The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1878-01-23


payable In coin. By a sort OF moral forgery on
the American people the reminding act pro.
vides for the issue of new bonds to The amount
OF 81 ,50o-0 O0009, with an agreement for coin
payment written on their face; and then
further provides that these new coin bonds
shall be substituted for the original 0 ~ bonds,
one in exchange for the other, dollar for dol
lar. Avarice in the ordinary affairs OF lie mas
often tempted the holder Of deed, a VIII,
bond or other obligation for money or proper
ty to obtain false construction Ia possible, or
even to change the terms OF the instrument In
objects have been obtained by the money
power; nrsat false construction OF the contract
and next a direct change OF Its most
vital terms. It Is true that reduc-
tion OF the rate of interest on the
new~coin bonds Is provided for i'm the act OF
July IA, 1870; two huRdred millions OF theSs
bonds 10 bear per cent, three hundred mil,
lions to bear ~ per cent, and thousand
millions to bear per cent This reduction la
ance Of a concession to the people, but a mo-
mentis calculation viii show the amount thus
saved utterly trihing in comparison with the
enormous loss they suffer by the whole tran
holders of the $40 per cent bonds would sur
render them voluntarily In exchange Tor oonas
of less rate of interest, unless they knew
they were getting bonds of higher value and
were to reap substantial advantages by the
operation. To draw different conclusion
would be to reverse the well ascertatned laws
of human nature. The archives of history
may be ransacked in vain to find single
instance where moneyed Investment rei1n-
- -
Inferior security. such thing was never
known and never Will be.
When, however, this elaborate scheme for
the destruction of the rights of the people in
regard to the payment OF the $40 bonds was
supposed to be finished; when the gate.
way s OF justice, of law and of public morality
had all been closed and double barred and
bolted against the taxpayers by the repudiat-
ing acts of March, 1859, and of July, 1870, did
government toward its own citizeds stop even
then? A fnality appeared to have been at
tanned. Proclamation was made In every
quarter that a permanent settlement had been
reached OF the manner In which every dollar
of our national debt should be paid. We were
constantly reminded that from that day for.
ward no law abiding, honorable citizen would
ever again seek TO reopen or ag1tate the ques-
ton. The bondholders were for the time being
content, but they did not remain so moment
longer than a new opportunity presented IT.
self for another encroachment upon the heav-
lily taxed industries OF the country. By both
the laws of March, 1869, and July, 1870, framed
in their interest aud under their dictation, it
Is so plainly written that the bonds then out
standing and afterward TO be issued were pay
able In coin-not in gold alone, nor silver
alone, but in coin-that it is impossible to con-
struct an argument against the proposition.
Indeed, IL Is almost equally difficult to make
an argument in its favor, for q truth that Is
self-eYldent does not admit the ordinary
methods OF reason in its support. In the nrst
section of the act of July il, 1870, the bonds
therein authorized are made "redeemable In
coin of the present standard value" What Is
there here for construction? What word here
taken from the law can the keeneSC caSu1SJ
construe into even a doubtful meaning? We
all know what the term coin means In con-
nection with the use of the precious metals in
the trade and commerce of the world. Even,
however, II we did not, and we desired to seek
q still palmer and more explicit guarantee,
we have only to turn to the act of March, 1859.
1t declares its object in the following IAN
guage:
.Inat In order to remove any doubt as to
the purpose of the government to discharge
all iIs Just obligations to the puolic creditors
and to settle conflicting questions and inter-
pretations of the laws, by virtue of which such
obligations have been contracted, 1t Is hereby
provided and declared that the faith OF the
United States is solemnly pledged to the pay
ment In coin or It's equivalent, Of all the obli-
cations or the United States not bearing inter-
est, known as United States notes, and of all
the interest bearing obligations of the United
States, except In cases where the law author
ling the issue of any such obligation has
lawful money or other currency than gold and
silver"
False and perfidious as this law is known TO
be, yet 1t has at least one merit. 1t is abso-
lutely clear and unambiguous. II human Ian
guage can be made to convey an unequivocai
meaning, then this law pledged the faith OF
the government to the people, and to the
world, for the payment of the national DEBT
in "gold and silver" Its rule of court, how
| ever, in finding the true meaning of a law un-
der consideration, resort, If necessary, to the
| opinions of those by whom IL was enacted. II
| we do so In the present instance we are amply
| Fessenden then a senator from Maine, and
| who also served as secretary of the treasury
used on this floor the following language:
| of the United States meant what it said, that
| Ii would pay so many dollars. What was q
dollar? A dollar was defined by statute. II
| was gold or silver coin"
| Senator Morton, when pleading here for the
payment OF the bonds according to the original
| contract, made the following statement:
"When you return 10 specie payments you
| have nothing to pay any of your bonds with
but gold or Its equivalent, and therefore the
4 ~ f4fxr,h ff,f nf IA \.
| pressly In currency is utterly worthless, be-
| cause we shall have nothing then but gold ano
/ silver with which TO pay these bonds.
| But the evidence on this point would not be
4 complete If | did not call Senator Sherman
| now secretsryof the treasury, to refute not
only all the present enemies of silver as a coin
| of legal tender, but especially 10 refute and
/ confound, as usual, his own subsequent views
/ In his recent report on the state or the
| hances now on our tables, he says:
"If the market value of the silver in the new
| coin is less than the gold dollar, a forced pay
ment In thr new coin Is repudistion OF a par
| of this debt"
Now il is reputation to pay the nationa
/ debt in anything but gold. What was his
| position when the act of March, 1859, was here
| on its passage? AT that time he exclaimed:
"WhaJ is the first section of this bill? Ii II
| simply a solemn pledge of the United State,
| that all The obligations of the United States
notes and bonds, shall be paid in gold anc
| silver coin, except only those where the Law
expressly provides that they shall be paid IN
| lawful money.
| And again, in speaking of the resumption o
/ specie payments, he says:
| T"The honor of the country, the good faith o
/ the nation, the interests of the laborer, TIT
| rich and the poor, all classes, demand that w
| should resume specie payments as early a
possible, and place all the obligations of tn
| people of the United States upon the SOLE
basis of gold and silver conn.,
| Sir, this theme becomes humiliating to ever,
| honest American mind. 1t fl with sham
every honest, patriotic heart. The naked fac
confronts US at every step that no pledge, how
ever high, solemn or binding in law ant
| morals, has been strong enough to compel tn
| authors of our financial legislation to obey II
No sense OF national honor or good faith ha
| restrained for a single moment the unbridle'
| avarice of idle, interest bearing capital when
ever il has been tempted, Ike some hungry
marauding animal, TO break over tn
| barriers erected between II and new
delds of spoliage that lie beyond Tn
silver dollar came to us with the birth Of on
government 1t was devised as a unit Of valu
BY Thomas jefferson, and adopted by congress
i'm the days of Washington, Hamilton an
| Morris. II stood as honored as gold throug