The New Orleans bulletin. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1874-1876, 1875-08-20
REVERDY JOHNSON ON PAPER AND
GOLD,

GOLD.
Reverdy johnson writes long letter on tn
currency, in which he comes to the following
conclusions:
l. That the only currency known to tn,
, Constitution is gold and silver, or paper con
vertible into it on demand.
2. That nothing but gold and silver
can be made legal tender.
3. The Government now being perfect
ly safe, no danger threatening it or being ap-
pretended, Congress has no power to au.
thorize the issue of an irredeemable currency
and to make it a legal tender.
4. That the credit of the nation, the
true, permanent prosperity Of every class of
our citizens, and the arrest of the demorali-
zation consequent upon the present state of
things, demand as speedy a return as prac-
ticable to specie currency.
Mr.. johnson says that the question of the
currency is now the most important one be-
fore the country, and one that should rise
above mere party contests.
He considers the great theme under two
heads:
81. What should the currency be; and what
control has the General Government over it !?
"2. If irredeemable in coin, what are its
| effects, public and private, and how do these
touch the honor and good faith of the nation. P"
Under the first head he insists
l. That currency ought to be as far removed
from fluctuations of value as possible.
2. That fluctuations are iniuriou. in pro-
portion to changes in value.
8. That gold and silver alone constitute the
only safe currency.
4. That no nation can prosper which adopts
a currency not convertible on demand into
gold and silver
5. paper currency has no intrinsic value,
while specie currency has.
g. And hence specie passes everywhere at
its nominal value, while the other passes no.
where at its nominal value, except in the
country which authorizes it, and then only by
legislative compulsion.
Z. These propositions are proved by long
experience, and have been demonstrated dur
ing and since our civil war.
8. That for all foreign transactions our |
paper currency is worthless. Its refusal is a |
palpable but just reflection by foreign coun-
tries upon our ublic honor.
8. That the power of our government over
the currency is limited to the coinage of
money, and the regulation of the value thereof
and of foreign coin.
10. That it is perfectly plain that it was not
The purpose of the Constitution to authorize
Congress to issue an irredeemable currency
II. That the prohibition of States from
coinage and from making anything but gold
md silver legal tender was intended to give
10 the States a uniform redeemable cur
:ency.
IL. That the debates in the Constitutional
Convention show that it was obviously the I
purpose of that body to make gold and silver
he standard of value.
ID. That the trainers of the Constitution
new that the power to make anything but I
old and silver legal tender "was destruc- :
i've alike to individual and public interest, |,
nd palpable and fragrant wrong to both" /
a. That debates in the Conventions of j
tates held for raifying the Constitution =
rove that no such grant of power was con-
emplated. a
Under the. second branch of the subject, j
ne effects of an irredeemable currency, he
firms:
l. That these effects fall upon every depart a
tent of human industry and injure all the g
ealings between man and man. !,
2. That the tendency of an irredeemable p
1rrency is to its own increase; that this is n
roved by the history of continental money, ~
hich grew from three to three hundred mil 81
ons and sunk from par of gold to nothing, OF
we'll as by the history of our own late issue n
paper, also that the same tendency is ~
'oved by the assignats of France, which al
'gan with an issue of 400, 900, 900 and were th
aally swelled to forty thousand millions, as RI
oil as by the mandsts which swelled to .,
7enty-four hundred millions of francs. n
3. That an irredeemable currency leads to vi
ckless and extravagant speculation and is o.
'nerally demoralizing, and 90
4. That where government disregards its lie
'ligations the people are liable to follow the du
ample. We
Such is an imperfect syllabus of this re- tic tic
arkably clear and cogent argument whose tic
18TH forbids its reproduction in our col SET
ans. un
1t is subject of grave import. which will NJ
sorb much of the attention of Congress at Da
} approaching session, and far more of the let
ention of the American people in the Ins
nins campaign aiAes cannot eVaoe IL for
r shuttle it off with ambiguous generali- So
).
- La
Schenectady girl at spelling school sat