The New York herald., 1878-02-09


they askf Distrustiag as do all such expansions
OF government powers. whether In despotsms
aeDsrots srsussa,s are GOOD enough to prove the
Coinage act OF 1873 repealabe by the Silver bill de-
carng 4125 grains OF silver legal tender for every
debt payable only In rs grains gold then they
are good enough to prove Legal Tender consti
tutona TO justify imitation till our greenbacks are
worthless continental currency or French assgnas
and to authorize reputation OF ninete Just
well as one-tcnth oil the public debt.
EXPLICIT AND IMPLICIT PLEDGES
Now admit that the act OF 1873 contains no such
explicit pledge OF the public faith the Public Credit
acs Of 1863 admit that the pledge In 1873 is only
implicit. But what will explicit pledges OF the public
faith be good fer alter Implicit pledges have been vo
lated? admit that the Congress OF 1878 cannot bind
a subsequent Congress unless II authorized public
debt tho validity OF which cannot be questioned.
But little could the Congress of 1869 bind sub
sequcnt Congress-. The faith ana honor OF the
country repose in the wisdom and integrity OF the
Forty-dfth Congress-, and will be handed on 10 It's
sacyed trust .ne 81 h "
else OF its contin uous power 10 'con money ana
regulate the value thercof as IN s continuous power
TO borrow money the credit OF the United States.
The validity OF public debts may be Questioned by the
exercise OF either power, aud either may Interfere
vested rights, repudiate public pledge, or I'm.
pair the value oil contracts. recent amendment OF
The constitution itself declares that the validity OF
the public debt OF tho United states authorized
by law" shall not be questioned. Governor Hen
bricks asks
Docs tho power to coin money and regulate the value
become exhsusteds
answer Certainly not but its exercise like that Of
public debt. 1t 10 o comparatively trivial matter
whether unit OF value IS placed IN certain fixed
number grains OF single metal or placed in each OF
two meials according to fixed proporttoDate woigh
as 1=15 1=1h5. or 1=l6. This pure convenience
But every exercise ol The coinage power heretofore,
whether adjusting TO their market value and equiva-
lence the weights of the two metals
der the bi-metallic or double Standard or whether
passing from the double standard, after long expert
epce OF lis inherent difficulties. TO the single standard,
has pre- served unbroken continuity aud equality OF
vaine in whatever coin Congress called s.doliar''
1aual i
power again be exercised and the careful forty
years progress from double TO single standard must
now be reversed in o day, and the double standard
dlficultics all bc encountered again, that change
OF policy offers reason for breaking now
as heretofore equality In both metals, and Its
tnuous equality, too must DO preserved, else the
lander would be q MEANS not merely OF dcfrauding
the public creditor. but also oil doing innumerabe
acts OF injustice between private citizens, in which
HANDS Of the rich and strong Governor Hendricks
asks:-
Why and tho Coinage act Of 1879 sacred
m"dinsas nna mssn' A'A0'' 'A-A 'A' 0''' ~ = 49,
answer that It not excepting to the validity
and integrity Of the public debt The act OF 1884
was the first step toward single gold standard the
act of 1S49 ne second the act OF 1858 tho third the
doubtless follow Those acts, parallel with SIM
liar legislation in most OF the commercial nations OF
Europe. may bo repealed. although hope not. OK.
loast with the Latin Union What IS sacred and IRE
pealable is the pliehted faith aud the validity
Sssass ss Of s sa' msKSs a s.ns
grams silver would buy that gold coin in any marKe.
Nor would good faith be jeoparded In the repeal
OF the act OF 1873 by another act now making dollar
containing silver enough to bo worth as much
dollar in gold. But the act OF 1873 is, trust, sacred
and rrepeaabie as against any act subvertng the
gold dollasunt OF value Is not sacred and ir
repeaIabIe as against proposed act declaring
lar would not give u sixpcnce for its sacredness
against another act next year declaring one cont
equal TO 100 cents
When the Reunding act OF 1870, providing for the
payment Of bonds 'fn coin Of the present standard
valuen was modified by the act Of 1878, the change
was no change OF standard value, aud therefore
worked no change In tho value OF Investments The
discarded silver dollar would then buy the
gold dollar In iact the change happened to preserve
the value Of investments In the public debt, because
the immense and augmenting increase Of the
silver product and the diminished use Of the
me ta IN parts Of Europe have since caused lali in
its value not countcracted by our own largely In
creased Of IT, now greater than ever before. even
when full legal tender. No human being could have
the Coinage act OF 1873 would result In
lie debt That uniform value, and the confidence,
thus betrayed In the faith and honor OF the
Unied States, have made possible 70 effect steaoy
reduction IN the interest OF the public debt by which
$500 OOO O0O more would be saved the total burden
OF the debt than the maximum profit from It's fall in
uniform value thus preserved by q gold standard Of
the public debt has been quite inestimable impor
tance preventing frghtIul spread Of financial dis
tress during the last three Years. OF the 900
bonds thus seaded In value. s., 800, 1000,
according to the best estimates. are owned in this
country or these 81 ,300 000 900 not one-twente
part held by rich individuals Ninetecn-twen.
teths at least held by savings banks, trust COM
panies, companies and estates, nearly all
rcpresen ting the savings the industrious poor or
the support OF widow and orphan. While the invest.
ments Of rich bavo been shrinking, their mills
closing their real sunk under mortgages, their
railroads deaulting and our weltodo merchants and
traders breaking down by thousands under falling
values every hand, suffering tar more koenIy and
generally in all Eastern cites than any Western rural
populations can begin to imagine, these millions OF
our national dobs e, 500 GOO Of them through our
savings banks alone) have been spared the alichon
OF seeing their investment tumbling down in the gen.
era ruin.
The silver miners of Novada and California are rich
at the lowest price of their beautiful metal, which
should now come into wider household uses, and
their profits still enormous. They do not need
that Congress should try 10 enhance the price OF their
commodity at sucn irgntful cost 20 tho poor OF our
land. How can they recompense the producers Of
our cotton corn and wheat for another tidal wave Of
changing pricess How can they and the polisicians
atone to the mercantile classes Tor superadding
another OF fuctuating prices 10 that from which
We had just begun TO emergeY
REPUTATION AND ISPLAr10N.
The pay day Tor tho principal of public debt Ia
q long way or TO tighten the burden OF that distant
generation by fraud the silver bill will keep the In
terest burden on the present generation heavier than
1t need be by two per cent on more than
81, O00 o00,0O0 per annum. Shnplaster inlationsts
the public debt. Politicians hide their consent to
that dshonor undor abored Phrases about remoneti-
zation oil silver and bi-metaliic currency
The honest men Of tho United States must
mako answer to both. To the advocates OF repu-
daton It Is enough TO say that down that precipce
there place halt. Before II Is too atebefore
tbe first fatal step taKen-sbal not the honor and
conscience Of the American people bid their Congress
pause
10 those who talk 80 AIppantly about remonetizing
silver and oi-metac currency, IL Is enough TO say
that there is but one way TO accomplish that end;
q preliminary international conference ana then
ii possible concerted legislation between the United
States and the leading commercial! nations OF
Europe or ut least the Latin Union. Tho
Silver bill would shut US out from such conference
and insure It's failure in advance, ior It would drain
OH the gold from the United Sta,es and make a BIZ
metallic standard long impossible. IL would give
France and her associate nations the opportunity
they are waiting for to demonetize their silver, and
enable Germany TO complete her present purpose. No
European nation would then JOIN Ia any concerted
plan 10 remonetzo silver ana link IL to gold IN gen.
eral bnctailIc standard Our own Jolly would have
poured all our gold into tho lap OF Europe, and