The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1875-12-15

uuCbiOuo, ouu lcdft tBt CuatCu DeeeNo
hewers Of wood and drawers Of
water, because Of wiser legislation on
the subject of inapce by the nations
with whom we have dealings. l am
not prepared to say that | can sug-
gest the best legislation to secure the
end most heartily commended 1t
will be a source Of great qualification
to me to be able to approve any
measure Of Congress looking effect
lively toward securing resumption
Unlimited initiation would probably
bring about specie payments more
speedily than any legislation looking
to the redemption of legal tenders 10
coin; but it would be at the expense
of honor. The legal tenders would
have no value beyond settling pres
eDt liabilities, or, properly speaking,
repudiate them. They would buy
nothing after debts were all settled.
There are q few measures which seem
to me important 10 this connection,
and which l commend to your earn
est consideration: A repeal of so
much of the legal tender act as makes
the notes receivable for debts con-
tracted after a date to be fixed in the
act itself, say not later than the LIST
of January, 1877. We should then
have quotations at real values, not
fictitious ones. Gold would no long
er be at a premium, but currency at
a discount.
A HEALTHY REACTION WOULD SET IN
at once, and with it a desire to make
the currency equal to what it pur-
ports to be. The merchants, manu-
facturers and tradesmen Of every
calling could do business on a fair
margin of profit. The money receiv-
ed having an unvsrying value, labor
ers and all classes who work for
stipulated pay or salary would re-
ceive more from their income, be-
cause extra profits would no longer
be charged by the capitalists to COM
pensate Tor the risk of a downward
~luc.uation in the value of the cur
rency.
CONTRACTION RECOMMENDED.
Second, that the Secretary Of the
Treasury be authorized to redeem,
say not to exceed two million dollars
monthly of legal tender notes, by Is
suing in their stead long bonds bear
ing interest at the ate of 3 65-lO0
per cent. per amman, of denomlna-
tons ranging from fifty to $1,000
each. This would in time reduce the
legal tender notes to a volume that
could be kept afloat without demand
ing redemption in large sums sud
denly.
Third, that additional power be
given to the Secretary of the Treas
ury to accumulate gold for final re-
demption of the currency, by increas-
ing the revenue, curtailing expenses,
or both. 1t is preferable to do both,
and | recommend that o reduction
of expenditures be made wherever
it can be done without impairing
Government: obligations or Gripping
the due execution thereof.
RESTORATION OF DUTY on TEA AND
COFFEE.
One measure for increasing the
revenue, and the only one, | think, is
the restoration of the duty on tea
and coffee. These duties would add
probably eighteen million dollars to
the present amount received for i'm
ports, and would in no way increase
the prices paid for these articles by
the consumers. These articles are
the products of countries collecting
revenue from exports, and as we,
the largest consumers, reduce the
duties, they proportionately increase
them. With this addition to the rev.
enue, many duties now collected and
which give but an Insignificant re-
turn for the cost of collection, might
be RENTED, and TO the direct advan-
tage Of consumers at home. | would
mention those articles which enter
into manufactures of all sorts; all
duty paid upon such articles go d.
rectly TO the cost ofthe article when
manufactured here, and must be paid
for by the consumers. The duties
not only come from the consumers
ut home, but act as a protection to
foreign manufacturers o: the same
completed articles in our W and
distant markets. l will suggest or
mention another subject bearing up
on the problem of how 10 enable the
Secretary Of the Treasury to aceumu.
late q balance. 1t is to devise some
better method of verifying claims
against the Government than q,
present exists through the Court OF
Claims, especially those claims grow.
ing out of the late war. Nothing is
more certain than that q large per.
centage of the amounts passed and
paid are part or wholly fraudulent,
or are far in excess of the real losses
sustained. The large arount Of
losses proven on good testimony, &C.
cording to existing laws, by afida.
Wits of fictitious OF INSCRIPTIONS pei
sons, to have been sustained on
small farms and plantations, are not
only far beyond the possible yield Of
those places for any one year, but,
as every q knows who has expert.
ence in tilliDg the soil, and who has
visited the scenes of these spoilations,
are in many instances more than the
individual claimants were ever worth,
including their personal and real es-
tate.
The report Of the Attorney Gener-
al, which will be submitted to Con-
gress at any early day, will contain
a detailed history OF the awards made
Of claims presented.
THE REPORT OF THE sEcRERARy OF
WAR,
accompanying this message, gives a
detailed account OF army operations
for the year just passed, the expenses
for maintenance. &c, with recon-
mendstions for Legislation, to which
respectfully invite your attention.
To some Of these invite special no
tice: First, the necessity Of making
$4,000 OF the appropriation for the
Subsistence Department available be-
fore the beginning of the next fiscal