The anti-monopolist. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1874-1878, 1876-08-24

issue OF any such obligation has express
" provided that the same may be paid
in lawful money, or in other currency
than gold and silver And the Uni
ted States also solemnly pledge its faith
to make provision at the earliest practi-
cable period for a redemption of the
United States notes in COIN"
The Court of Appeals Of the State of
New York having decided that a con-
tract made before the passage of Legal
Tender act, payable expressly in gold
and silver coin, lawful money of the
United States, might be paid and salts
fed by tender of United States notes,
the case was taken to the Supreme Court
of the United States at Washington, by
whom the decision was reversed. Chief
Justice Chase, in announcing the opin-
ion of the Court, in FEBRUARY, 1869, said,
1.-The coined dollar was piece of gold
or silver of a certain degree of purity
and weight. The note dollar was a
promise to pay coined dollar" By the
Constitution OF the United States, by the
laws OF Congress authorizing the Sec
rotary of the Treasury to borrow three
thousand millions, and by the language
of the Supreme Court Of the United
States, "silver and gold" have been sol.
EMMY declared and affirmed to be legal
tender in the payment OF debts. The dis
tinctiOn, therefore, between the values
OF silver aud gold which has recently OBJ
tanned is in disregard OF the constitution
al, legislative, and Judicial authorities
and, in view OF the fact that throughout
the commercial world silver has been
for centuries and is now more largely
used than gold, this new revelation rests
upon extrinsic, artificial, and arbitrary
ideas and acts. 1t might with far better
reason be claimed that gold should not
be a legal tender, because, unlike silver
it has never had an international circul-
alton. Even in England and France
divided only by narrow channel, the
English sovereign, with the Queens head
on it, and the Napoleon, with the En-
peror's profile, circulate principally in
their own dominions, while the Spanish
milled dollar, the Mexican dollar, the
French franc, and the English shilling
have world wide circulation. Nor has
silver been the currency OF modern civil
ization ouly. 1t was legal tender" when
''fiue gold," like''rubbie5, was only''pre-
cious," for orna ment. The Jewish shek-
ell was Of silver. Joseph was sold to the
Ishnaelltes by his brethren for ''twenty
pieces" Of silver. and Judas, tor the be-
travail Ut our Saviour, received "thirty
pieces OF silver" AS early as we hav :
any knowledge of currency silver was its
basis and was the medium OF exchange
for all commodities.
1t is claimed that the largely increased
supply of silver from the american mines
is affecting its value throughout the
menting our public debt, was anticipated.
Our ability to pay both the principal and
interest was based in part upon the val
ue Of mines then being developed in the
Far West. And now that these hopes
are realized, shall we voluntarily deprive
ourselves ola resource which will essen
TALLY aid in re-establishing aud restor-
ing the credit and prosperity OF the
country? Congress, under authority de-
rived from the Constitution. inaugurated
the coinage OF silver and gold. liking the
value OF each. That authority remains.
Congress has the power lo>day, as it had
ShS va AAtCi lAC ~ VI llC " Ills
ted States was adopted, to coin silver IN
To money, to Tx It's value and to declare
1t Il legal tender. In shlS view ot the
question, ,the discovery aud development
oi rich silver mines was proverbial.
Why then. if Europeans depfeoite the
abundance of American silver, should
We readily join in u temporary popular
cry against 1t? lit be just or wise or
patriotic to unite in the efforts t. de pfc
cate the value OF silver because our
mines are too prolific, would it not be
equally SO to unite with foreign coun-
tries to cry down the price OF agricultural
products when our bountitul harvests en-
able Us to export largely to Europe? l
have insisted In former communications
tina: return to specie payments, so de-
sirable in all respects. did not necessar-
lily require ''contraction"or suffering. Re-
sumption is not cruel nor relentlest. 1t
could have been made not only easy, but
beneficient. This. however, required
craftsmanship. 1t was in the power of
the administration aud Congress-, had
they set themselves diligently and wisely
to the task ten years ago, to have &c.
complished resumption without derang-
ing. depressing, or disturbing any see
ton, any class, or any interest. But,
most unhappily. the craftsmanship which
the emergency demanded was lacking.
The administration and Congress have
only been distinguished as .Clrcumlocu-
tionists.' Their efforts toward resump
ton 50 tar have been in the direction of
"how not to do it; and finally. when the
proposed action OF Congress on the silver
question evinces disposition to learn
how to do it, resistance comes from tead-
ing and influential journals.
Silver has quietly taken the place of
fractional currency. Our eyes aud ears
are again gladdened by the sight aud
chink OF bright silver dimes. quarters
aud halt dollars. Had the solvent of this
precious currency been cheertully
accepted By capitalists. bankers. and
journalists. resumption would have been
mere thad halt accomplished. while wha,
remained to be done would have been
more easily achieved but t. return for