The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1876-03-21

Ivy congress 10 reduce tue amount IOuT
millions month, brought it down TO
three hundred and flfty-sx millions, the
lowest point il ever touched. In the great
panic Of 1873 the Treasury and Gen. GRANT
got frightened, and under Wall street
pressure, and being pinched for money,
they let out twenty-six millions of the forty
four millions redeemed, carrying the sum
In circulation up TO three hundred and
elghty-two billions. And this sum hhs
never been reduced since except so far as
It has been replaced by bank circulation,
under the new free banking law. And
this has not operated as contraction, but,
on the contrary, as expansion; since
for every eighty dollars of green
backs taken in, one hundred dol
lars in bank notes have been issued.
So that the matter stands just as We
stated. The grcenback fractional. anu
bank note circulation, taken together, has
vailed but little since 1905 1t has
always ranged between seven hundred
and seven hundred and fifty millions, and
il stands at about the latter figure now.
The doctrine of our correspondent that
the current obligations of the Government
be issued from day to day, and could not
be at once funded, are to be regarded and
counted as money in circulation, though
possessing no quality Of money any more
than any other note or obligation, touches
upon subject on which lie has evidently
not reflected.
II every thing In the shape OF a security
that will discharge debts Is to be counted
as money, then all the deposits held by
banks ard bankers, and all their securi-
ties Immediately available are money.
All loans on call are money. All
bonded debts of unquestioned value,
which are on the market, whether Gov
eminent, State, city. town. or railroad
bonds, are In the same sense money. We
may add to these the gigantic operations
of trade aud commerce, represented by
short notes, drafts, and bills OF exchange,
foreign and domestic. This whole pro-
digious machinery of financial and tnding
operations, is what the world employs in
its dealings. II Is all money in the sense
in which our correspondent misuses the
term.
And we shall add further, by way OF en-
Tightening our correspondents under
| etunulnR, winch tetTls 10 UhNt Dttl kIOse-
ly befogged and led astray by dwelling
upon the immeasurable follies of the pa
per-money apostles, that the kind OF Sc
curities to which we have referred. and
which play the part we mention. have
taken the place OF the Government obliga-
tons, of which such great account i made.
These securities have multiplied 20 an
enormous extent since 1866, and now per-
form in the business of settlements all
and far more than all that the Government
obligations ever performed. II the Gov
eminent obligations were money, then the
agencies that have taken their place are
money. And reasoning on the line OF our
belonged correspondent. we could show
that this kind of money has enormously in
creased in volume all over the country
since 1895; that Instead of there being the
paltry sum Of less than two thousand mil
lions OF such money in circulation, we have
now ave thousand millions or more, play
ing the same part in the markets that the
Government securities played in 1865.
This IL demonstrated by the enormous
increase of corporate Indebtedness since
1865. an immense portion OF which is OH the
market in every city and chief town III the
country to-day Indeed, the real expan-
sion of the currency in this direction lie
almost incalculable; aud 1t constitute:
one of the most oppressive burdens the
country is carrying. Yet on the theory OF
the inflationlsts, It - an expansion of the
paper currency, which should bring moth
ing but unspeakable prosperity.
There is no escape from the facts WI
mention, or from the conclusions we draw
Discussion only shows that the closer th'
paper money men are followed in thei
extmvagant statements, the more com
plete Is their overthrow.