The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1876-08-18

for they would simplyrepresent silver and !
not having so reliable value as the met
al itself, and being much more convenient,
they would be kept in circulation and the
silver kept in bank vaults and thrifty peo-
pies old stockings. And until the gov
eminent and the banks had enough silver
DIN to redeem all the paper dollars pre-
scented, the latter would be below silver,
as they now are below gold value. For
some years, at least, the most probable ef-
feet of making silver the legal tender and
greenbaeks redeemable in silver, would be
TO have greenbaeks fall from their 'tirre-
deemable'' position of ten per cent. above
10 below the value of that metal. and they
would of course remain in circulation
Both bonds and greenbacks would stand
in the same relative position to silver (the
metal they were then to be paid inn as
they now do to gold tie metal they are
now to be paid in } only that as silver has
become cheaper than gold it could be more
easily obtained abroad, and being more
largely mined at home, and less in de
mand to pay foreign balances, it could
accumulate much quicker here, and legal
'sspecle resumption could sooner be
effected with it, than with gold only. am
willing to submit this plain point to the
opinion of any candid banker, for it is
technical business matter which any bank
er is familiar with, and could correctly
decide. Yet the special champions of an
impracticable exclusive gold) resump-
ton, are the very ones who have so far
opposed the only practicable resumption,
silver as well as gold.
Nor would silver coin flow in upon US
from every land, or any land, unless there
| was a balance of trade in our favor. Next
| to gold silver is the most valued and valu-
able article even IN England, and so no
one would send $1.20 in silver here any
| quicker than 81 in gold, unless they owed
it. Our bonds being then worth no more
than silver, they would as now, send our
| bonds home In preference to silver, in
case we had balance of trade to require
them to send anything here to settle it,
Nobody any where is very anxious to get
rid of their silver. 1t is quite good
thing to have. In our country it is now.
under the non legal redemption policy,
said tn he worth ten cents less per dollar
than paper, although practically they are
of equal value, but don't know any body
who gives silver away, or would if it was
worth only half what it is. The fact is
that it is going to puzzle our government
| about as much to get S120,000,0O0 IN silver
shipped over here from Europe as $780,
000, 900 gold, and it will certainly take
either the proceeds of bonds (incre ased
indebtedness) or balance of trade in our
favor, to bring any more silver here than
has been coming. whether it is made legal
| tender or not. Its worth here would de-
pend on just what it would bring ia the
way of articles that owners of silVer
wanted, and what foreign silver owners
| didn't want or could buy as cheap OF
cheaper at home they would not send
their silver here to buy of US. Silver
would rush over here just about as fast as
gold has, while the aggregate balance of
| trade is against us, and if it did rush over
| it would liven up business, increase the
market values of property, and enable the
masses of the people to get along much
better than now. So let it come, if il
only VIII.
was surprised to hear gentleman of
intelligence say few days ago that Con-
gress had reduced the worth of the silver
dollar from 70 to so cents. Congress has
| done no such thing; it has simply enacted
that an article which has depreciatad 30
or % per cent. in the markets of the world
shall not pay debts the same as though
there was no depreciation. In other
words, the law will not clear man yet
Icy paying 20 cents on the dollar of what
he owes.
The gentleman was correct. Congress
has aided England, Germany, &C., to low
er the value of silver to 20 or 80 cents as
compared with gold dollars. And the
Supreme Court is correct. Congress has
not the slightest right to break the con-
tract between the government and its
creditors, or the people and their credi-
tors, in favor of either party. 1t is none
of Congress- business whether silver is
more or less valuable, whether it will buy
more or less gold, land, peanuts, beer,
bonds, or anything else, than it used to.
Each party naturally wants the contract
interpreted in his own favor, and the only
correct way is to go by the letter OF the
contract. The Supreme Court says the
contract entities the government and all
other debts to be paid in either gold or sill
and nations from the earliest records give
the debtor the option. The attempt to
force the debtor to pay in gold, or in sill
yer, contrary to his own choice, under
such a contract, is the most fragrant and
unmitigated imposition of the 18th GEN.
fury. The people of this country are not
going to stand it-no matter how partisan
they may be this year. The administra-
ton or the party that persists in exclusive
gold payment of public or private debts,
is going to be swept out of existence in a
very few years.
Silver is too bulky for a convenient cur
rency, being about 151x times heavier than
gold of the same value. With the limited
amounts we have now we hear people
complaining every day OF its inconve-
nience. Should it come into general cir
cuiation it would remind us OF the two
daler pieces coned by Sweden in the 10th
century, from copper, being ~ inches
square and 81 lbs. in weight.
Gold is too bulky for convenient cur
rency, 500 in gold being about 597aztimes
heavier than 500 IN paper, and it is also
very inconvenient indeed for amounts un-
der one dollar, SO that it can't be used for
small change. It does not of itself con-
stitute a complete money, as It is not con-
Venient in either large or small amounts,
and should it come into general clrcula-
ton would in this age be considered a
regular nuisance. II my friend will agree
to settle this currency question in favor of
that kind which is most convenient, we
will Immediately harmonize on paper
money altogether, because that really COW
ers the entire range of currency transac-
lions far more conveniently than gold
or any other known article, and Is as
much superior in point of convenience to
gold as gold is to silver, or silver to cop
per, or copper to pig iron.
And so far as the specie redemption Of
paper currency is concerned, silver is q
better sedaliVe in case of panic, because
..,c.,Io l,a...lIa aasiIzz srcid