The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1876-03-08

shall circulate on credit, or, If 1t does, shall
circulate on the credit OF the state, all bank
notes as well as coins bearing the image and
under which ali pronts upon the issue eU Of
money shall form part OF the imperial reve-
nue.. The power Of issue now exercised
Irish, and scotch banks (aiI private corpora,
tions) Is q relic of fsudalism.
The manufacture OF coin has been suppressed
long ago, but the manufacture of paper
money still remains, and the profits of this
man ufacture are allowed to remain in private
fac1ure Of the only part Of the currenc me upon
which there Is or can be a loss. 1t is high
time this state of things cease; that all rights
OF issue were gathered into the hands Of the
state; that the debt Of the Bank of England
was paid Il; that ali notes but those OF the
sue now exercised by the banks were vested in
upon paper currency were claimed by the
duction OF taxation. In England there is now
mand for the total adjustment Of the
British system Of bank currency and
the substitution OF government legal tender
paper for such issues. The following QUOTA
sons view in relation to full legal tender
treasury notes, convertible into bonds or GER
tifcates OF indebtedness, but they prove the
Virginia and Pennsylvania previous to the
revolution OF l77U over a redeemable carr sncy.
Full legal tender money. not redeemable In
the American system of money. Franklin, in
letter to samuel Cooper, OF April Y, l779, (the
Works Of BENJAMIN Franklin. volume
Secondly, after the first emission LOT bills or
continental money! proposed that we should
those we had issued This was not then APP
proved of, and more bills were issued. This
shows that Franklin as well as jefferson I'M
derstood the importance OF allowing United
States treasury notes to be bonded at the
pleasure of the holder; and, although the sold
directly OF indirectly, and had no revenue but
what was derived from requisition
on the states, had Franklin's prop
mental money Would have remSined
par. BenjaIlin Franklin, in 1863, before the
British board OF trade, defended the American
in opposition to the British system of bank
currency or "bills OF credit" 1t was said
that paper money carries the gold and
silver out OF the provinces, and so runs the
country, as experience has shown In every
colony where 1t has been practi ed TO any de-
gree. To which franklin replied as follows:
This opinion of its running the country seems
TO be merely speculative, or not otherwise
founded than upon misinformation in the
matter of fact. The truth is that the ba lance
of trade with Britain being greatly against
them, the gold and silver are drawn out to pay
the balance; and then
THE NECESSITY OF SOME MEDIUM OF TRADE
has induced the making of paper money
Thus, II carrying out all the gold and silver
ruins a country every colony was ruined be-
fore 1t made paper money. But, far from
being ruined by it, the colonies that have
made use Of paper money have been, and are,
all in a thriving condition. Pennsyl-
vania. before 1t made any paper money, was
totally stripped of its gold and silver, though
| they had from time, to time,
like the neighboring colonies, agreed
to take gold aud silver cons
| at higher nominal values, in hopes ofdrawing
money into and retaining 1t for the internal
| uses OF the province. During that weak prac-
tice silver got up by degrees to eight shlllings
paper money was ' made. But Oe tSis
| practice of increasing the denomina-
ton was found not to answer the
the gold and silver coins as FAST as they were
brought In, the merchants raising the price OF
their goods in proportion to the Increased de-
nomination. Of the money. The difficulties
for want of cash were accordingly very great,
the chief part OF the trade being carried on by
when, in I72Ss paper money was first made
there, lin Pennsylvania which gave new lie
| TO business, prompted greatly the settlement
OF new lands, (by lending small sums TO be-
ginners, on easy interest. 10 be paid In small
installments,) whereby the province has so
greatly increased in inhabitants that the -ex-
port from thence thither is now more than
tenfold what Ii was, SO that
it does not appear 10 be of the Tuinous
The British board of trade then said: That
every medium Of trade should have an intrin-
| sic value, which paper money has not. .
To which Franklin replied as follows q How
ever fit particular thing may be for a partic-
ular purpose, whenever that thing is not 10 be
had, or not TO be had in sufficient quantity,
| merce whenever madel it becomes necessary
| TO use something else, the fittest that can be
got got in sI lieu OF It. - ,s,: It seems
from them, and then refuse them the poor
privilege OF using paper instead of its bank
bills and bankers notes are daily used here
4 fin EnOlQnd1 n a m nf In
large dealings, perhaps the greater part is
| transacted by their MEANS and yet they have
| no intrinsic value, but rest on the credit OF
| those that issued them, as paper bills in the
colonies do on the credit OF The respective gov
erments there. Their bank billsl being pay
able In cash upon sight by the drawer is, in
| deed, circumstance that can not attend the
| colony bile, for the reason just above men
them by the British trade, but the legal ter der
being substituted in its place Is rather a
greater advantage to the possessor
OF going to a particular bank or banker to de-
even the silver money in England is Obliged
part which is the difference between its real
| weight and denomination. Great part of the
| shillings and sixpences now current are, by
pences even 50 per cent. too light. For this
difference between the real and nominal you
mo e1 n tS SO much sSa
tender, with the knowledge that 1t can easily
be repassed for the same value, that makes
| three pennyworth OF silver pass for sixpence.
Gold and silver are not intrinsically OF
i equal value with iron, a metal in Itself
| capable Of many more benefits to mankind
/ Their value rests chiefly in the esti-
nation they happen to be in among the gen.
| erality Of nations, and the credit given to the
opinion that the estimation viii continue
/ Otherwise a pound OF gold would not be a real
equivalent for even q bushel OF wheat. (See
| Franklins Works: Duane's edition, 1909,
| volume A. Gouge, in his
| HISTORY OF PAPER MONEY AND BANKING,
in part second, chapter 2, page 8, in support Of
Franklin's defense of the Pennsylvania sys.
tenn oflegal-tender paper money, says: Gov
ernor Pownall, In his work on the admins
tration OF the colonies, bestows high praise on
| the paper system of Pennsylvania. "I will
venture to say that there never was wiser o.
| better measure; never one better calculated
/ to serve the interests of an increasing
| country; that there never was
Il Of " N,