The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1875-01-15
SPECIE PAYMENT.
A Message by the President.

WASHINGTON, Jan. 14-The President sent
to the Senate to-day the following message, ac-
companying his approval of the finance bill:
To the Senate Of the United States:
The Senate bill number 1044 to provide for
the resumption of specie payments is before
me- and this day receives my signature and ap-
proval,
| venture upon this unusual method of con-
yeying the notice of approval to the House in
which the measure originated, because OF It's
great importance to the country at large, and
IN order to suggest further legislation which
seems to me TO make this law effectpal. 1t is
subject of congratulation that measure has
become a law which fixes date when specie
resumption shall commence, and implies au
obligation on the part of Congress it in its
mower to give such legislation as may prove
necessary to redeem this promise.
To this end respectfully call your attention
to few suggestions.
First The necessity for an increased reve-
nue. to carry out the obligation of adding to the
sinking fund annually one per cent. of the pub
lie debt, amounting now to about 1874, 00O,0 600
per annum, and to carry out the promises OF
this measure to redeem under certain contin-
gencies $50, 900 of present legal tenders ard
without contingency the fractional currency
now in circulation How to increase the sur
plus revenues is for Congress to devise, but l
venture to suggest that the duty on tea and
coffee might be restored without permanently
embracing the cost to consumers and that ten
per cent reduction of tariff on articles specified
in the law of June 6, 1872 be repealed The
supply of tea and coffee already on hand in the
United States would in all probability be adj
vanced in prices by adopting the measure, but
it is known that the adoption of free entry to
these articles of necessity did not cheaper
them but merely added to its profits of coun-
tries producing them or of the middlemen in
those countries who have the exclusive trade in
them.
2d-The first section of the bill under consid-
Grafton now provides that the fractional cur
rency shall be redeemed in silver coin as rapid
ly as practicable. There is no provision pre-
venting the fluctuatIon in the value or the pa
per currency. With gold at premium of
anything over 10 per cent. above the currency
in use, it is probable, almost certain, that silver
would be bought up for expectation as fast as
it was put out, until change would become, so
scarce as to make the premium ON 1t equal TO
the premium on gold or sufficiently high ia
make it no longer profitable to buy for export,
thereby causing loss to the community at
large and great embarrassment to trade
AS the present law commands final resump-
tlon on the 1st of Jan. 1879, and as the gold re-
ceipts by the Treasury are larger than the gold
payments and the currency receipts than the
currency payments, thereby making monthly
sales of gold necessary to meet current currency
expenses, it occurs to me that these difficulties
might be remedied by authorizing the Secretary
of the Treasury to redeem legal tender notes
whenever presented in sums not less than $lOO
and multpleS thereof at a premium for gold at
len per cent. less interest at the rate of q per
cent per annum, from the LIST day OF Jan. 1873,
to the date Of putting this law into operation,
and diminishing this premium at the same rate
until the final resumption, changing the rate
of the premium demanded from time to time
as the interests amount to one-tourth OF one
per cent.
l suggest this rate of interest because it would
bring currency with gold at the date fixed by
law for fnal resumption. L recommend lO per
cent as the demand Uranium at the beginning
becaure believe that this rate would insure
the retention of silver in the country for change.
The provisions of the Sd section of the act Will
prevent combinations sbeing made to exhaust
the Treasury of coin. With such law 1t is
presumabe that no gold would be called Tor not
required for legitimate business purposes.
When large amounts of coin should be drawn
from the Treasury correspondingly large
amounts of currency would be withdrawn from
circulation, thus causing sufficient strlngency
to stop the outward flow of coin.
The advantages of currency of fixed and
known value would also be reached, in my
opinion, by the enactment of such law, busl-
nessa nd industries would revive and this be-
ginning of prosperity on firm basis would be
reached.
Other means of increasing the revenue than
those suggested should probably be devised,
and also other legislation. In fact, to carry
out the first sec ton of the act, another mint be-
comes d ueCoSSlJy. w TN JUG piOsOho
for coinage ii would take period probably be-
yond that fixed by law for final specie resump-
ton to coin the silver necessary to transact the
business of the country.
There are now smelling furnaces for extract
ing the silver and gold from the ores brought
from the mountain territories, in Chicago st.
Louis and Omaha, and as much of the change
required will be wanted in the Mis-. issippi Val
lev states, and as the metals to be coined comes
from the west of those states, and as UNDER
stand the charges for transportation OF bullion
from either of the cities named, to the mint in
Philadelphia or New York city amounts to S4
for each $1,000 worth, with an equal expense for
transportation back, it would seem fair argu-
ment in favor of adopting one or more of these
ties as the place or places for the establish
ment of new coinage facilities.
/ have yentured upon this subject with great
diffidence because it is so unusual to approve
measure, as 1 most heartily do this even if no
further legislation is attanabe at this time, and
to announce the fact by message. That L do
so is because l feel that it is a subject OF such
vital importance to the whole country that it
should receive the attention of, and be discussed
by Congress, the people through the press, and
in every way to the end that the best and most
satisfactory course may be reached of executing
what deem the most beneficial legislation on
a most vital question to the interests and pros
perity of the nation.
(Signed,) U. S. GRANT.
Executive Mansion, Jan. IA, 1875.