The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1875-10-23
Tlsn FINANCIAL QUESTION.
sensible We've of a sound Veteran
Democrat on tne Subject

teenth iu3tant, containsa two column
INTERVIEW with that sturdy PennsylVa-
MIA Democrat, Judge jeremiah Black.
We copy below that portion which re-
fers 10 the currency question:
FReporter,-What are your views,
Judge Black, on the money question?
Judge Blackstone of the worst and
basest things ever done by the anti
constitutional party since it first came
into power, in 1861, was the debase-
lment Of Tie currency, which was then
the lest ia the wofld--sOlid gold and
Silver. 1say one Of the worst, for j adj
NIT that the destruction of jury trial
and hdbcd3 c0Jpus-kidnapping, rob
bling and killing men and women for
their political Notwithstanding over
whole. States by fraud and. force into
the hands of unconvicted thieves and
unilogged negroes may be just as bad.
But how could anything be Worse than
the measures which expanded all NOM
inal values and actually compelled
creditors, public and private, to accept
one-third of their debts satisfaction
for the whole? f fF aQNF1 Bod.
RepOrLer-Was the legal-tender act
unconstitutional?
Judge Black OF course it was, and
is, ana will be us long rs it lasts. The
decision of the Supreme Court com
pels us to submit to it. But no court
on earth can make any one who has
read the Constitution believe that the
general government has power TO come
between two citizens of State and
determine how their contracts with
one another shall be executed. Con-
gress had no jurisdiction In such mat
tiers. 1t belonged to the States, and
the States have bound themselves not
to exercise it In such manner as to
mako anything but gold aud silver
COMA legal tender. A promise to pay
dollars cannot In the nature OF things
be performed 10y offering pieces of pa
per. II man agrees to deliver GER
tain quantity of pine boards, can Con-
gress say that the promise shall DO
fulfilled by the tender of buckwheat
straw :? 500. ...E I'D
Reporter but Congress has said chat
n certain Kind Of paper shall be lawful
money of the United States, and does
not that make il money?
Judge Black-So. mat which IL
not money at all cannot be lawful
money. j Congress declares that
STRAW shalls be lawful boards of the
lUnited States, that Will not make il so,
for that is triilihg5with the common
sense aud reason of the thing. If this
kind Of Observation-Disclosures cnn be
effected by mere legislation, don't you
see where IL, Mil lead The States &c
Iwell as the United States may evade
the,constitutional Intardict bysaying
that paper which they desire to make n
legal tender shall be gold and silver
coin. The whole dealing OF our oppo-
nenls with the currency is full of shems
aud delusions. Like all violations of
agreat Fundamental truth, it must be
atoiied for IL has doubted the nation-
al 'lebt, increased the debts of the
States and all municipal pOrporstiGns,
tempted individuals TO engage In wild
enterprises, depressed agricultural in
dustry by the most enormous taxes
ever ,impQsed, robbed labor of the
bread IL has earned dem0ralized the
public service and lent corruption
wings to n.y. ltihas indeed brought us
to Hardtimes. Those who suffer these
evils do dcbtlad much consolation in
the fact that SALARIES of officers hnyp
been, doubled, sthat spectators ehave
got rich, aud that the colossal fortunes
of great capitalists have been swelled
to ten times their former bulk. 49, q
Reporter-Are veto infer from this
that Won favor immediate resumptio
Judge Rlack-No THAT does not fol-
low from any thlnglhat | bave Said.
The mainevil expansion Is that 1t
must, inthe course of time, be followed
by contraction, aud contraction is op-
pressive in proportion as Ii is rapid
The Erie convention Is not to blame
for Its natural unwillingness to pluck
down Immediate and total ruin upon
the heads of the people. The abolition
Procrustes has stretched US out untll
all our Joints are dislocated. Shall we
not protest. against the proposal to
shorten us 10y amputaton? The injury
already done us must not be aggravated
by a contraction for which we are. UNI
prepared. Our enemies have putthe
iinancialiAlocomotive on the wrong
track, tied us in the rear against our
will, and dragged us behind it over a
very rough poad and I'VE are badly
bruised; nlust'W We now letthenlreversee
the engine, go back upon us and crush
out of us the little life we have?
Reporter--But would u forced re-
sumption, however early, be followed
by Consequences feartuig ~ w
Judge Black--I do not know the
oommercial situation of the country
well enough to answer that Question,
but am sure the best men in theeom-
monwealthtsincerely believe that the
present distress would be greatly in
lcreased. .g. gg@V5a s-5g1,. ~,
kReporter--You are understood to
have great faith in the wisdom of the
fathers. lis not any federation, even
FOR moment, of paper money, incon.
sistent with the traditions of the old
Democracy?
Judge Black--Democrats have al
ways. held, as they hold now, that
metallic currency Is better than paper,
because. II Is safer, sounder and hon
ester, because II Is a steady measure OF
value, not liable to be expanded or con-
tracted, and because the constitution
recognizes no other. They have al
ways labored to furnish it; but when
their enemies got the better of them
and filled the channels of circulation
with paper they did not force Things
before they We're able to put gold In its
place. When the national bank In
1884 produced panic and pressure by
contracting its circulation, jackson !
encouraged the State banks to supply
the deficiency with notes of their own.
During the suspension Of 1887, Van
Buren, met the necessities of the time
by issuing treasury post notes, as Mad
ison had done before him. In 1871.
Governor Porter and a Democratic leg.
lishtire Of Pennsylvania, saved the
people from general smash by caus-
Ing large issue of 'relef notes.u The