The Valley Virginian. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1865-1895, 1878-02-07
The Silver Question.

ranches of Congress, and the Bland bill, |
which has passed the House and is now be-
lore the Senate, with an amendment report
"a from the Senate Finance Committee. |
That amendment provides for the Secretary |
81 the Treasury to purchase silver bullion at
The market price thereof, and cause the same
to be coined into silver dollars of the weight
and tineness of 4l2! grains Troy standard,
thus giving the government the advantage
OF any profit arising from the coinage, or
the conversion of the pure silver bullion into
the alloyed silver currency. The bill, as it
originally passed the House, provides that
any owner of silver bullion may deposit the
same at any United States coinage mint or
ASSAY office, to be coined into such dollars
that is dollars OF 4l2a grains Troy standard
for his benefit, upon the same terms and
conditions as gold bullion is deposited for
coinage under existing laws. The Senate
amendment, We think, will address itself
to the acceptance of the people with more
readiness than the original bill, because it
relieves the proposition OF all the semblanee
OF individual speculation, and gives the gov
eminent the benefit of the difference be-
tween the intrinsic value OF the silver bnl-
lion and the coined silver.
We have heretofore expressed the belief
that the enactment into law of these two
bills would work ont beneficial results to
the country, by increasing the volume OF
currency, and thus stimulate private indus
tries and inspire hope and confidence among
the people. The popular understanding,
they violate the contract with the holder OF
the bonds Of the United States, and propose
to pay in a debased currency, or in cur
rency of less value than the gold coin, and
for that reason opposition is melted and the
horil sentimentalism OF the political patriot
resonnds through the air. We were az
raigned a few days ago, by personal and
political friend, with the charge of atlyo-
eating proposition to pay dollar with
o. cents-thc estimated value OF the de-
mouetized silver dollar OF Alp! grains as
compared with the gold dollar, which, it was
contended, was the contract With the bond
holder. This. of course, was the mere cur
rent impression gathered from reading one
side OF the question, and that presented IN
terms to deceive the people and create the
belief that it was the purpose OF the advo-
Gates OF the Silver bill to cheat the owners
OF the bonds to that extent. The facts.
however, are in the face OF this position, for
reference to the acts cited in the preamble
of the Matthews bill shows that the bonds
authorized TO be issued by the act refunding
the national debt as provided in the legisla-
ton OF 1870 were payable in coin OF the then
present standard value, and that the stan
dard value OF that date includes the slyer,dol-
lar Of 4l2ll grains, and the gold dollar OF !2a.s
of standard gold. Both silver ard gold were
legal tenders and it was optional with the
government under the laws to designate the
kind OF coin it could pay in, whether silver
srgold. The government has never pledged
itself to pay the principal OF the bonds in
gold alone, but in coin OF the standard value
ut the time of refunding, which was silver
and gold. The central question is, was the
silver dollar of 412aa grains a legal ten
der, and part of the coin currency of the
government at the time the act was passed,
and il that be established to be true, the
option is with the government to select the
coin with which it will pay the bonds.
Senator Thurman. of Ohio, in a recent
discussion of the Silver bill in the United
States Senate, threw much light on the leg
islation affecting the question at issue, and
clearly established that no legislative act OF
Congress had ever been passed demonetizins
.iver-that the legislation OF 1873, under
which it was claimed that silver was demon
erized. did no such thing, but that it was in
the revision OF the statutes in 1874 that the
law was so changed-changetl without the
knowledge Of Congress and without author
ity, yet adopted in the acceptance OF the
report made by those entrusted with the re-
vision-by which 10 silver coins OF the
Cnited.States should be a legal. tender at their
nominal value for any amount not exceed
ing s. in any one payment.
Mr.. Thurman very clearly shows that the
operations Of the provisions of the Mat
thews' bill can possibly effect no wrong to
any holder of the bonds of the government,
for not one of them was issued that did not
have printed on its face that it was payable
in coin of tile standard value of July IA,
1870, lust as the Matthews bill proposes to
DAY them. 'sWhoever holds them, he said,
s'is entitled to be paid according to the
terms OF the contract OF the government IL
he shall be paid according to those terms.
he has no right to complain and that no
one was advocating Or proposing to pay the
bondholders except according to the terms
OF the obligation. The government issued
the bonds, and wrote it down on each bond
separately, and the statute declared that it
should be so written, substantially stating that
1T had the option of paying them in silver or
gold OF the standard value of 1870. Such
being the fact, no bondhoider has a Just right
to complain if the government should make
the choice of coins to pay said bonds.
1t is plain that the bills now before Con-
gress, to which we have referred, will wor X
no wrong to the holder of government bonds
il they are enacted into law. The popular
understanding has been misdirectcd as to
this subject, by the industrious presentation
OF the tondholcrs' side Of it. 1t is proposed
10 pay him precisely as the contract calls
for, when tile bonds mature, leaving with
the government the option Of choosing at
that time whether i'll silver coin or gold
coin, so 1t is of the standard value provided
for Ia the act of 1870.
It would be manifestly unjust, in view OF
the statutes relating to the creation of the
public debt, as well as the sources whence
the revenues are to be derived to meet the
aa.ioD's obligations, that the claim of the
bondholders for payment in gold should be
tolerated. A great writer on political econo-
my has laid it down as a cardinal fact in the
adjustment OF finances that the revenues of
tho individuals arise from three sources
aloue-rents, profits and wages-and that
these are the sources whence the constitu-
ents of government, upon whom rest the