The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1878-12-09
THE BANKS AND SILVER,
senator Beck's ResolutJon-The First Gur
of the Campaign Between Com
Rress and the Banks
WashingtOn Post,

washington Post
The purpOrt and possible couseounnoo ~
the resolution introduced by Senator Eacl.
and adopted by the Senate are important
enough to demand more than ordinary atfen.
ton. The resolution asks the Secretarv nf
the treasury whether any silver coin has been
IeGslveu ,.'s, py the government In payment of
duties since the beginning of the current fiscal
year, and II so, what has been done with II
Inc distressing peculiarity of this small and
apparently inoffensive inquiry lies in the fact
that the laws Of the United States, REVISED
Statutes, section 1894. enjoin and direct ass
follows. t''
The coin paid for duties on imported
goods snail be set apart as a special fund
and shall be applied as follows
fifst-Io The payment in coin of the in
terest on the bonds and notes of the United
States. = - -"
Second-To the purchase or payment of
one per centum of the entire dent of the
United states, to be made within each fiscal
year, Whlch Is to be set apart as n sinking
fund, and the interest Of which shall. in like
manner. be applied TO the purchase or paw
mcnt OF the public debt, MS the Secretary III
tho treasury shall from time to time direct.
lhlrd.Ihe residue to be paid into the
Now, this law means that 'the coin" re-
ceived at the sub-treasuries I'm payment oF
customs duties shall be paid TO the holders of
coupons. There Is nothing in the law to dis
tlnguish one substance OF coinage from an
other. The silver dollar is coin. The Score
tary OF the Treasury, therefore, has no alter
native under the law but to tender to the,
banks In payment Of interest on the bonds,
they hold, the silver dollars paid into the anh
treasury through the CustOn-ho,lse. If he
fails to do this, or If he uses those silver dol.
lars for any other purpose than that of pavino,
the Interest on the public doubt. he Is held
under another section of the same statute
guilty OF embezzlement, and punishable by n
heaVy me IN or Imprisonment for five years, or
both: Ihus, II Mr.. Sherman has used the all
yer dollars paid Us duties even TO buy gold
coin with which to pay interest on the bonds
ne mas violated the law, which was framed
with an express view to compel the use of the
Identical coin received for customs In payment
Of the interest. The silver dollars reeeivea
through the eustom-house must be covered
INTO the sub-treasury substantially, and can
not be removed except in exchange for inter
eSt coupons. They cannot be taken to my
traits drawn for any purpose whatsoever
Mf Shertnan however, has repeatedly drawn
them out and exchanged them for other coin
70 wit: gold, in prosecution Of his policy Of
assisting the banks to dsCredt the silver dol.
ar.
The object of Senator Beck's resolution 10
20 prevent this discrimination in the future
lnd punish 1T in the past. The law says that
silver dollars shall be receivable for customs,
{ also says that the coin received for customs.
shall be applied to the payment Of puftie in.
crest ffSt and foremost. But the banks
,aye declared that they will not receive silver
'oilars except as special deposits, to be re-
)ald In Kind. Senator Beck has raised the
sSlle between the laws of the United Stafes
lud the schemes Of the national banks He
las, IN fact, Tired the first gun Of the fmpend-
ng campaign,