The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1877-12-07

4 : =
Was In that season that she establishS
ed her manufacturing commercial
supremacy over the world. Every sea
IWhitened with her commefce; every
market filed siSk her Wares.E Eapo-
leon said in ais exile &C Sc. Helena,
| 'tGreat Britain conquered me with her
splndles"-With spindles kept In mo-
ton By. Q prosperity due to the fact
that she had, during that period Of sus-.
| pension, fuller, better and more stable
currency than any which can be built
on the Quicksands Of gold and silver. q
So we had duriag fhe, rebellion and
satisfactory currency which stimulated
Industry and compensated % . large
extent for the ravaRcs OF war. If the
distress which nov afi3cts oue country
were due TO tbs increased volume Of
paper money, how IL is that during the
period Of the fullest currency BANK
ruptcieS were alnOet uoknoWn? How
u &c that that period: though marked
! by extremely heaxY taxation, was one
of comparatively Htt1e of
municipal or pfiyass debt? s
| Mr.. Speaker. the records sf CONNER.
cial failures In the Unleed Seates indis-
putably show that business distress
was Least when the currency Was the
fullest, and Inst she eontfaeeiOn OF the
currency by funding legal tender noeeN
nous Increase Of bankruptcies through
eut the nation. In place of this cur
Eency Withdrawn, vas substituted 8
mountain Of debt which toppled over
in the panic OF 1873. But Ia the year
following the panic, the records show,
ana our T0colleStsOus couflPm ie. the
business of the country revived. The
return Of prosperity was stopped by
this resumption law, which was an en-
phatic warning % monied men to with
draw or withhold their money from
all industrial pursuits, and TO hoard It
In anticipation OF contraction and
shrinkage in values unparalleled ia our
history. Had our home debt and our
currency been let alone, the prosperity
that accompanied and followed the war
would no doubt have continued, prices
would have gradually settled TO q salu-
tary level through the extension of
business, and We would have been to-
day richer, freer from debt, and far,
nearer g. practical resumption than
now. =.
Ii is elaine 1 that our present disas-
tiers are the result Of the increase of
the currency during the war; and the
hard times from 1887 TO 1912 and from
1867 to 1859 are cited Is instances OF
| the evils of excessive paper currency.
Sir, the volume of currency was no
larger at those periods than it was In
1860, which has been cited by gentle
men ON the other side - the most SOL
idly prosperous year In our history.
Those panics were caused by the fact
that the specie reserves OF the banks
| were small, and that to accommodate
the business Of the country they issued
more paper money than they had coin
to redeem with, and therefore specie
payments collapsed. To get back to
resumption, the banks were compel
led by their charters TO do just what
the resumption law now compels the
Treasury and the national banks to do,
that is, contract their paper to the lit
tie measure compatible with coin re-
demptiOn. That contraction and that
alone csused the business distress
which characterized those years fol-
lowing those panicS.
EQUALIZATION Is NOT RESUMPTION.
But my colleagues lGarfield and
Monroel tell us that green backs are
within ~ per cent. of gold, and by
the first of January, 1879, we viii
Il glide into resumption as q ship ID
launched from the stocks. Sir, that II
the same jack-o'-1antern which beguil-
ed the British people into the bog Of
resumption in 1919. Ricardo and 9TH
er Oracies assured the people that as
gold was only per cent. premium, re-
sumption was an easy step, and thai
the fall of values caused by resump.
ton would not exceed the per cent
premium then existing on gold. Their
assurances were credited, the law was
passed, and the shrinkaYe of the cur.
rency and fall Of values which followed
exceeded ten fold the reflections Of
these oracles of finance. This theory
: which Ricardo himself subsequently
: admitted to be fallacious, is refer red Il
: now by the resumptiOnists with al
much assurance as If it were Q demon
I stated maxim OF finance. The fact is
the premiu m on gold is no measure
whatever of the extent of contraction
necessary to resumption.
: Equalization is not resumption. Re-
sumption means that the Treasurer
shall supply gold TO all who present
: greenbacks ct any time or tor any pur.
Poee.
: The reduction Of the premium herr
is due to causes which may cease or bt
= counteracted at any time, The depres.
/, sion of industries in Germany through
contraction By silver DEMONSTRATION
/, and In England through a falling eli o.
2 the purch Asing power Of the UniteC
l States and through the eheapening o
4 silver. which has enabled the residenti
D of British India 70 manufacture goods
there at less cost than they can be man
utactared Ia England, fthus emitting of
: her greatest market has tended TO les.
! sen the demand Tor gold for shipmen
= abroad, while the decrease Of our owl
:. imports has lessened demand for it al
home. Hence It's fall In price in oul
t markets.
A revival OF commercial prosperity
{ in these nations increasing the export
demand for our gold, q money panic
] abroad q large crop in. England mex
= year, short crop here, or even the ter
: mlnation OF the European war openinE
: the Dardanellee for export of Russian
: wheat, may turn the balance Of trade
q against as and send gold mp to 10 or q
4 per cent. premium before resumption
D day. Any one of these incidents aftel
e resumption would probably drain the
j little accumulations from the Treasury
: and the banks aud throw them into In
] sOivency.
J, WITH SILVER DEMoNErIZED RIEsUAGR
SUMPTION STILL IMPRAcTICABLE.
But we are told that silver will b,
= | ICu4OuSSiZOO 0uO SICu out41DIlO4 !
be practicable without further contrac
e ton. That, in my Judgment, is Al
: egregious errcr. The total supply o
< silver coin and bullion In the Unitet
: States, exclusive of subsidiary coin, i
= stated on excellent authority not q
v exceed from five to ten millions of dol
= lars. There is no great stock Of silve
: in the world on which we may draw
] for the enormous sums which would b,
# needed Is an auxiliary to resumption
e the only large accumulation being Gh'
Idemonetized coin Of Germany, which
: does not exceed $50, 600, 900. A remon
: etization by Us will strengthen the al
II ready strong tendency In Germany q
# restore It's silver and win 20 far to re
= move the restrictions on that coinage Ii
e France, Italy, Spain, and the othe
= States Of the Latin URion. Mints hav
It been established TO coin it in Japal
4 and India, and are shout 70 be estab
u lished In China with view to the sub
J. stisution of silver for copper in the do
nestle business OF those countries
+ which is vast enough 70 absorb all tn
silver Of the world. We shall need