The Rutland daily globe. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1873-1877, 1876-01-13
WOODS NON CONTRACTION SCHEME.

Among the multitude OF financial meas
ures growing out of the recent democratic
conference is one introduced by Fernando
Wood of New York, which is chiefly
noticeable from the fact that it is the crea-
tiation Of a professed hard money democrat,
representing the commercial center OF the
county. The bill provides for the nego-
ton of seven hundred millions dollars of
four per cent. bonds, with interest payable
quarterly, redeemablc after forty years
from July /, 1876, to he issued at par IN
currency or exchsngeabe for matured or
maturing United States bonds at par that
the bonds may be exchanged for treasury
notes on the REIMBURSEMENT Of one per
centun of interest that treasury notes
may be received for such bonds, and
the treasury notes So received shall be
retired that one-third Of the surplus coin
revenue shall be reserved for q redemption
fund, and that apecie payments shall be
resumed when this fund shall equal one
third of the legal tender aud other treasury
notes repeats the resumption act of 1875
except those portions providing for free
banking and for coinage for the redemp-
ton OF fractional currency suspends the
operation Of the sinking fund provides
for the issue OF new series of treasu-
~ notes payable on demand after resump-
ton Of specie payments, and makes the
notes receivable and payable for oil dues
to the United States the same as legal ten
ders, and exempts them from taxation.
And Mr.. Wood calls this n plan for re-
sumption without contraction. And be is
correct, it looks very much like plan for
resumption with very decided squut to-
wards initiation. The act providing for the
issue Of a new series Of treasury notes pro-
poses tina, they shall be used as basis for
the retiring Of the present issue of legal
tender and national bank notes, so that if
the bill should go into effect, we shall have
seven hundred millions OF dollars cf quasi
legal tender national currency, in place Of
dollars of treasury and national bank notes
now in the hands of the public, that is, in
circulation. That this will be the pracii-
cal effect will be seen when we state that
under the law az it now is, the national
banks are required TO hold as preserve
an amount equal to fifteer per cent. OF
their deposits, and that by the last report
Of the secretary OF the treasury such ere
serve" was, in round numbers, one hun.
drcd and fifty millions of dollars, so that
the actual amount of currency thus to be
put in circulation would be an "intlatlon
" of the currency" TO that amount-whch
currency now actually in circulation and
that proposed to be issued.
The provisions for the exchange of these
bonds for currency in sums Of ten thousand
dollars and upwards, and the other
'exchangesbe' provisions, if they did not
sctually tend TO permanent Initiation,
would, al least, unsettle the volume of the
currency, leaving it in the power of specu-
lators like Jay Gould and Others to initiate
or contract the volume Of currency at will,
and, by making money plenty or scarce,
raise or depress values whenever it should
favor their speculations. The only por-
ton of the bill which has the least squint
towards specie payments il that which sus-
ponds the operation Of the sinking fund
laws and provides for the retention of one
half of the surplus coin revenues with
which 10 resume when such redemption
fund shall equal one-third of the legal
tender notes. How deceptive and delusive
this is, may be seen from the fact that one
third of these legal tender and treasury
notes will be two hundred and thirty.thrce
millions of dollars, and that, with the
present rate of revenue, it will take at least
ten years to reach that point. So MIR.
Wood proposes to initiate the currency by
one hundred and fifty millions of dollars,
to make it iluctuate at the will of speculs-
tors, and to postpone the day of redemp-
tion until the fourth day of July, 1887.