The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1877-07-20
THE RESUMPTION ACT.
Action OF the Cincinnati Chamber OF
Commerce ON the Subject
A Resolution Adopted Asking Congress
to Postpone the Date Of Its En-
KOFcmeent.

a Resolution Adopted Asking Congress
to Postpone the Date Of Its En-
| EOrcmeent.
Remarks OF the Hon. Richard Smith
| Editor OF the 'Gazette," on the
| Subject.
CINCINNATI, Ohio. July 8th.-
lon Saturday afternoon the
Chamber of commerce was call
ed to order by the President, who
stated that the object was for the
instruction of its delegates to the
National Board of Trade in re-
gard to the resumption act.
Among the speeches on the sub
ject was one by the Hon. Rich
ard Smith, editor of the Gazette,
who spoke as follows:
1 arise not to defend the resolu-
tions particularly, because l don't
think they require it but to place
myself right on the record. ]
wish to say that am not an infla-
ZIONIST. i believe the stability OF
this country, the interests of the
commerce and industrial interests
of this country require the re-
sumption of specie payments at
as early time as is practicable.
/ believe we shall have no stabili-
ty until the time comes when the
United States shall be entirely
divorced from the issuance of pa
per money; when it shall be left
to private capitalists to supply the
country with O currency. So
long as the Government of the
United States shall undertake to
supply a paper, so long will the
business of this country be dis
turbed by inflactIonists on one
side and contractionists on
the other. SO long as the
government assumes the right
to issue paper-money prom
Uses to pay, which are not CONVEX
tible into coin, so long will this
be a political question, and We
shall have in every campaign in
this state, and every other state
this question of more money or
less money, and, so far IS the
people are conce-ned-the un-
thinking, unreasonIng people
it will be more money, never less.
1t will be imitation all the time.
Now you have $75O,0OO,0OO of
paper money to-day, and the
question is how to get it off this
high ladder. The government
passed a resumption act to take
effect in January, 1879. We have
$15O,0O0,OO0 of gold, in the en-
tire United States, and $780,
100000 in. paper. We have the
4 per cent. loan, which is very
successful, and 1 am glad of it.
But that does not furnish gold
with which to resume, and if Con-
gress should adopt the PROPOSE
ton to remonetlze silver we would
have but $5O,O00,000 of silver
dollars, for we have the statement
that is all that the minis can
coin in a year. Then we would
have but $2O0,O00,OOO of specie
with which to redeem $70O,OOO,-
900 Of paper. But it is said if
the people find that they
can get specie they won't want
it. 1 don't know how that may
be now, but our state banks claim
ed to have 33 per cent. of their
paper in specie in their vaults,
there was often trouble. They
could not redeem 100 cents. with
thirty-three cents, and the United
States would not be any more
able to do so. It Is proposed that
the government shall pay specie
currency on the 1st of January,
1879, and it is perfectly notorious
that the government has nothing
to resume with except its credit.
1t has no money, and l say, as
said day before yesterday, that the
proposition is menace. 1t is q
scare, and you all know, mer.
chants and bankers, how the
country is influenced. 1t is afraid
and you are afraid, to invest your
money in anything. There is g
great deal Vi talk about the cheap.
ness of money. Why is money
cheap? Whenever you see mon
ey piling up in Third street and
Wall street, and in all the com
mercial centers of this country
and loaning at l and 2 per cent
per annnm. that is evidence that
business is stagnant, that enter.
prlses are paralyzed, that the in
dustries of the country are under
q cloud and that men are afraid
to invest their money in anything
that gives employment to labor
and which makes the industries
that are here represented.
Now, / do not believe in infla
tion, but believe that we shall
J have no stability in our finances,
in our commerce, er in our indus.
tries until the government of the
United States shall retire every
dollar of paper now in existence,
and until they shall get out OF
the business OF making gold and
silver, and leave the work to the
private capitalists of the country
under the best bank laws in exis-
tence in the county. Let politics
and government get out of the
financial affairs Of this country,
and you will not have on your
state and national platforms reso-
lutions offered that there must be
so much money issued In order
that there must be 80 much CAPT.
tai. Leave it to the law of trade,
but not of politics. TApplause.
Now, then, believe that the
government of the United States
is not prepared, nor will not be
prepared, to resume specie pay
ment on the 1st of January, 1879
If you remonetize the silver dol.
lor, even then you cannot resume
with that vitiated currency. ]
do not believe the government OF
the United States expected that
the resumption act would be
practicable when it was adopted
1t was adopted as . stepplng-stone
in the direction of specie pay