The New York herald., 1877-10-02
Secretary Sherman and Specie Pay
ments.

Portable position, or at least that he must
feel q great deal less jubilant and sanguine
than he did several months ago, when Win
a self-complacent flourish, he withdrew tho
four and a half per cent loan and closed his
bargain with the new Syndicate for the sale
OF the four per cent bonds. AT that time
and during the ensuing five weeks the IN
spired correspondents at Washington burned
great deal of incense to Mr.. Sherman,
which has been proved by events to
have been (pardon the bad pun) On
insensate proceeding. What has become
of oil those boastings and OF vaporing
predictions with which they were accom-
panied? For the last two months the
Treasury oracles which inspired those
magnificent boasts and predictions have
| been dumb. For the last month or more
the four per cent bonds have been below
par. The glowing predictions with which
the Washington correspondents were in
spired in the early part of June have not
been verified; but, to borrow the words of
great orator, sit is not the first time in the
history of human affairs that the yiSor and
success of the war have not quite come up
to the lofty and sounding phrase OF the
manifesto"
1t will be rocollected that Secretary Sher-
man prevailed upon the Syndicate with
great difficulty Cat least it was so given out)
to consent that the four per cent bonds
should be offered for thirty days to Ameri-
can subscribers Toward the close OF
galed with vainglorious reports of the
large amounts of the four per cent bonds
which eager American investors had made
haste to secure. 1t having become evident
Of late that the tide Of success so vaunted
in the beginning of summer had been
arrested we were curious to know what the
amount Of that success really was, and
awaited the new monthly statement Of the
public debt with considerable interest. It
was furnished yesterday, and may be found
in another column. 1t appears from this
statement that Mr.. Sherman has sold only
o paltry ten millions Of the four per cent
bonds, which were ushered into public
notice with such grand flourish Of trum-
pets. What has become Of the fabulous
amounts represented to have been taken
by American subscribers during the thirty
days said to have been so grudg-
ingly consented to by the Syndicate? ?
Was all that flourish and all that pretended
reluctance Of the Syndicate to part with any
share of what it regarded as SO good thing
merely a trick to bull the loan in its inter-
est? Considering how very small mouse
the mountain in labor has given birth to
we are justified in asking this question.
1t is too evident that this much heralded
and bepuffed four per cent loan has fallen
fat, and that the failure of this experiment
has convicted Secretary Sherman of lack Of
financial foresight He ''hallooed before
he was out Of the woods" and now finds
that he has some important steps to retrace.
If this matter were not SO closely connected
with the question of specie payments his
want of sagacity might be pardoned on ac-
count of his zeal but it unfortunately
happens that his mistake illustrates the plan
he had formed for resumption. Four months
ago Mr.. Sherman was confident that he
could resume specie payments in January,
1879, under the law OF 1875 without any ad-
ditional legislation. The boastful state
ments made about the wonderful success Of
the four per cent loan led q great many
people to believe him. If the four per cent
loan had been taken as rapidly as he pre-
dicted there would have been no difficulty
in accumulating large stock of gold for re-
deeming the greenbacks in 1879 But that
too sanguine expectation having been dis
appointed he is put in an embarrassing pre-
dicament. 1t would be very notifying for
per cent bonds again but he will have to
submit to this modification or else admit
that he cannot resume in 1879 unless Con-
gress comes to his relief.
Secretary Sherman is already preparing
to retreat from the position to which he
ners. 1t is now reported that he will ask
Congress to grant him authority to sell the
four per cent bonds for currency instead Of
gold. We have no doubt that it would be
wise for Congress to accede to this request;
but what then becomes Of Mr.. Sherman's
further legislation? His only resource for
acquiring the large gold reserve necessary
for resumption, under the law of 1876, is the
sale of bonds for gold at not less than par,
which is no resource at oil if the sale Of
bonds is impossible. The ilnpossibility of
disposing of the four per cent bonds at par
in gold has become apparent to Mr.. Sherman
himself. as is proved by his intention to ask
Congress for authority to sell them for cur
rency. If this authority is refused and all
the enemies Of resumption in 1879 will op-
pose it--he will have to fall back on the
four and half per cent bonds but the un-
sold portion Of them Is insufficient to meet
his wants. Hc is, therefore, brought into a
position where he must acknowledge his in
ability to resume in 1879 without further
action by Congress. The whole authorized