Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1877-11-01
1t Would Enable Capital to Con-
troll and Expand the Cur
rency ut VIII.
1t W0uId Bind and Gag the Treas
ury and Fling it at the Feet
of the Wall Street GAM
bierS.
A Clear and Mastery Exposition
of the Subject.

From the Speech of Senator Howe, at Madi-
Political economists of careful
study, practical business men of large
experience have appeared as the advo-
Gates Of this scheme, [ have pom
dered upon it much. Ny conclusion
Is that it would be impossible to devise
4 scheme more ruinous to all honest eff
fort than this very one. [ do not stop
to remind you that we have no author
ity for holding that congress can in
time of peace under our Constitution,
make anything but gold and silver a
legal tender for debt We can change
our constitution, and we would do so
if the public welfare demanded it. |
do not stop to remind you that many
of our bonds are by their very terms
payable in coin | do not stop to re-
mind you that nation has no better
moral right to liquidate its interest
bearing obligation. by issuing non in
terest bearing notes, than any private
citizen has to do the same. [ confront
you with no legal, and no moral obli-
CATION, | simply say to every business,
and to every laboring man, that if he
is not utterly reckless Of his own vel
fare, he must not dare to try
THAT FEARFUL EXPERIMENT.
| have read of the good woman who
complacently boastcd that her husband
had embeAished his town residence
with the last invention of modern arch.
ltecture,- "a mortgage. | have read
OF that able fnancieF who lived upon
the interest of what he owed Who
has not laughed at the self complacen-
cy of Mr.. Micawber, who, when he
had liquidated store bill by giving
his | . I, proudly declared she could
ence more hold up his head among his
fellow men. But the scheme to which
We are invited is more farcicaI than any
OF these. Mr.. Micawber only cheated
himself with the delusion that he had
extinguished debt, when in fact, he
had merely changed its form. But
here is an alchemy by which it is pro-
posed to transpose simple debt into
solid cash. The deed is simply i'm
possible. Water was once turned in-
to wine. but He who wrought that
miracle is no longer among us, and if
he were, | doubt if he would perform
the miracle proposed.
If there were no obstacles in the
way, raised by
THE CONSTITUTION OR BY CONTRACT.
1t would be easy to draft bill making
bonds and greenbacks interconvertiblc.
1t would be easy to pass such bill
through all the forms of legal enact
ments; but what then? where is the
man who has bonds he would change
into greenbacks? There are hundreds
and thousands who would gladly ex-
change sreenbacks for four per cent
bonds, if they could Hitherto Con-
gress has not permitted the Treasury
to make such exchange except upon
conditions. Private parties will net
make such exchange at all. The coun-
try resounds with the cry that we have
not money enough. Not money
enough ? Show ne the place where
per cent bonds can be had for Treas
ury notes, and [ will show you where
millions of treasury notes can be had.
NOT MONEY ENOUGH?
Twenty years ago, the whole bank note
circulation of the country was but lit
tie more, than two hundred millions.
Not dollar of it was legal tender.
The whole coin reserve was less than
a hundred millions. There was no
Cry then of want of money. Not mon
ey enough? Money was never so cheap