Ottumwa weekly courier. (Ottumwa, Wapello County, Iowa) 1872-1899, 1878-09-04
ed States was supplied with $2O9, oil,
753.l5 gold and silver coin and bul
1snu

VAShlNuioN, -. ". aug. V,Ioto.
Sir: I have the honor to advis
you that on August 10, 1878, ther
were in tho Treasury as follows:
Gold coin.... ."els5 ,27S ,018
Standard dollars IL, ,8s8 200 I
r Gold 6,bs9, ,65z &
Silver bulllon......,..... ,.........~...... 6,sl2,sl2
,0i4, ,753.
/ OF which there will be required
, for the following payments:
Unmatured calls Of $40 bonds....$ IS, ,OOO 900. @
} Coin certificates outstanding on
that date e4s, ,72l $40. less tl7,-
1886 100 redeemed and In Treasury 20, ,528, 1870 O
Principal of debt estimated to be
! due and unpaid on that date..... 1900, 900 o
Coin interest estimated to be due
and unpaid on that date........ .. 1000, 900. 0
Total rs, ,526, 1870
Excess Sl29. 4s5, $50. l
The gold coin on hand, stated abov,
at $lS5, ,273, ,0l6S5, does not include re
deemed gold certificates, or any Other
coin item, but is actually gold coin.
There was also in the Treasury on
that date 1906, ,246.3S fractional sill
yer coin. Very respectfully,
JAMES GILFILLAN,
Treasurer of the United States.
The Hon. John Sherman, Secretary
of the Treasury.
$l34, $4,000 IN COIN AVAILABLE OVER
ALL COIN LIABILlTIEs.
| 1t thus appears that, over and above
all coin liabilities, the Treasury has
$129, ,4S5, ,563l5, besides $5,O95, ,246. 80
fractional silver coin. available for
resu umption purposes without any
charge or demand whatever against
it, and supported by the power, if
necessary to sell bonds in aid Of re-
sumption. With this sum, and with
the powers conferred by law, l am
satisfied that it is easy to maintain re-
sumption, and such, l believe. is now
the judgment Of the best business
men of the country, and of those
most experienced in financial mat
ters.
l do not think it necessary to enter
more into detail as to the plan Of re-
sumption or the ability to maintain
resumption, or as to the arguments
for or against the measures adopted in
aid of resumption, as this subject was
thoroughly discussed in Congress,
and my own views fully explained to
the committees of Congress in inter-
views, published by the Senate and
House last winter and accessible no
doubt to you.
EVERY STEP HAS BEEN OPEN AND FRANK.
1t is sufficient to say that since the
passage Of the Resumption act every
promise and expectation of the
friends Of this act has been justified
by events, and every prophecy of its
opponents has been falsitied. Every
step in the process of resumption has
been open, public and frank, and ben
eficial iB a business sense. All the
evils which yon have suffered are the
direct result Of the imitation of paper
money and the panic which preceded
the resumption act. The whole proc
ess of resumption has substantially
been carried on since the 1st 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.
SHALL WE GO FORWARD OR RECEDE !?
And now, fellow-citizens, the real
question is, Shall we go forward aud
complete this process, or shall we 20
back again to the period Of irredeem-
able money, with its inevitable result
ing consequence of expansion, intla-
tion and panic? As you are the judges
of the last resort on this question,
| beg of you to consider come gener-
al principles gathered from the expe-
rience, not only of our own people,
but of all nations who have at any
period, maintained mixed standards
Of paper money.
WHEN IRREDEEMABLE PAPER MONEY
Is JUSTIFIED.
Irredcemsble paper money is only
justified by war carried to the extent
of national peril, when the life of the
nation is at stake. 1t ought to be re-
deemable as soon as the public cxi-
gencies will permit. 1t is not money,
but the promise to pay money. These
are sxioms of political economy, the
truth of which all experience has de-
monstrated. We issued this money
only in the midst of such peril. Our
error, if any, has been that we have
delayed too long the measures of re-
sumption. Now, when they are al
most complete, and gold, and silver,
and paper money are practically con-
yertible one into the other. when
there is the same money for the bond
holder and the noteholder, the rich
and the poor, when silver can be had
for notes, and gold in ample stores
awaits the day of resumption, we re-
publicans should not debate the ques-
tion of the repeal of the resumption
act.
WE ARE RIGHT, AND WE SHOULD GO
AHEAD.
With all our promises on record,
we should not be deluded by the cry
for "fiat' money. Precisely what is
the meaning of this phrase do not
know, but presume it means mon
ey that is not measured by any other
er-but has its origin, force, sanction
and value in the mandate of the gov
ernment, and will vary day by day
in purchasing power.
| As between this kind Of money and
the old greenback, regenerated, re-
stored and convertible into coin, the
standard of all value and the medium
of all payments, l am for the green
back against ''fiat" money. A great
nation like ours, rich in varied re-
sources, with free people of remark
able intelligence, is not driven to re-
sort to any expedients which would
affect the public credit, or the public
debt, or disturb our harmonious rela-
tions 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 main
tain this money at par with coin, Ell
ther by a careful limitation of its
amount, or by actual redemption in
coin when demanded. Ifthat is what
you mean by "fat" money, then we
will not disagree; but it is well known
that those who advocate "fiat" money
want to increase the amount beyond
sum which can be maintained at par
with coin, and who seek thus to
cheapen money by making it less val
liable than coin.
| WHO DESIRE CHEAP MONEY.
l imagine how man deeply in
debt and hoping to escape bankrupt
cy may desire to cheaper the money
in which it is to be paid, but why
should laboring man, whose daily
toll is measured by the money he re-
ceives desire to cheaper that money
Why should farmer who sells his
productions for money desire to les
sen its purchasing power? Why
should q prupent, thrifty, industrious
man engaged in any occupation, who