Ottumwa weekly courier. (Ottumwa, Wapello County, Iowa) 1872-1899, 1878-09-18


question, but was deceived i'm what
ever justification we gave of the state
ment, relying upon the Inter- Oceans
figures. Since that time by a thor
ough personal examination, we know
that the Inter- Oceans figures were er-
ronous. Even Judge Trimble him
self in his speech did not pretend that
they We're correct. He himself said
that the one and two year notes
and the compound interest notes
and three-year 1905 did not circulate
after considerable interest had accu-
mulated upon them. This was SO
plain to the Judge that he did not
pretend to argue that they all entered
into the circulation.
Now what are the facts in the case:
The Treasury department at Wash
ington admits that the one and two
year notes and the compound interest
notes, to a considerable extent, were
used as circulating medium, and
foots up the whole circulation in 1866
tonearly one thousand millions. 1t is
really needless, however, to argue
how much of these interest bearing
obligations were used by the people
as currency, because they We're short
bonds of the Government bearing in
terest and in the nature of things
would not long, nor even at any time,
freely enter into circulation. That
which circulates as money does not
bear interest. There never was and
never will be a time when currency
proper bears interest. But did not
the Government put out these bonds
and promise to pay them in one, two
and three years, and the last Of them
became due July Is, 1865. Could the
Government do aught else than pay
them? Before they were paid they
had passed out of all circulation be-
cause of the accumulated interest on
them. 1t was no act of the Govern
ment, but a redemption of its promise,
that caused them to he retired. They
went out of existence in 1868, and
Judge Trimblc and every other man
in the country knows that had they
circulated as claimed, it would have
been a retirement of currency to the
extent of about twelve hundred mill
lions. Does any man claim that such
a decrease of currency could have &C.
Cured without having an immediate
effect? Certainly not. But what was
the effect? Every citizen knows that
from '85 to '7S we had as prosperous
times as the country ever saw. Now
why did not the Judge explain this?
Simply because he could not and dare
not attempt to do it. The cause
bringing about the panic is as plain
as day to those who desire to know
the cause. We had as people gone
on in extravaganza. We had spent
some twenty-five millions of bor-
rowed capital in building railroads in
Iowa, and while we were spending
this money and millions of money
borrowed for other purposes, we had
a grand time, but now that the time
of payment has come, hard times
have come. Ifany man wants good
time just let him borrow money and
then knock off work and spend it;
also if he wants hard time let him
do the same thing and wait till pay
day comes.
When we quoted in February, 1874,
from the Inter- Ocean, we were argu-
ing for a reissue of the forty-f0ur mill
lions of legal-tenders that had been
retired but not cancelled and why?
Because we We're in the great panic
of the autumn of 1873 and, as every
body remembers, banks all over the
country were in great trepidation and
many suspended for few days, such
was the almost total want Of conf
dence among the people--we believed
then that a reissue of the legal-ten-
ders referred to would have tenden-
cy to quiet the people and restore
confidence, and hence we advocated
it. Not so now. There is now no
want of confidence. but on the other
hand SO far as our national finances
are concerned, there is greater conf.
dence than has existed at any time
since the rebellion, and this would be
all that could be desired, were it not
for just such men as Judge Trimble
endeayoring to lead the people astray.
We will simply add that we have
more confidence in Judge Trimble's
ability than to suppose that he really
believes what he said in regard to the
decision Of the Supreme Court upon
the constitutionality of a new issue of
legal tenders in time of peace. We
now further extend this arti-
Gle Mondays Daily.