Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1876-01-14
senator Morrill,, Pa. for Resumption.

Senator MerriIrs Plan for Resumption.
sPEEeH OF HON. JUSTIN S. MORRILL,. OF YER
MONT.
The United States Senate devoted nearly
its whole session Thursday. to financial
discussion, which was opened BY MIR. Nor
rill. of Vermont, in q speech explanatory OF
his bill for the resumption of specie pay
ments. The bill, be said, followed in gen.
eral the idea that the issue of legal-tender
notes was merely temporary war measure.
1t would be better. cheaper and less likely
to derange the money market to sell or e1-
change 4 or Al per cent bonds, running 80
wears or more. for legal-tender notes. re-
deeming them in the manner originally pro-
posed, than to have the treasury exchange
United States bonds for gold. If We should
allow this to be done. the currency would
gradually approach that volume required
by the wants Of trade and OF specie resump-
ton in 1879. Nor do We need to be COM
PEELED to keep in circulation anv liked
amount of legal tenders at par with specie.
This would throw upon the government the
whole duty and cost OF maintaining specie
payments. which ultimately must manly
belong to the national banks. and this duty,
it is fair to presume, the banks. unless they
mean to commit suicide, Will cheeriuiIy as
sumo and prepare for Just SO soon as the
government no longer seeks to crowd gold
out of the country by maintaining IN It's
place United States notes. 900
Bv January /. 1873, the difference be-
tween paper and gold would be much less
than now. and as iorerunner OF re-
srmption il would be well TO provide that
contracts after January l. 1876, shall be
upon specie basis unless otherwise speci-
fed. This would accustom our people to
the coming change and bring specie INTO
circulation.
After comparing the progress. the future
and the circulating medium OF our country
with those of other countries, Mr.. Morrill,
| proceeded to denounce the project Tor re-
| deeminp preenbacks with an inter -convertI-
HE 3 65 per cent Understanding bond, de-
claring that the scheme was unsuseeptlole
of any public or private advantage. lie
| likened It to an offer on the part OF the gov
eminent to take and keep all the horses
| thrown out of employment at the COM
mencement of Winter, promising 10 return
them sleek and clean in the Spring. lie
| also secuted the proposition, which has
been often preached, that taxes on foreign
goods may hereafter be paid IN paper. This.
be said. would virtually repeal the law OF
| 1862 containing the pledge OF the country
| that such duties shall be paid in gold. and
set apart to pay the public debt: slngu-
| larlv enough, said the speaker, this Is ad-
yocated by few who are willing TO strike
the tariff. as well as by those who have
wholly cut loose from COIN, determined to
sink or swim with paper money alone, and
also BY six or seven honest men who really
ieel that, if We show how much we dcspise
gold and how little we care for it at the
Custom house. everybody will adopt the
same opinion. and that gold will then drop
so low in value that all who have it will be
in haste to exchange it for paper With
much gravity they even claim this as the
swlftest mode of returning to specie pay
ment By the over hattering declaration
| that black is white, We are 10 make silly
| bullionists, following the example OF the
crow in the fable, drop their gold and then,
! like Esop's fox. we are 10 stand ready to
snatch il up. If these honest men are not
mistaken here IS to be found real re-
sumptive boomerang. which, though sent
| off in an opposite direction, i 10 whIrl
around and at last smite the rocks from
which will pour food Of the precious
metals. | confess TO an entire want OF faith
in the boomerang movement
lie also ridiculed at considerable length
the idea promulga in some quarters
that we must not only keep and MAINTAIN
volume of currency qdal 10 the wants OF
trade. but that il must be a non
| exporiabe currency. claiming that very
doctrine sent our bonds abroad Owning no
bonds myself, he said and never expecting TO
own any. | vet should be glad TO have
Americans hold them all. He also ridicul-
ed the argument freq ueuily set up that our
| only remedy for currency largely inflated
and below par Is 10 wait and let the com
try grow up 10 it. The philosopher who
waited on the banks for the river TO run by
was hardly more profound or patient
There is no way TO Judge of the future but by
the past. The bank or paper circulation in
1852 with a population OF 81, i2y ,-Al, was
500. sO2 OO0. and at no time had there
been more thIn five millions above that
sum. For ali the wants of trade So 81 per
capita appears to have been enough. 1t
was not then dreamed that there was any
deficiency. and, if there had been, it was
only necessary to ask for more 10 get 1t
but no more was asked for. 1t the amount
of paper money then was sufficient for our
normal condition, the amount we low have
is evidently vastly too much. Our pOpuls
ton in 1870 was IS ,555 9o3, and the
amount OF legal tender snd national bank
notes in August 1875, was 500, 533 1913
Assuming the standard of lo6O and Of the
year prior thereto a. equal TO the iair re-
quiremen.s Of financial health and stability
with the country no larger, unless made
larger by the ice of Alaska. We now have
such an excess Of currency that If we wait
until the country grows up 70 II We must
postpone resumption until our population
mounts up to lit. $40. i0l, with d CORE
spending increase of the wants OF trade.
But, SAID the speaker, we do not need %
much circulation per capita a. in 1850. for
since that time the systems of checks, GER
tifcates of deposit. drafts, bills Of exchange
postal and telegraph orders. have enor-
mously increased and rendered less clumsy
the method of business. There should be
no waiting for generation to pass away
and for another to come with more ability
and courage than We ascribe TO ourselves or
than must be ascribed TO our foreiathers in
q very similar crisis. Those who never
start are most unlikely ever 10 reach the end
OF the Journey.
Mr.. Morrill, said be did not believe any
great amount Of injury would fall upon
the debtors by raising the value Of the pa
per dollar TO the par of specie, nor would
property shrink much in value. Ii would
be much nearer the truth to say that the
effect would be exactly the reverse. lie ar
gued against the injustice and bad policy
OF imitation. and reviewed the arguments Of
tho infationists. lie denied that the ma
tional banks ought 10 be abolished. and
that the currency issued by them should be
withdrawn and an equal amount be issued
by the government of the United States
Up TO this time the failed banks had de-
posted ever a million of dollars in excess of
the amount redeemed by the government.
Not one of them was in default. lie warm
ly praised the national banking system and
said if the banks were only circulating a
currency convertible at par, nearly all their
defects would vanish What we most need
ed iter specie resumption, 10 completely
remedy our financial condition, was more
real and absolute capital All the financial
tinkering in the world would not supply
it. All the cheap expedients for making
money plenty without earning it, or with
cut giving anything in exchange, would |
result in disreputable failure. The sooner
We learn that money cannot be invented |
but must be earned the better for the coun-
Try.
A debased currency. he said. in c1nclu- |
sion, was demoraiizng. Ii Is too sopar- |
ent that trade is now demorslized, and |
there is no venture warrantable In the |
world of traffic unsccompanied by a wide |
margin of profit. Ii Is seen that no bar |
gain, even on the shortest time, can be |
squarely fulfilled, as the fuctuation of pa |
per legal tender always calls for more or |
less than what was nominated in the bond, |
and transfers the profit or loss Of the tran
sacton IRON the right side TO the wrong |
side, to the confusion Of all leg Ultimate trade |
and OF all exact limits OF pending contracts. |
Stable business often leads TO ruin, and |
prodigal adycnturers here and there sud
denly wake up famous as mIllionaires. /
Discretion is robbed OF its merit. and |
chance, the blindest OF goddesses. rules the
day. Bulls and bears among the stock gam
blers revel in their millennium. Is II strange
that sound morality should be conlounded.
OF that, instead OF golden virtues, We too
often find in their place nothing but the |