The Cairo bulletin. [volume] (Cairo, Ill.) 1872-1878, 1876-07-28
THE CURRENCY CONFLICT.
Address Of !. W. SchWckers. Esq, he.
fore the Liberal club Of New York
City. Friday Evening. June ~. lsso.

Cisy. Friday Evening. June ~. Isso
We publish the following extracts fron
the address of Mr.. Schuckers, believing
that they contain many facts Of interest
to the people at this time:
Fifteen years ago the American people
suddenly found themselves confronted by
| the memorable necessity either Of aband
oning the war for the Union or OF resort
ing to q system of inconvertible paper
notes upon which to wage 1t; and the y
had to choose between the inconvertible
notes of the State banks or inconvertible
notes issued by the federal government
| They preferred the latter, although vim.
dictively opposed in their election by the
selfishness aud cupidity of bankers and
the general principles OF the political
economists.
Time has abundantly indicated the
wisdom OF the choice then made. The
use of the national credit as the fOunda-
ton of the monetary system, enabled the
| government to carry the war to trium.
| plant conclusion, and to re-establish its
authority everywhere throughout its
former borders; at the same time that il
supplied to the people sounder and
| more stable instrument Of exchange than
the country had ever before known: .
The tremendous disaster-the panic of
lS73-furnished to the enemies Of the
paper system, which l shall call the
American system, new ground Of as
sault, OF which, indeed they were not slow
| to avail themselves. In defiance of all
| truth, in the very face and front of all
history and experience, they charged
hat "a la NIT In hs, pat tral MI
necessary consequence OF the use OF IN
convertible paper money; and upon this
charge they rung the changes with
! unremitting vehemence. They pro-
tested that nothing would restore
soundness and prosperity to the CON-
mcrce and industry OF the country
except return to gold and silver as the
basis OF the currency. Office-hOlders
and bondholders, capitalists and bankers,
brokers and spectators, politicians and
political economists; the whole un,ro-
ductive classes, In word, joined In a
clamor, and it did not take long to in
volve in 1t almost the whole body of the
Republican leaders, and very largely
the leaders OF the Democratic party also.
But there were, and continue to be, many
notable exceptions and sooner or later.
the Republican or the Democratic party
probably the latter-will range itself
sQuarely and bravely against the enor-
nous and utterly indefensible injustice
which resumption must inlet upon the
productive classes.
1 very earnestly
hope that the Democratic party, SO long
and so fatally wrong upon the slavery
question, will retrieve its great error on
that by taking right position on the
money question, not less important in all
its bearings on the happiness and pros.
perity of all the people than was the
question of slavery.
To substitute more valuable money
for one Of less value. is work of greater
or less difficulty, and hardship and the
degree OF hardship and difficulty will de-
pend upon the extent Of the depreciation
10 be overcome.
There is but one possible way of meas.
uring the extent to which the paper
money Of q country is deprecated, and
that is, by the cost of restoring it to u
REORGANIZATION. By the words ',restor-
alton OF specie-valuation," 1 do not
mean merely condition in which the
paper-mOney of a country is at nominal
par OF gold; but the establishment
of an actual state Of convcrtibility
OF the paper-notes into the stan
dard gold coin. Mr.. Webster laid down
the true rule when ne declared that no
paper notes could be made or kept equal
In value to gold which were not actually
convertible into gold on demand; and
he proposed very stringent rule for
preserving their convertibility. A nomi-
nal par OF the circulating paper-notes and
gold at this time exists In France, but
that the notes Of the Bank of France are
| OF less actual value than the standard
gold coin of the empire is proved by the
| fact that they continue to be inconverti-
BILE; although the bank has four hun
dred millions Of gold and silver with
which to to redeem less than five hun
dred millions Of notes, were the bank
disposed to enter upon the work OF re.
| demption. But resuming specie pay
ments is not so easy an operation
as the average American fnan.
eier is prone to allege: And
| you will allow me to observe, that bril-.
| liant and conservative as the administra.
| ton Of the Bank Of France admittedly
is-extraOrdinary and unprecedented as
| Its present position Of strength is-tha,
most powerful and Opulent establishment
| still has before it the perilOus work of ef
fecting an actual resumption. To re-
store the convertibility of French bank
notes into French coin Is still the bust.
ness to be accomplished. and that such q
restoration will tax all the splendid pow.
ers even OF the most impregnable organi'
zation OF credit on grand scale In the
world-as the New York Tribune once
called the Bank of France-will be proved
by the event.
Now, il the extent to which the paper.
notes of country are deprecated is to BIZ
measured only by the cost of restoring
them to par with the standard coin, by
making them actually convertible into
such coin on demand, how are we to as.
certain the cost Of their restoration Wei
there is but one way Of doing this also
and this is by ascertaining the extent O
the contraction which must be etiecte,
before an actual condition of convert
bility can be established; and assume
as practical scientific fact, from which
there Is no possible escape, that the ONLY
way in which convertibility can be es
tablished is by contraction.
The contraction to be effected IN this
country, then, before sound state O
cOnvertibility can be established, is no
less than one-half, certainly, of the who'll
outstanding circulation OF legal tende
and national baLk-notes that is to say
the present paper circulation being aboil
seven hundred and fifty millions Of dol
lars, must be reduced to a total sum no
exceeding three hundred and fifty mill
ions. For it is important to observe
that to resume specie payments involve
not only an appreciation OF the pape
money Of the country to an acual COL
value, but an extensive appreciation O
the precious metals themselves. Tn
nominal difference between gold and pa
per is IL or Is per cent, but the actua