The anti-monopolist. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1874-1878, 1878-06-06

also open conviction. provided
they are wrong, and would therefore
like to call their attention to a few
facts. Assuming that they will de-
mand an increase Of the paper cur
rency and repeal OF the resumption
act as panacea for existing evils, we
call their attention to the following
facts, and ask refutation of them if
| any can be made:
First-The congress of the United
States has no constitutional power to
issue legal-tender notes in time of
peace. No such power is found in
| the constitution, or was ever claimed
by any of it's trainers or early ex-
Founders. Hamilton, Madison, and
other prominent men of the constitu-
tional period are on record as clearly
opposed to any such power. No good
lawyer has ever given an opinion that
congress possesses such power. Even
during the war it was claimed only as
was power. and the decision of the
supreme court sustaining the consti-
tutiOnality of the legal.tender act
clearly puts it on that ground. There
fore, in asking congress to initiate the
currency by a new issue of legal-ten-
der paper money, the Nationals ask it
to do that which it has no constitu-
tional right to do.
We answer:
l. The Supreme Court did NOT
place their decision as to the consti.
tutionality of the legal tender act up
on the sole ground that it was a war
necessity. That has been disproved
score of times.
II. The constitution of the United
States prohibits states from issuing
'bills of credits" the inference being
very clear that the United States has
that power.
III. The constitution of the Uni
ted States confers on the nation the
right Ito coin money and tx the val.
ue thereof and 'sto coin'' cannot be
understood in the narrow sense of the
word; it means to create money.
whether of gold, silver, copper,
nickle. brass. leather or paper
". If the nation has not the right
to issue greenbacks where do you find
the constitutional power to issue ma.
tional bank notes! They are printed
in the same Office at Washington. and
on the same kind Of paper, and are
simply issued by the government
through the Intervention of the bank.
ers, SO that the bankers may change a
profit for handling them. If the ma.
tion has no power to issue paper mon.
ey directly to the people, what right
has it to issue it indirectly!
The Journal continues:
standardization would be no rem.
J cdy for hard times, but on the contra
: ry, would introduce new element o1
disturbance. Every financial panic
which has ever occurred in this coun
try or in England has been preceded
by period of inflated currency and
expanded credit. The former pro.
duces the latter. Imitation Of the cur
, rency always produces expansion o1
credit, speculation, disregard Of the
laws Of trade. to be followed by col
lapse, disaster and ruin. We do moi
say that commercial panics are due te
paper money. but to paper money in.
. fiation, and that the ruin and distres!
caused by them have always beer
prpportioned to the amount Of paper
money in circulation and to the in
fiatiOn OF credit which has prevailed
T We assert this as general principle
and ask the convention to-day to dis
prove the assertion if it can. We
assert that there is no instance OF
record OF financial panic which wa.
, not preceded by period Of paper
money imitation, and that the severit,
and distress of the panic have always
been proportioned to the previous in
fiation of credit.
Now good reader, we will suppos.
; that you are taken suddenly and seri
ously sick; and you send for quack {,
: prescribe for you. The first question
he asks you is:-"were you quite vel
last weeki" "Very WE'LL" You re-
; ply. "You felt buoyant, happy ant
heartyf" he asks. .Exceedin9l,
|, so." you reply. Just as I though
> says Mr.. Quack, "your good health
last week was the cause of your sick
a ness. There never was a case O
: sickness yet that was not precede,
by condition of good health. It /
) the health that make men sick.
i And he prescribes a medicine tina
! will keep you sick.
81 So the quack Of the Journal declare
I that hard times have invariably fo
lowed periods Of abundant, or a h
3 calls it, ''innated'' Currency. n
fails to tell Jon that those periods q
81 inflated currency we're periods q