Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1878-03-02


him was for resumption. Secretar,
:, John Sherman, at the head of tn
? Treasury, holds the position. III
! will enforce the sternest and hardes
! execution of the law. And it is un
derstood that any bill to repeal TIN
! clause will nows7beivetoed. / have
/, heretofores said that Gin my belief tn,
! resumption law has been the sourc'
of the greatest calamity to the bust
ness interests and prosperity of the
! country. 1t has had the effect o
causing men TO hoard greenbacl1.
and the banks to withhold and Il
withdraw circulation, in the fear o.
being crushed by forced resumption
in gold"
A favorable foreign trade has
promoted a return TO specie pay.
ments, and if the balances shall con
tinue in our faVorI expect to see ouI
paper money at par with gold at an
early day. Will the restoration OF
silver money mitigate the evils OF
contraction caused by the resump-
tion law? That is now the hope OF
the business men of Indiana. 1t is
not as cheap money that the people
demand its restoration, but as a legal
tender and coin contemplated by
the Constitution. When restored it
will become again standard and
measureOf value. Before its demon
citation silver was of par value
with gold, and when restored l
think it will rise again to the same
level. Ineed hardly say to you that
the value of any class or description
of property greatly depends upon
the important uses to which it may
be applied. Silver was money.
They stripped it of that, its most
| important use, and now say it is
worth s per cent. less than before,
| and therefore it cannot be good
mouey. Is that fair argument? AS
| a material for the manufacture of
ware silver will have only the value
which that use can give it; but
when stamped with the quality of
money, and made a legal tender for
the payment of all classes of indebt-
edness, it becomes the active agent
of trade and commerce; measures
values and discharges debts, and in
such use becomes correspOndingly
more important to society and more
valuable. Were gold stripped of
the quality of money what would be
the effect upon its value? | do not
believe the pennyweight of gold in
the beautiful wine-cup is as useful
to society nor as valuable as the
same weight of gold in the stamped
coin which does busy work in .the
channels of trade; and the demOne-
tization of gold would demonstrate
that fact. | have heretofore said
that "siIver has become an impOr-
tant product of this country, and in
asmuch as the world recognizes it as
money medium of exchange, /
cannot see why we should notutilize
our larger product Of that metal to
the greatest extent that may be found
practicable. Its value as money to
this country is too great to be thrown
away"
Should experience prove that, be- !
cause of the increased production of
silver, there will be a permanent !
and important difference between
silver and gold, Congress is clothed |
with ample power to provide the !
proper and adequate remedy.
1t is objected to the restoration OF |
silver money that it will be in bad |
faith toward the public creditors. |
If thought that possible | would |
not favor restoration, however i'm
portant to our interests | might es-
teem it. My judgment is so entirely
satisfied that ] have no anxiety |
upon that question. The question
is settled by the fair reading of the |
nN 81
Refunding Act of 1870. At the date
of the former act it was lawful to pay
the five-twenty bonds written out
in Treasury notes. But ii was con-
tended that because of the circum-
stances attending the creation of the
debt, it would not be proper to 80
construe the laws, and that payment
ought not to be made in paper. To
remove doubt and settle all contrO-
uersy the act was passed. 1t pledged
the faith of the United States to pay
ment in coin. l opposed the meas
ure in the Senate, and said that its
effect would be to make the law to
read that the debt shall be paid in
coin. The bill passed and became
law. TheTeupon the debt became
payable only in coin, not i'm gold
coin alone, but in silver coin as well,
for the silver dollar was then q part
of the coin of the country, as hon
ored in law and commerce as gold.
Next came the law of July IA, 1870,
to refund the national debt. That
act provided for the issue of new
bonds to the amount of 81 ,500,0 ,000,-
900, bearing 4, Al and 5 per cent. in
terest. The bonds so to be issued
were to be exchanged for the out
standing five-twenty bonds, "par
for par" or sold for coin, and the
were to be used in redeem
ing five-twenty bonds. In the first
section of the law it was provided
that the new bonds should be made
'redeemable in coin, at the present
Of value" That law, gen.
tlemen, had no uncertain meaning.
The new bonds were to be substi-
tuted for all the outstanding five
twenty bonds they were to be sold
for coin; and it was to be made a
part of their language that they
shall be made "redeemable in coin
of the present standard value" Ny
views on this subject were recently ,
Oh SuillClGill Importance
by distinguished citizen of New ,
York to call for review and ans
wer by himself. He had unques-
given the phraseology of
the laws relating to the bonds a
closer study than had, for it was
in the line of his business and of ,
his profits. / had examined those
laws with no professional or bust
ness purpose, but only as n citizen ,
in the financial policy !
Of the country. He found it useful
to his argument to show, if possible,
that the law under which the public
debt was being refunded required !
the bonds to be paid in gold. He
used this language: "Yet ! am sup ,
ported by the opinion of the illus
trious lawyers in the land that gold ,
Of the debt are required
and assured by the Refunding Act !
Of 1870 itself, which indeed mentions !
coin in its first section, but
in its fifth section, to carry out the !
act, excludes silver and specifically !,
the Secretary of the
to receive only gold coin !
IS the coin Of deposit and payment"
I am sure it will astonish you, after /