The New York herald., 1875-09-17
THE CURRENCY.
MR. WENDELL PHILLIPS AND LEGAL TENDER
CURRENCY-A REPLY.

by Mr. Wendell Phillips, in which he concludes by urg-
ing "the United States government to issue all
rency any business wishes and can give
security for at low interest and convertible
into long bonds make greenbacks legal
tender for all purposes" &C, &c England"
he says, "never knew more prosperous years than
from 1900 to 1920 during which time she neither had
gold wished to have it, nor promised to pay gold to
any whatever. All that while she extended and
contracted her currency without regard whatever
gold Her enormous trade and expenditures all
paper, and only paper resting credit and nothing
else. In 1920 England, yielding to theorists and
dreamers tried to put this wine into old bottles
and dragged her business back TO methods century
old-to specie and bankruptcy" Now sir, my object
in writing TO you is TO say that this is by
true picture Of the condition of England during the
period which Mr. Wendell Phillips describes He does
not give the source Of his information, but
from all the historical records | have
read, warranted in saying it was
period Of great suffering Let Mr. Wendell Phillips
consult "The Life and Times Of Sir Robert Peel" and
read the debates Of the House of Commons which are
both faithful record and true mirror Of the condition
of the people, and to say he will arrive at
conclusion precisely the reverse of the one which his
letter contains. Why, in 1914, no fewer than 24O
banks stopped payment in England, thousands OF in
dustrous individuals sunk abyss Of misery
and wretchedness and doubt debt confusion and want
met the eye at every turn. at said in
Parliament that the national miseries at this
time had risen TO point wholly without precedent
since the Norman conquest " and it only after the
resumption Of cash payments in 1919 that confidence
was restored and trade revived There theorists
in those days-dreamers, If you wil-just there
many of them among your people now, who imagined
that all the evils could be cured by increase of in
convertible paper illegal tender, Of course and it
actually proposed by Mr. vansittart, in Parliament,
'That the Bank OF England notes had hitherto been,
and were at that time, held to be in the public
timaton equivalent to the legal coin of the realm"
think it was Brougham who laughed the pro-
posal out of the House. by suggesting that
the absursdity of the resolution only required
paragraph added it, asserting that and two make
five render it complete Common sense and arith-
metic would then be both equally outraged. Thanks
TO the wisdom of Parliament, we got our currency
restored TO specie payments and bank notes made
payable demand which is the only sure foundation
upon which paper money rest if you wish to guard
against overissues and consequent depreciation no
matter whether the be issued by the State by
the banks 1t may be interesting for the
American people to know that while Pitt
by an order in Council commanded the
Bank of England to suspend cash payments in 1884,
the scotch banks were not nterlered win, ana tney
never altered their mode of payment during all that
protracted period of trial. their notes always pay
able on demand and never were deprecated. On one
side the Tweed Bank Of England notes crculat-
ing at deprccation the other side Bank of Scot
land notes were circulating at their full value. An
illustration OF the is to be found
this Continent About fortnight since passed
over from Canada to the States In Wind
sor l found Canadian bank notes circulate
at their full value. In Detroit United Statos
greenbacks we're subject to heavy depreciation The
other day changed a Canadian bank note in the city
Of Boston into your circulating medium, and received
thirte per cent premium on it Of your currency.
Could anything be conclusive in showing the
periority Of the system the other2
1t appears to the first principles Of sound
rency are understood by those who agitating
your country from ocean for political pur-
poses otherwise, in the face of currency already de-
precated they would the idea of increasing
volume with the and certain result of still fur
ther debasng it, unsettling all values, robbing the
working man. the poor and the ignorant, and doraud-
ing existing creditors by paying debts unjustly.
The volume Of the currency must and will depend
upon the trade and of the country whether
it be metallic paper, partly both the and the
other The currency is the effect, not the cause of
commerce. just as commerce is the effect not the
cause Of capital The currency is merely the medium
and represents for the time being the articles you
willing to exchange If trade is active and stocks of
grain, &C. large, currency will be required
move them, which we have found the banks in
Scotland to supply in the most admirable
manner according to the requirements of
the public A redundant currency can only
where it is legal tender and issued in The
first duty of your government reduce the volume
worlds currency namely gold In France there is no
depreciation, although since the Franco German
they have been similarly situated you, the only diff
ference being that their debt heavier their credit
worse with their former experience Of aSsigndts
they have acted prudently and issued paper
than the country could absorb On a former occasion
they thought there no limit TO the of Gssi0
mats until it came 20 DO that 500 Of these
required TO purchase cup Of coffee Let Mr.. Wendell
Phillips scheme be put force and you will have the
same result the United States with all it's after con-
sequences Of chaotic ruin.
regret TO find in my travels-East North and
West-grcat complaints Of bad trade, extreme depres
existing everywhere elasticity no prosperity
operatives at Lowell leaving the country, and working
poorly paid in relation to the cost of living which
with your boundess resources ought not TO be- and is
clear proof Of bad government In my opinion your.
Everything has been artAcially enhanced in price
that you cannot produce cheapy, and the remedy
is to work back speedily toward free trade. If you
wish to know the secret Of Great Britain's success
during the last thirty years is to be found there and
the arguments which induced her to adopt this policy
apply with tenfold greater force TO your country.
know shall not get credit for offering this opinion;
but if se1shness governed the British people Offering
it they would advise you to retain your protective
tariff for with you will compete successfully
in the markets OF the world With free
trade you would very soon be most
formidable and koenost competitor. I am very
much amazed to find the American people repeating the
stale old arguments which Golden demolished more
than thirty years since The exploded theories Of the Old
World taken up here and the old garments brushed
up anew which Adam Smith pronounced worthless 100
years ago. Restore your currency a sound basis,
reduce your tafG and as soon as possible adopt free