The Findlay Jeffersonian. [volume] (Findlay, Hancock County, Ohio) 1870-1881, 1876-08-11


Tbsy are worse; they are snare ana
a deiu.ion to all who trust them Ihey
DESTROY all confidence among Thought
fri men whose Judgment will at last
sway public opinion. An attempt 10
act on such a command or such d
promise, without preparation, would
end ip a new suspension. Ii would Dv
a fresh calamity, prolific OF confusion,
distrust, and distress. The act OF Con
gress of the 14th Of July, 1875, enacted
that on and after the 1st OF January,
1879, the Secretary of the Treasury
she'll redeem in coin legal tender notes
of the United States on presentation at
the office of the Assistant Treasurer in
the city of New York 1t authorizes
the Secretary to prepare and provide
for such resumption OF specie pay
ments by the use of any surplus reve-
nue. not otherwise appropriated, and
by issuing in his discretion certain
classes of bonds. More than one and
a half of the four years have passed.
Congress and the President have con
tinued ever since TO mite IN acts Which
have legislated out of existence every
possible surplus applicable to this pur-
pose. The coin in the Treasury
claimed to belong to the Government
had on the 30h of June fallen to less
than $45, 900, 600 as against SJ9, OOO,VpO
on the 1st of January, 1879, and tne
availability of a part OF that sum i
said to be questionable The revenues
are falling faster than the appropri-
ations and expenditures are reduced,
leaving the Treasury with diminishing
resources. The Secretary has Done
nothing under his power 10 issue bohds;
The legislative command, tile ono iai
promise, fixing a day for resumption
have been made. There has been no
progress. There have been steps back
ward. There i- necronunoy IN the
operations of the Government. The
homely maxims of every day life are
the best standard of its conduct. A
debtor who should promise TO pay II
loan out of his surplus income, yet be
seen every day spending all he could
lay his hands On in riotous living,
would lose all character for honesty
and veracity. His offer of a new prom
ise or his profession has to the value of
an old promise would alike provoke
derision. The st. Louis platform de-
nounces the failure for eleven years to
make good the promises of legal tender
notes. 1t denounces the omission to
accumulate any reserve for their re-
demption. 1t denounces the conduct
which, during eleven years of peace,
has made no advances toward resump-
ton, but instead had obstructed re-
sumption by wasting our resources and
exhausting all our surplus income, and,
while protesting to intend a speedy re-
turn to specie payments, has annually
enacted fresh hindrances thereto, and,
having first denounced the barrenness
of a promise OF a day of resumption,
it next denounces that barren promise
AS Il hindrance TO resumption. It then
demands its repeal, and also demands
the establishment of a judiclous system
Il afpreparation forresumption. It can
ut be denied that the substitution of
. system of preparation without the
promise of a day for the worthless
promise of day without a system of
preparation, would be the gain of the
substance of resumption in exchange
for its shadow. Nor is the denuncia-
ton unmerited of that improvidence
which in the eleven years since the
peace has consumed 81, 500, 600, 600 and
yet could not afford to give the peo-
pie sound and staple currency. Two
and half per cent. OH the expendi-
lures of these eleven years, or even
less, would have provided all the add
tional coin needful to resumption.
The distress now felt by the people in
all their business and industries, though
it has its principal cause in the enorm-
Gus waste of capital occasione6 by the
false policies of our Government, has
been gravely aggravated 10y misman-
agement of the currency. Uncertainty
is a prolific parent of mischiefs in all
business. Never were its evils more
felt than now. Men do nothing be
cause they are unable to make any
calculations on which they can safely
rely. They undertake nothing because
they fear a loss in everything they
would attempt. They stop and wait
The merchant dares not buy for tile
future consumption of his customers
The manufacturer dares not make fab
rics which may not refund his outlay.
He shuts his factory and discharges his
workmen. Capitalists cannot lend on
security they consider safe, and their
funds lie almost without interest. Men
of enterprise who have credit or secu-
rites to pledge will not borrow. Con
sumption Las already fallen below the
natural limits of a reasonable economy.
Prices of many things are under their
range in the frugal specie paying times
before the civil war. Vast masses of
currency lie in the banks unused. A
year and half ago legal tenders were
at their largest volume and the SIP
900. 900 retired have been replaced by
fresh issues of SIS, 600, 600 of bank
notes. In the meantime the banks
have been surrendering about 81 U0O,-
600 month because they cannot yield
a profitable use for SO many of their
notes. The public mind will no longer
accept shams. Il has suffered enough
from Illusions. An insecure policy in
creases distrust. An unstable policy
Increases uncertainty. The people need
to know that the Government is NOV
ing in the direction of ultimate safety
aud prosperity, and that it is doing SO
through the prudent, safe, and con-
seryative methods which will be sure
to infiict no new sacrifice on the bust
ness of the country. Then the inspi-
ration of new hope and well founded
will hasten the restoI ing
processes of nature, and prosperity will
begin to return. The st. Louis Con-
veution concludes its expression in re-
gard to currency by a declaration of
it's convictions as to the practical re-
suits of the system of preparation it
demands. 1t says: I'VE bell, We such
a system well devised, and, above all,
intrusted to competent hands for exc
cution, creating ut no time an artificial
scarcity of currency and at no time
alarming the public mind into a with
drawal of that vaster machinery of
credit by which ninety five per cent. of
ali business transactions are performed,
Il system open to the public and inspir-
ing general confidence would, from the
day of its adoption, bring healing on
its wings to all our harassed industries.
set in motion the wheels of commerce.
manufactures, and mechanical arts,
restore employment to labor, and re-
new in all its natural sources the pros
perity of the people" The Govern
nent of the United States ia my opin-
ion can advance to a resumption of
specie payments Oh its legal tender
notes by gradual and safe processes.
tending to relieve the present business
distress. III charged by the people with
the administration of the executive
office. l should deem it a duty SO to
exercise the power with which il has
been or may he invested by Congress
as best and soonest to conduct to that
beneficent result. The Convention
justly afiirms that reform is necessary
i'll the civil service, necessary TO its