. oi souhu currency need
10 coHcfhl'a'e theiT enof's. Inc e'lis winch
hA'e spiuug rum the ueoa,cmeHl oi The
leSa'-'"hueI' WIN disappear WIN the cause
that prouueeu them-
ihete Is bothlhg 10 hinder us from work
lhS Out our nnanciAi salvation under our
present oahkinS system IL has passed
successfully through one Of the most Sc
we're nnabcIai crises which the country ev-
CT experienced IL IS only an slarmist who
can see III the comparatively fe" bank fail
ares Tor sneh period, the signs OF APP
preaching OBSTRUCTION TO the system itself
Inns iast pahic 100 Is about the only one la
our history which The banks had little or
no influence IN bringing on. Its Immediate
cause existed IN the acknowledgement, not
Oh me national banks, but OF certain pri-
sate banking establishments which had un-
oertaAeh Tue inconsistent functions Of
peculiar To countries which have no ma