Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1878-09-06
OF which there will be


and in Treasury. 2j525, $4,000
Principal of debt es-
timated to be due
and unpaid on that
date ....,........... 4O.O,OOJ.OO
Coin interest esti-
to be dHe and un-
paid at that date. 4OOO,OOO.OO
------S 79,526 1900
Excess Sl29 i85, ,563.15
The gold coin on hand stated above at $780,
230l6.S5, does not include redeemed gold GER
tihcates, or any other coin item, but is actually
gold coin.
There was also in the treasury at that date
S5,095 2f5SS fractional silver coin. Very re-
spectfully,
JAS. GIN FuLAN. Treasurer United States.
Hon. JOHN SHERMAN, Secretary of Treasury.
1t thus appears that, over and above all coin
liabilities the treasury has 7129. .4Sj. .553.15 be-
sides S509j, ,2i63S fractional silver coin, availa-
bic for resumption purposes without any charge
demand whatever against it, and supported
by the power, If necessary, To sell bonds in aid
of resumption. With this sum, and with the
powers conferred by law. | am satisfied that it
is easy to maintain resumption, and SUCH be-
Geve, is now the judgment of the best business
men Of the country, and of those most expert
enced in financial matters.
Since the passage of the Resumption act every
Pre- mise and expectation of the friends of this
act have been justified by events, and every
prophecy of its opponents has been falsihed
Every step in the process of resumption has
been open. public, and frank, and beneficial in
n business sense. All the evils which you have
suffered are the direct result OF the imitation of
paper money and the panic which preceded the
Resumption act. The whole process of resump-
ton has substantially been carried on since the
LIST of May, 1877. and has been attended with re-
viving business and prosperity. The failures
that have occurred during this time have been
the direct result of engagements and contracts
made before that date.
And now, fellow-citizens, the real question is,
shall we 90 forward and complete this process,
or shall we go back again to the period of ire
deemable money with its inevitable resulting
of evanston. imitation and manic z
With all our promises record, we should not
be deluded by the cry for " fiat" money. Pre-
cisely what is the meaning of this phrase do
not know, but presume it means money that
is not measured by any other, that is not redeem
able in any other but has its origin, force, sane
tion and value in the mandate of the Govern
ment, and Will vary day by day IN purchasing
power.
greenback regenerated. restored, convertible into
coin. the standard of all value, and the medium
of all Payments / am for the green back against
= nat money. great nation ike ours, rich IN
varied resources with free people of remarkable
intelligence is not driven to resort to any expedi-
ents which would affect the public credit or the
public debt or disturb our harmonious relations
in trade with foreign nations but should adapt its
money to the money of the civilized world, make
it as good as any other money, and maintain its
standard of value as high as that of any coin ever
issued from the mint.
Some of you who believe in fiat" money say
you desire the same result, but it is clear that
YOU can only maintain this money at par with
or by actual redemption in coin when demanded.
If that is what you mean by nat money, then
we will not disagree but It Is well known that
crease the amount beyond a sum that can be
maintained at par with coin, and who seek thus
to cheaper money by making 1t less valuable
than coin.
Senator Thurman, my colleague for many
years in the Senate, freely sand, like Mr.. Bayard
and Others he desired resumption: and stood by
the old Jackson Democracy IN favor of hard
money. The exlgencles of party tactics have led
him recently to make a speech to which, with
entire respect for him, l desire briefly to reply.
So far as he seeks to show his consistency and
concurrence with his tellOw-Democrats, 1t is a
domestic matter, and | will not interfere, but
some OF the positions taken by him l must con-
test. He says:
think do them no injustice when | say the
leaders of the Republican party are in favor of
directly the opposite courseLthat Is 10 say they
their places might be filled with National Bank
notes.
Senator Thurman is greatly mistaken in this
position. As have already shown, the Republi-
can party is not i'll favor of retiring the green
backs in order that their place might be filled
with National Bank notes. No doubt some Re-
pubhcans, like some Democrats, are in favor OF
the United States withdrawing from the business
of issuing paper money, but the Republican par
ty has never taken such position, and now dis
tincty maintains the right and duty of the Gov
ernment to keep in circulation such an amount
of United States notes as can readily be man.
tained at par with coin. In every law authorl-
NAiAE NA.N"N t''NsN' - --~N -
amount. During the war the guarantee was
made, and never has been violated, that the
amount should not exceed 0J, OQ,OOO, and ne
authority has ever been conferred upon any
officer of the Government TO reduce the amount
below 500, 900 00J, but now the minimum limit
is fixed as [ have already stated at $780, 6Sl ,0l6
In his speech at Hamilton Senator Thurman
openly advocates increasing the amount oil
United States notes outstanding from S3i6 i6OOO,OA
TO 5'66S 900 900 by issuing United States notes II
place of the National Bank notes outstanding
He declares that the principal feature OF the
Democratic platform Is the proposed substitu'
tion of greenbacks tor National Bank notes. Ht
would thus render specie payments impossible
during this, and perhaps, the next generation
and this at a tifAe when specie resumption, which
he has SO strongly favored, Is on the eve OF sue
The position of the Republican party is il
favor of greenbacks restored to their norma
condition of paper money equal 70 com ana ana, re
while the position of the Democratic party, al
stated by Judge Thurman, is in favor of the lssu'
and maintenance in circulation of s66s OOO,OOO o
United States notes without any provision what
ever for their redemption or their conversion mt
coin. This issue is distinctly made, and for on
l distinctly accept IT. we favor paper none! ne
can be maintained at par with coin, while h
favors an amount of paper issued directly by tn
Government, not convertible INTO coin with NJ
that no one has claimed can be maintained a
He saws it is Just as easy TO maintain S66s 900,
900 greenbacks at par with com as It Is 20 main
tain s346, 900 600 greenbacks and S322, ,uOO0 900 Ma
tional Bank notes at par with coin. But he for
! gets to state that the bank notes are payable Il
| greenbacks and not in COIN and that they are
| be redeemed by the banks at their risk and eX
| pense and not by the United States. No COZ
| reserve is needed by them for such redemption
| The issue of these notes aids in malntasnlng IN
| United States notes at par with coin instead o
| obstructlng it. ,
| The banks are required to keep in their vault
| and in the Treasury of the United States,
ample reserve of United States notes to redeer
| their notes and thus give to the United state
| notes a use which tends to maintain them at pa
| with coin. The whole burden now resting upO
| the Government iR to maintain resumption upo
| the amount of United States notes, and thl
| confessedly can be done by a coin reserve q
| from thirty to forty per cent, which we have o
/ hand, while, If the whole amount OF circulatlo
was in United States notes, no coin reserve tina
| could be reasonably secured and malntalne
would be sufficient for the purpose of redeml
tion.
The bank notes are not in any case the notes
/ the Government. They are the notes Of priVal
| corporations, amply secured, redeemed by then
maintained by them, or, II they tall 70 redeel
them, the security can at once be applied To the
! redemption. This expedient of allowing po
ton OF the circulation tO be issued by prlNa
! corporations enables us TO maintain IN clrcul
| tiOn nearly twice as much paper money as coui
be maintained at par in coin II issued dlrect
by the Government
His plan would directly violate the provision
of the loan laws, under which both unlted otat
bonds and notes are issued, and which lmit e.
presslY the amount of United States notes
| SiOOOOOOOO. This would be a violation oi o.
public faith, and would impair at once the pu
lio credit, and do incOnceiyably more harm tha
il would give profit 10 the Government,
| TINS scheme of his encounters directly the a.
cision OF the Supreme Court Of the United STATE
and would, no doubt, be held uneonstitutiona