The anti-monopolist. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1874-1878, 1878-09-19
WEBSTER CALHOUN AND THE CUR
RENCY

support of the social system, and en-.
courages propensities destructive to
its happiness. 1t wars against indus
try, frugality and economy, and it
fosters the evil spirits of extrava.
gance and speculation. Of all the
contrivances for cheating the labor
ing classes of mankind, none has been
more effectual than that which de-
ludes them with, paper money. This
is the most etfectual of inventions to
fertilize the rich mans field by the
sweat of the poor mars brow. Ordi.
nary tyranny, oppression, excessive
taxation-these bear lightly on the
happiness of the mass Of the cOmmuni.
ty compared with fraudulent .curren.
cies and the rObberieS committed by
deprecated paper. Our own history
has recorded for our instruction
enough. and more than enough, of
the demoralizing tendency, the injuS-
tice and the intolerahle oppression on
the virtuOus and Well-dispoSed. of a
degraded paper currency, authorized
by law or in any way countenanced by
gOvernment-Daniel Webster.
Here is the testimony of one of the
ablest American statesman to the
pernicious effects of the specie basis
bank note system of paper currency.
This language was used in speech in
1898, and the only paper currency
Mr.. Webster had in mind was that
which purported to be based upon'spe-
Gle and issued Ivy chartered banks, for
no other paper money existed in his
day or had ever existed in this cOun-
try or any other up to that time. He
well and truly says, ''Our own history
has recorded for our instruction
enough, and more than enough, of the
demoralizing tendency, the injustice
and intolerable oppression of such
currency. Our history, up to that
time, had been one constant series of
experiments with bank notes and 9TH
er credit devices based upon prom
Use of redemption in coin for the pur-
pose Of giving. confidence and stability
Of credit. 1t is his testimony that
"this is the most effectual Of inven-
tons to tertilize the rich mans field
by the sweat of the poor mans
brow"
This sentence expresses the motive
and purpose of every issue of bank
notes since the world began. They
are issued by individuals and corpor
atoms, not for the benefit Of the peo-
pie, but solely and only for their own
profit. There would not be u bank
note in existence to-day but for tie
fact chat the bankers can by that
means ''fertilize' the rich man s
(their own) fields by the sweat of the
poor mans brow In plain words,
the authority Of law giving to banks
the power to issue the papar currency
of the country is in the nature OF u
grant OF letters Of marQue and reprisal
whereby they are commissioned to
prey upon the industry and commerce
of the people.
1t cannot be inferred that Mr.. Web
ster thought it possible for this coun-
try to dispense with the use of paper
money. Far from it; for, in another
speech upon the same theme in the
same year he said:
The impracticabilityo of an exclusive
metallic currency, the absdrdity Of at
tempting any such thing in country
like this, are 50 manifest, that nobody
here undertakes to support it by any
reasoning or argument. The moment
any one considers it. he sees how rid
iculous any such attempt would be.
Sir, you might as well propose TO
abolish commerce altogether.
AMI yet Notwithstanding the evils
Of the specie basis bank note system
so elOQuently described above, and
the acknowledged impossibility of
I,cnnnc.n.r .,.it Mr. Wnhcf
had nothing to suggest except the
United States bank bills, upon the
same plan and basis that had failed so
often and SO disastrously during all
previous history. This is the feature
of the great currency discussions of
that period that strikes the modern
student with the greatest astonish-
ment. The Wing Wed with the DEM
ocrats in portraying the runious eff
fects OF all previous paper systems,
but had no practical substitute to
offer save the United States Bank
which was justly odious and which
had in it all the organic defects of free
banks and WAS infinitely more danger
Gus to the people as 4 PARTISAN politi-
cal agent.
Inc UttA VI ttV uiNS L
the lead Of jackson and Benton made
indiscriminate war upon all paper
money just rs though the country
could do without paper currency
Like The Republicans of to-day they
rung all the changes upon the beau
ties and virtues of hard money
with an assurance and audacity that
should challenge the admiration ant
excite to emulation the Hayeses, Gar
fields and Shermans of this day. The,
triumphed and instead of the people
enjoying the sweets of Benton s''min
drops" they were Smothered witt
clouds OF bank notes issued upon :
pretended specie basis, each one o
which WAS u thief in disguise commits
stoned TO defraud them of the fruit
of their honest toll and overwheln
them with ruin and misery.
OF all those who participated in tn
long and tedious discussions of tbs
currency question at that time, bu
one of all the Senator'S appeared T.
treat it with the grasp and compre-
hension of statesman. That wa
John c. Calhoun of South Carolina
He did not coincide with Jackson an,
Benton in their indiscriminate wa
upon all nanar money WAS An abSOlut