The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1875-07-30
WENDELL PHILLIPS.
His Views on the Currency Qucs-
tft1s

walkers article on the currency. IL
was unnecessary. | always read every
line ! zee written bv an opponent. and
especially by my friend Walker. lrn
offer To print amy reply or criticism |
wish 10 make. suppose MIR. Walker
Will say IL Is not yet time 20 criiicise him
" hat hc prints 10 ycur issue OF July 81
Is only an introduction or preface 10
something he ha.- To say. To consider
IL ccInplrfc plan. or substantial state
ment, would be unjust TO him since 30
considered il il simply absurd. Mr..
Walker plaT. 80 iar a. he has vet
opened IL. j. for he world TO give up
all credit and return 10 "a system OF
naked barter. According 60 him. no
man may buy wood. coal. iron. or wheat.
unless lie stands ready 10 cxclRnge
gold for il. Thi> Is worse than the times
OF Soloman or the Trojan war. Then
you could bv wool with leather. or
wheat with iron. But Walker allows
no one 10 buy nnlihing except with
gold. Before YOU enter any market you
must have gold in your hand. or GER
iiiicste thar you have just len your gold
in the keeping Of the United States.
OF course THIS l. absurd ia our cen
,tury. One might ns ~cll ask travellers
~ give up railway, and 60 back 10 OK
carts as to ask trade g. give up credit
and go back 10 barter. Yet This l. ex-
Iacily Mr.. Walkers proposition as at
present stated.
Patterson tells us (Science OF finance,
lpp. 5. g. that ia Great Britain gold sup
plies little more than one-half per cent
OF the CURRENCY. and bank notes and
coin together make only three per cent.
A New Haven Journal told Us. two
weeks asU. llal check for $500 passed
through seven hands. and paid seven
debit of tina; amount. before il wa- pre-
scnted at the hank counter Five
thousand six hundred dollar. worth Of
business Zone b, a -lip of paper which
had no relliiuH So. nor connection with
goly. I resi~ simply and eniilcly cH
credit.
lie cXchentes effected at ihe New
York Clcarlny H.m-c we're thiriv-0igl I
Thousand IA ons ~ dollars 81 tho Sc r
1859. Nhai u-r!e-- burden TO Insist
THAT all illis amount ot hs,. ncs, shall bc
Idone witt actual gold coin,
We must 'hr4rfnrs ns1 CREDIT which
i. hui another anmr ry paper money im
Its diler'nl tOrms--hillS, checks, notcs,
etc.
We propdsn 10 n-e The credit OF tho
Nation as lhc basis .1r this grccuhlck
cur, ney--eync.ig - the >o-rallcd .pe-
Gle system 81 Drcai Britain llnes. What
forms the h.-i- 81 thc CURRENCY Of Great
britain? Goliy No. The first thirty
millions 81 bank Ls~ie.. issued bv tie
Bank OF England. a. not undertake to
represent -p,.cir. They represent 20
much rnonr. owed bv ihe Government
10 the Bank. III other words. they
represent Goyrrnlren; Lon "a. rev
cr paid ard never expected 80 bc THii.
Precisely TINT Is the basis We propose
To have for onr grcculacks- the Nation.
When the lauk of Faelaud rea-lv
touched bank rupicv iu l-25 1899. 1897.
lss7. l-57 and lshS what did -hc ask
Of ihe government the luan of gold
No. She asked furthe issue of lXchcQu-
or bill--that j. substantially government
bonds. We meam 20 have grccnbackS.
AZ all time. convertible inio government
bonds, az low fixed ratr of intcresi
such grrcnhnckS 10 constitute the whole
currency of tie country; All banks for
bidden 10 issue bills and confined 10 tie
functions sf receiving deposits and ma
king loans
No bullionisi will maintain. to-dey.
that his theory means return TO ar-
tual, simple barter: the exchange Of one
species OF merchandise gold for cv-
cry other spccies. whenever sale y
made. Every one OF your readers will
allow that We must use credit. Credit
means greenbacks. bank bills. checks.
deposits, gold certificates. etc. The Only
Questions aie: l. How many Of these
shall be allowed: that is, what amount
of currency shall be allowed? 2. Upon
what shall they be based upon gold OF
some other security!
To the first question we answer, tho
business of country Always settles the
amount OF its currency. No matter
what be The formal or supposed - stem
lspecie basis or paper, the above state
nient remains always inevitably true
Great Britain prefends 20 settle. that af.
ter thirty millions Of hank bills, basec
on Government bonds, No more paper
currency shall exist which does not rep
lresent actual sovercigns deposited Ia
the Bank Of England. nut the mer-
lchants created or themselves currency
lenough in 1859 10 effect exchanges al
the London Clearing house amounting
TO seventeen thousand millions OF doll
Iars.
4 Our paper money banks and Govern
mcnt supposed that they had limited th'
lccrrency to somewhere about eigh
hundred millions. But the merchants
in 1869, created enough currency in th'
shape of notes. checks and certificate