The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1875-11-17
A Letter ON the Currency Question

Editors of Dispatch: have read with
much pleasure your able article on the cur.
rency and finance question. 1t embodies
better my own views than any have seen
1t is the true ground, and spikes the gun o
the opposition and the hard-money" men
(as they assume 10 call themselves par excel.
lence) in charging either Initiation or repu
diation on the other side. I have just re.
turned from quite an extended tour In the
West and Southwest. found but few PEG.
pie who were for "irfation," so called.
In Ohio the views of our friends are
much misunderstood. There is central,
so to speak, position on this much vexed
question throughout the whole West
and Southwest, which accords pretty closely
with the views expressed by tie Dispatch
to-day. 1t is illustrated in the speech of the
Hon. George Il. Pendleton delivered at Gal.
lpolis in July last. This central position
may be epitomized as follows: The northern
and western Democrats are neither imitation.
lists nor contractionists. They do not be-
lieye, on the one hand, in what is designated
as the "rag. baby" and not at all in repudi.
alton; while on the other hand they do not
believe in the policy of contraction, or the act
of 1876, to resume in 1879. They believe, as
we do, that gold and silver are the true and
only basis of value, but also believe that our
irredeemable currency can only be made
convertible with the precious metals by pro.
noting the industries of4he country and in
creasing its relative value. They, believe, as
we do, that the Government should be as
honest as it requires the citizen to he, and
should take its own promises to pay, at least
To part, for customs-6uties. They believe, as
we in Virginia believe, In return to specie
payments but also believe that this can
only be accomplished when the Government
currency has reached the value of gold; when
the balance Of trade is In our favor; when
we sell more than we buy; when the ex.
ported productions Of tie West and South
bring us balance of gold over and above
the export of that metal now taken from us
| by the destruction Of our domestic indus.
| tries and the enormous drain in payment Of
interest on our foreign debts.
They nor we do not believe in intaa
tion," but merely are not prepared to say
that under no circumstances should more
legal.tender notes be issued; and are entirely
prepared to say that the increase, if any
should be in such notes, and not in national
bank-notes; and that when We are able tc
retire either class we should retire the latter
and not the former. This, 1t seems to me, /:
sound platform for the general Democratic
or Conservative q like the last besD party te
rally upon. 1t is, at least, unjust, unfair
and fraud upon us for the New York so
called Democratic cabal, which helped to de-
feat our party in Pennsylvania and Ohio. tc
be classifying US as "iufationists and repu.
diationists when We bold these rational
views 10 opposition to the hard-money, bond
holding Democracy OF New York and the
East. T.
| I'VE are not prepared to say that we pre-
fer Government notes to hauk.notes. The
latter are secured by Government bonds anG
doubly secured by the property of the stock
holders. A war would depreciate green
backs, but not bank.no!es.l