Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1877-12-27
SILVER.
Congressman Hazelton Interview ed
by Chicago Tribune
Correspondent.

main here during the holiday recess, and will
devote his time to departmental business and
to the preparation of work for the regular ses-
sion. Mr. Hazelton has very positive and de-
fined views upon the silver question, and in
the course of a conversation recently with the
Tribune correspondent, gave expression to
those views in the manner detailed below. 1t
will be observed that Mr.. Hazelton thinks the
President should at least not have expressed
the desire to exclude the old silver dollar from
any place in the coin of the country, and
should have given the dollar chance, SO that
it might be ascertained whether or not it will
not prove the equal of gold. Mr.. Hazelton
considers that the condition precedent to re-
sumption is the reconciliation of silver.
What appear to you, Mr.. HaZelton, to be
the essential conditions of resumption ?"
81 look upon resumption, either at the time
now fixed by law or further on in the future,
as conditional absolutely upon the remonetiza-
ton of silver, and its future increased coinage
and recognition as money-sde by side with
gold-as it has been in the past history of our
own Government and as it is to>day in some of
the leading nations of the Old World and
upon this also depends largely the revival of
trade and commerce, and the vast business
enterprises which engage capital and labor in
the United States"
against silver {? f"
Il have noticed that among the gold advo4
Gates here at the Capital nearly all make con-
cessions in favor of the use of silver as a limit,
ed auxiliary to our metallic currency. The
contest seems to be between those who would
use it in a degraded form, limiting its legal
tender capacity in any event, and those who
would restore it to its original status in Amer
lean coinage, increased in amount, with unlim-
tied legal-tender capacity, and regulate its
value so as to place the silver dollar at par
with what is now s full legal-tender money!
and employ it alike with gold in the gigantic
work of resumption and the payment of the
public indebtedness, and all the purposes of
trade and commerce, and thus give the nation
two strong arms of financial power, instead of
one impaired and weakened by the loss of the
other The Director of the Mint comedies
that there should be silver dollar authorized
by law as an auxiliary to the money of large
payments aud further says that with our
present minting capacity We could with full
working force coin silver dollar pieces at the
rate of 81 100000 per month, and at the same
time manufacture the necessary gold, trade,
and fractional and silver coinage. The issue
of silver dollars for circulation to the cunt
above stated ($2 100000 per monthly would no
doubt prove of much benefit to the public and
aid in stimulating the revival of business. It
would also serve to steady the value of silver,
and protect an important mining interest nor
does the President or the Seer etary of the
Treasury, who seem to be in accord upon this
question, disparage silver as one OF the two
precious metals which furnish the coinage of
the world, but they stand upon a silver coinage
of limited legal tender, and claim, as a matter
of law, honor, and expediency, that the public
debt of the United States is justly payable in
gold coin alone, or in coin of equal value which
means Of course, coin of unlimited legal-tender
capacity. In other words, they are in favor of
maintaining the circulation of the two metallic
currencies, silver and gold, for all commercial
purposes of the country, but the single gold
standard for the payment of the public debt
The President states, in his message, that the
bonds issued prior to 1873 we're issued at a
time when the gold dollar was the only coin in
circulation or contemplated by either the Gov
eminent or the holders of the bonds as the coin
in which they were to be paid
"What answer do you make to the cry of
the bondhoder that payment of the bonds in
silver is a breach of faith I?
"Suppose, for the sake of argument, that
gold were as much below par to day as the sill
yer was above par at the times the acts of
Congress authorizing this bonded debt were
passed, viz: prior to February, 1878, what
would be the good faith of the Government
under such circumstances Would the bonds
holder say We were to be paid in gold coin
alone - What reason was there for such an
understanding between the Government and
the bondholder as the President insists upon
silver was more valuable than gold. Were
the bondholders seeking investment in that
which was worth the least when they were not
even asked so to do =? In 1871 the silver doll
worth l03 10 in American gold coin ; in 1862,
1O4.16 in 1853, 10406; in 1864, 10406 in
1865, 1882 in 1865, 1888 in 1867, 1922
81; in 1868; l02.57; in 1869, 10247; in
1870, lO2 81; in 1871, 102.57; 1872, 1925;
and in 1873, l00.46, being at premium above
the dollar in American gold coin when it was
hit on the head by blow from the great power
that had given it life: Aud yet, during all
this time the bondholder did not contem~
plate that he was to be paid IN such coin. In
1872 the Government coined Sl,1l2,96l, and
in 1878, 1871 $50, in this dollar of the faith
ers,' and had minted since 1853 $S,045,S3S of
the same silver coinage, aside from the trades
dollar and subsidiary coin. Does it look as if
he President had seen and read the act of
March, 1869, when he made this declaration in
his message? 1t had been contended that the
principal of certain kinds of bonds issued prior
to this time we're payable in greenbacks, and
the interest only in coin. The dividing line OF
conflicting opinion was between greenbacks
and coinage of silver and gold and not be-
tween the two metallic currencies-silver and
gold. Congress passed this act as conclusive
expression of the public faith towards its cred>
itors They passed it in order to remove any
doubt as to the purpose of the Government to
discharge all its just obligations TO the public
creditors, and to settle conflicting questions
and interpretations of the law by virtue of
which such obligations have been contracted
and, leaving nothing to CONCENTRATIONS, sol,
EMMY pledged the faith of the Government to
the payment of the United States notes IN
coin, and the interestebearing obligations in
oold and slyer, except in cases where the law
itself authorizing the issue of such obligations
expressly provided that the same may be paid
in other currency. The word coin at that
time. and from the foundation of the Govern
ment, by all its Departments, in its statutes
and under its Constitution, was, and had been
recognized and construed as meaning both gold
and silver. and so continued down to the act of
demonstration in February, 1878 was so uns
derstood and expressed in the debates OF both
Houses of Congress upon the passage OF the
act of 1859. and so recognized by the highest
Courts of the States and the Supreme Court of
the United States, from its earliest adjudica-
tons down to and including the legalItender
cases of December, 1870, as meaning the gold
and silver coin of the United States"
"What remedy would you propose"
Give this silver dollar of the fathers a
Just and reasonable opportunity to assert its
true relative value to gold by restoring it to its
original place in American coinage and circula-
ton, and then, if it shall not stand on par
With gold, regulate its value accordingly as has
been done in the past history OF Congressional
n - L..
legislation. You will hot thus impair the pub
lie faith, but increase the capacity OF the ma
ton to maintain its faith" u. b. w.
In will be found upon inquiry OF represen-
tative store keepers in city and town, that