Mexico weekly ledger., 1878-12-12

the issue Of treasury notes during the
war, it has no authority, and entitled
to no respect, as an exposition OF the
constitution, when these notes are
proposed to be issued in a time of
peace. For surely, if it be consvitu-
tional to make the promise of the
government to pay dollars a legal
tender, no reason can be urged why
its certificates for so much coin, de-
posted to redeem this certificate,
should not also be made u legal ten-
der.
On the supposition that the opin-
| ion of the majority of the Supreme
Court applied to the issue oftreasury
notes in peace as well as in war, and
not exclusively to ''seasons of ext
gency," il has been urged that the
stringency of the times and the uni
versal depression of the industrial in
terests of the country would present
Il like exigency to justify an emission
Of legal tenders. am not of those
who believe that either the wants of
the government or the depression of
! business, are measures Of the powers
of this government. But aside from
this, the proposition assumes that the
function CT legal tender gives the
promissory notes of the government
a value which they would not other
wise have. This appears to me an
error-and one which our own histo-
Iry has demonstrated beyond cavil {.
The lcgal-tender when first issued
stood at the value, :.nd no higher, of
the notes of the solvent suspended
banks of the States. At no time
have they been more valuable than
the notes of the national banks
which have no legal-tender quality.
During our revolutionary conflict not
ONLY was the continental money
both of the confederation and of the
States made legal-tender, but strin-
gent penalties and heavy fines were
I tsuperaddcd to prevent their deprecia'
ton, and all TO no purpose. Limita-
. ,,f of
connected with receivability for gov
ernment dues, and eXchangeability
for government bonds, offer Il far bet
ter guaranty against depreciation
than the attribute of legal tender. II
truth, circulation that is forceJ
, upon the people without their con.
/ sent amounts to q proclamation o.
bankruptcy on the part of the gov
| ernmcnt. Being debt from the
! government to the people, it is con
= fession that the credit of the govern
a -rnert has sreachea--<s---l51TfrC T1nen /
/ cannot borrow money at fair rat,
:. oc interest, and is forced to take i
9 from the people with out their con
A sent, without interest. If the entir,
! tieIl of circulation is occupied by tht
5 treasury note, to the exclusion o
1 State and national bank paper, anC
, the volume OF paper circulation il
not in excess of the legitimate de
mands of business, no necessity cFl
: exist for endowing these notes will
legal-tendcr quality; nor need ther'
be any apprehension that the curren
cy, which will discharge all dues t
the general Government, will be re
| fused by the States and corporation
, IN payment Of local taxation, or b,
, individuals in payment Of debts.
Aside from its obvious want ofcon
: sti,utional warrant, the legal tende
theory has served the bad purpose 0
giving counterance to the perniciou
, hercsy of "absolute" Or "iat mon
cy," and the absurd proposition tina
it is the stamp of the governmen
/ that alone makes money. For j
) needs no argument to show that j
) Congress has the power to invest tn
pronissory note of the government
with the attributes of money, it Is
5 power without any limitation, and i
: may as we'll fabricate money out o
the paper en- which the note is en-
graved, or out of any other materia
however valueless. In abandonin:
the firm and safe ground of the con
, stitution, We necessarily rush into thI
quicksands of absolute money, repu
, diation, and national and individua
bankruptcy.
If the views | have thus briefly
presented are not fallacious, the issu,
E of legal tender notes is not only !:
i, usurpation by the Federal govern
ment, but one that subserves no gooe
end. 1t is an invasion of the right!
of the States and of the people, with
out any compensating results. Fo
years past, we have witnessed tn,
effects ofcentralized power and Fed
eral encroaehment. Glass legislation
reconstruction acts, improper an6
illegal interference with the rightfu
authority of the States, and a genera
disregard of constitutional restraints,
have borne their legitimate fruits,
/. and the Democratic party cannot
afford to abandon the principles or
which it i; founded, and to trample
under its feet doctrines of constitu-
tional construction, which, when APP
4 piled to the administration of the
government, have never failed to
bring security to property, and pros
-