The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1877-09-03

Of our Revolutionary war, decided the wise
mon who framed the present Governments
ofour states and Of the nation, against any
liberation of the dca; and up to the time
Of the great rebellion both States and nation
liked their faces as ilints against all Govern
mcnt paper issues
II is lcftto these times. after we have safc-
ly passed through the vici.situdcs and
dangers Of great ntcrnil war, and when
peace rcigns and no necessities Of u fiscal
nature press upon us with enormous ma
tional production and unhoundcd national
credit. To find class Of men who still id-
,tically dream that surccss prosperity,
growth. solvcncy. production. every element
of national wealth and greatness, depend
upon the cxtinguishmcnt Of all the banks Of
issue In the country. and an indefinite sup
ply Of irrcdccmablc notes issued by the
Washington treasury. They 20 far beyond
the old hcresy of issuing rcdccmablc Gov
crnmcnt paper, and champion the monstrous
FOLLY of issuing Government promises
TO pay, which are never to be re-
deemed. They advocate the issue OF chaff
and moonshnc stamped and lcgalzcd as
money. 1t is ink and paper and nothing
more. II costs nothing and is worth moth
ing and yet forty millions of intelligent pco-
pie are told they must receive it rs money.
and they are besides insultcd with the dcca-
ration that this alone can save them from
| individual and national bankruptcy.
Such is the greenbackcr OF our time, as
he appears on the rostrum or in print. He
takes magnlicd and false views of the ma
turc, functions. and power of paper money,
and overlooks the necessity of a positive and
fixed standard of value, which real money
alone represents. His excuse is that he
wants dollars that the foreigner cannot
take away from him. But the foreigner, az
| well as the citizen. is entitled to his own.
and he can have no more; while. to prevent
some possible or impossible foreigner from
| getting his dues, our grecnbacker Is
willing to establish state Of uni
vcrsal impccuniosty and financial i'm
| hecility. He is willing TO create and in
definitely perpetuate n deprecated and dis
credited circulation. To get clear Of pay
| ing an honest debt, he is willing to incur the
| standing Inconvenience and odium Of a per
| potual bankruptcy. For fear of dreadful
| hugbcar, which is only bugbcar after ALL
he is willing TO forfeit the advantages
and forcgo the innumerablc satisfactions
and benefits Of an honorable financial posi-
| ton before the world. For mean and paltry
considerations he IL willing to occupy
permanent position of dishonor and insol-
| vency. He wants an irredccmablc, non-pay-
| able currency, so that he may not be COM
| PEELED to pay his debts. We will not deny
there are some cOnvenienceS in state of
non-payment or bankruptcy. But they are
| cOnvenienccs that every man of mcr-
camille honor scorns and shuns. There
is no sacrifice that an honorable merchant
or iinancicr will not make in preference to
failing to meet his pccuniary obligations.
To inculcate the idea that it is better to
avoid paying than to pay, is cowardly and
base. Yet this is the doctrine Of those
who advocate a dcbascd currency; and
the one only advantage proposed To
scduce the country into the permanent
establishment Of deprecated circulating
medium, is that It is easier and better TO
avoid paying your debts than it is to pay
them.
We hold that the advocates Of doctrines
| Ike thcs" have no claim upon public attou-
tion Their propositions are essentially dis
honest. They inculcate bad morals 10y pro-
posing 20 avoid the paying Of honest debts
There is swinding enough when it is prac-
i=ed in occasional individual eases; hut II
becomes an enormity when it Is proposed
on national scale. We wonder that
its palpabc immortality has not deferred
the advocates of such a proceeding from
exposing themselves before the world.
We set aside for the moment all the all
surditics Of their propositions arising from
the impossibiltics Of the case. Who but n
| lpnatic would propose TO amend our finance
system by overturnng all tho banks of the
countryat blow Who but a lunatic would
| propose to issue millions upon millions more
Of groonbacks, when the courts have already
signiied their decided opinion that such an
emission in time Of peace is clearly uncon-
sttutional and therefore impossible But
we dismiss the conclusive fact that the
schemes Of the scll-styled grechbackers are
thus impractlcable, and attack them here
wholly on their merits. We know the game
Is not worth the candle but their persist
cncc seems to compel our criticism. Here
is the whole State OF Ohio politically con-
vulscd over financial doctrines and PROPOSE
tions that would seem only suited to the
inmates Of n mad house.
We have only to add that IT should never
be forgotten that real money is the one vital
necessity Of labor and of industry in all its
forms. The man who works for dollar n
day,wants, beyond every other human being,
except him who is compelled to work for less.
that dollar TO be a genuine dollar Of full
value. If he has to take anything less, he Is
cheated. If he is given paper dollar worth
ninety cents. he is dcfraudcd of tenth part
of his honest dues and the man who advo-
Gates paying the laborer in deprecated
currency, Is himself a fraud, for he advo-
Gates swindling him out of part Of his
earnings. We repeat that there is nobody so
much interested in having the currency on
specie basis, and having the everyday
dollar specie dollar, or its equivalent, rs
the workngman; for no man can so i'll
AFFORD the abrldScment Of his earnings by
the fraud Of an irrcdcemable currency.
And it is just the same with the great
army - prodUcers in the country especially
the farmers. Why should the farm
or want II dchascd dollar, bas-
tard dollar worth eighty or ninety
in lion ,f 1..ll