New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1875-08-14
THE NATIONS CURRENCY.
A LETTER FROM THE HON. REvERDY JOHN


CONGRESS HAS no POWER TO ISSUE ANY MoRE
LEGAL-TENDER NOTES.
TO the Editor Of The Tribune.
SIR: The question of the Currency is now tho
most important one before the country. IL, IN fact
absorbs public attention. 1t rises, or should r'se
far above mere party contests. These, from their
| nature, are for the most part ephemeral, ana die
with the occasions which give rise to Them But the
subject of the Currency il of permanent interest. III
affects the pecuniary welfare of every citizen, the
general prosperity of the country, and the reputa-
ton of the Government. propose, with your per
mission to consider it under these two heads.
First What should the Currency be; aDd what
control has the General Government over it
Secondly: IL irredeemabe in CON- what are its ef-
frcts, public and private, and how do these touch
the honor and good faith of the nation!
THE BEST CURRENCY.
II must he obvious to every rejecting man that
the Currency ought to be far removed from fuc-
tuations of value as possible If it be subject at
times to depreciation, and at times to appreciation,
the consequence cannot bnt be injurious, and the
extent Of the injury will be in proportion to such
changes in value. The experience of the world has
long since demonstrated that gold and silver alone
constitute the only safe currency. And the same
experience also teaches that no nation can pros
per which adopts a currency not convertible, on de-
mand, into gid and silver. Authorities without
number might be cited to support these views. In
the nature of things they must be correct. paper
currency has intrinsic value, while specie cur
rcncy has, And because this ~ so, the one passes
everywhere at its nominal valne while the other
passes nowhere at IT'S nominal value but IN the
country which authorizes it, and then only by force
of legislative compulsion. This has been clearly
demonstrated during and ever since, our late civil
rbo VOL
territorial value. All the transactions of the Gov
eminent and of orr citizens with foreign nations,
can only be carried on by gold and silver For these
our paper money is wholly worthless, and this fact
il very detrimental to our national reputation.
While We thus, because of the character OF our
money, are compelled to recognize and adopt the
specio currency of other Governments they prop
cry refuse to recognize and adopt ours. With them
our currency is worthless, and its refusal on that
account is "A palpable but just, reflection upon our
public honor.
LOSS BY An IRREpEEMABLE CURRENCY.
The effects of an rredeemable currency are very
obvions. They fall upon every department of hui
man industry and injure all the dealings between
man and man. The direct losses to individuals are
nocc ssary heavy, and to those are added the IN
creased taxation, to follow. This can be readily
illustrated. Money being the representative of the
purpose of exchanging the same the amount is lin
tied by what il rcqu, ed for that purpose If such
value less than its nominal amount the loss to the
aborrr is the difference between the one and the
other The tendency of an rredeemable currency is
TO lis own increase. Story, in his Commentaries,
correctly tells lis that "the history Of paper money
without any adequate funds pledged to redeem it.
and resting merely upon the pledge of the public
faith has been IN all ages and in all nations the
same. Ii has constantly become more and more de-
prcciated and in some instances has ceased from
this cause to have any circulation whatsoever whether
issued by the irresistible edct of despot, by the
more auring order of Republican Congress-" This
is proved by the history of such money during our
Revolution, and up to the adoption of the Constitu-
ton The first issue authorized by Congress in No
vember 1875, was three millions of dollars, and.
Notwithstanding promises to the contrary the issue
was increased to the enormous amount of three
hundred millions of dollars. And then in spite of
various legislative contriyances, penal well as
civil, to give it value, 1T died valueess in the
hands of its pOssessors. The creation of such cur
rency being attended with little expense whenever
the people or tho wants of the Government are sup
posed to demand larger amount such an amount
almost always follows. Not to speak, at present. of
the history of other nations that of our own proves
this As soon as Congress authorized our present r
rcdeemable currency and especially after it provided
that portion OF should he legal tender, the issue
increased with rapil strides. aud in few years its
value so deprecated. that for time $3.50 was only
equal 10 500 in coin. Aud now although the war
successfully terminated more than ten years since,
its depreciation is from ten to fifteen per cent I'M
less We are TO subject ourselves to the same losses
that our fathers sustained because of the currency
during the Revolution, We must reform our present
and 10 tn gold
WHAT TIE CONSTITUTION PROVIDES.
That tie men who in 1887 framed the Constitu-
ton of the United States alive to the perils of
an inconyertblo currency is evident from several of
its provisions. They had seen that Continental
money. not convertible into coin, totally worth
less. They had also seen that some of the States
made such money legal tender. These were cry
ing evils attended not only with loss to citizens
hut with disgrace to liz as people. They. therefore,
gave Congress the exclusive power" to coin money
regulate the value thereof. and of foreign CON- and
prohibited the States from making anything but
gold and silver tender in payment OF debts.
The powor thus given to Congress, i, The only one
which. in words embraces the currency, and is cxclu
siyely confined to coin. That such power was not
designed to vest in the General Government any au-
thOrity TO issue an irrcdcemabe currency Is very
clear unless to coin money and regulate its value Is
ID power TO istuc paper and regulate ITS value. lhe
value of paper money is whatt processes to be upon
its face and does not depend upon regulation, and pa
per is certainly not coin That il was not the pur-
pose of the Constitution to authorize Congress to
issue an irrcdcemable currency is, in my Judgment
perfectly plain. The received doctrine then. and
for years after the adoption of the Constitution,
was that the General Government possessed no
powers except such as were delegated in express
t,r mr. ly ImplicatIOu
from the character of the Government itself. But
to place it beyond all doubt, the Tenth Amendment
TO the Constitution was adopted. which provides
l1Iul1atcl the IuiIel Sfaiea