The weekly clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1863-1882, 1877-12-19

THE SILVER QUESTION
Able Speech of Senator Matthews
in Favor of Making Silver
Legal Tender.
a True Statement of the Com tract
Between the Governments and
the BOndhOIders.

WASHINGTON December l0.-The resolu-
ton of Senator Matthews declaring the
sense of the Senate on The subject of the
contract is the payment of interest on bonds
in gold and silver being up, Mr.. Matthews
said: The General Assembly of the State of
Ohio. at its session last winter, adopted
resolution favoring the restoration of the
silver dollar. This resolution was passed
with great unanimity, there being but
negative votes in the House of Representa-
tives, and one in the Senate. He had no
doubt that it expressed the considerate and
deliberate opinion of the people of that
State on that subject with the same unanim-
ity, and it was evidenced by the Represen-
tatives in the passage of the resolution. lie
had been moved in part by that resolution
to submit the one now before the Senate,
though his resolution did not cover the
whole ground. That of the Ohio General
Assembly ex pressed the opinion that such
a restoration of the silver dollar was de-
manded by financial wisdom, and declared
it would be in pursuance of proper public
policy to do so. 1t was not
HIS PURPOSE
now to discuss the latter proposition as to
what would be expected and polite for the
Government and the people to do, but what
it would be right 10 do. In his opinion it
would be right for the Government TO do
so, and he used The word light in its legal,
equitable and moral sense lJ was his pur-
pose to-day to only show that by the letter
and spirit of the law the Government had a
right to restore TIE silver dollar, aud would
be justified in doing so; and, further, to
show that outside of the law, taking in view
all the circumstances of the case, every in
cident of financial legislation that the res
| toration OF the dollar would not be in VIOLA
ton of the declaration of public honor, pub
| lie justice or public equity.
He then quoted from the Act to strength
en- Public Credit approved March, 1869, and
argued that the word 'tcoin" as used in this
act must not be interpreted to refer to gold
| coin alone. If it must be so interpreted
| then it would be just as dishOnorable and
| Just as illegal to pay United States Treasu-
! nv notes now in circulation as money in
anything else but gold coin as it would be
| to pay bonds with anything but such coin.
| There were Senators here who were familiar
with the circumstances attending the pass
| age of this law and the history of the legis-
lation anteeedenG to its passage. The queS-
! ton that it was designed to solve was not
| dou btful one. The greenbacks had been
made legal tender for all debts and demands,
public and private, except interest on the
public debt and for customs duties. The
/ question had therefore been agitated as to
whether the principal of the debt might not
| lawfully be paid in greenbacks, and to meet
THIS QUESTION,
to answer it in the negative the public credit
/ act of 1879 was passed. In his opinion the
original indebtedness of the country could
never have been liquidated with any other
/
have been settled with mere promises to
| pay in lieu of coin dollars. That act was
intended to settle any question as to paying
the principal of these bonds, aud it did seem
| to him that if it had been contemplated that
these bonds should be paid only with gold
money it would have been so stated, SO that
| in undertaking to settle doubt this statute
will not have raised a new one. The act OF
1869 declared the government would pay
coin dollars, and what did coin mean? At
/ haf nothing
EXCEPT that which by law might be coined
/ as money, and there were no statute books
at that time or any other law which pre-
scribed how many grains of gold there should
/ be in gold coin, and how many grains OF
silver in silver coin, and from the beginning
| of the government down to that time the
silver dollar was known to the people OF the
country as one of our coins. He next quot
ed from the act of 1862, the 9Th section,
which provided that all duties on imports
should be payable in coin, and coin so re-
ceived should be set apart as a special fund
/ tor certain purposes, etc, and argued that
| up to the act OF 1872, which dropped the sill
| yer dollar from the coin OF the u nited States,
1 the silver dollar was receivable for customs
\ duties, and was pledged for the payment of
the interest on the public debt.
ACT OF 1870.
He next quoted from act of July IA, 1870 ;
| it referred TO the standard coin then in ex-
istence. and no matter how much such coin
might be deprecated or debased, appreciated
/ or Increased in value by exercise Of sover-
| eign power OF the government. still that
should not affect the right of the holder Of
| these bonds. When they matHred the gov
| eminent would deliver to them so many
pieces OF gold or so many pieces OF silver as
| were known TO the law when the bonds were
issued. He argued that all the bonds. by
their terms. by the plain and proper mean
ing of the words on them, were redeemable
in the coins known 60 the statutes OF the