Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1878-09-25
A Plea for Honest Money.

an address on Financial topics few
days since at Rock Island ILL.,, from
which we extract the following:
All tl.at we can suffer from the
shrinkage of values we have suffered,
and resumption is practically reached.
For months gold has been but at a
half per cent. premium and soon the
premium will entirely disappear. H.
deed resumption in silver dollars has
already begun, as the silver dollar is
paid out for current obligations. But
the great complaint of the opposition is
that there is not enough currency in
the country to supply the ordinary
demands of business, and that the con-
tinued hard times are owing to this
cause This is, think great fallacy
The coin value Of the currency at the
present time, including the silver cir
culation, is greater than ever before in
the history of the country. The aver
age face value of the currency for the
five years next preceding and includ-
ing 1873 was sl6,OOO,00O less than
than the average face value of the past
five years, and the average gold value
of the currency for the past FIVE years
is $40, 100000 greater than the aver
age gold value Of the currency for the
five years next preceding and including
the year 1878. 1t is not, then, the
scarcity Of money that causes the con-
tinuauce of hard times for we have
more and better money than ever be-
fore That there is an abundance Of
money is shown from the fact that the
4 per cent bonds sell in such large
quantities. If money Was scarce it
would command much higher rate
you fnd there is plenty Of money when
you have anything to sell or exchange
for it. TO dcbase or add to the cur
rency would not benefit man who
had nothing to sell or exchange and
to him who has it must necessarily be
an evil, for good money is better than
bad.
The strange thing in the conduct of
our opponents is the fact that now,
when we have more currency than we
ever had, and the best, they complain
most bitterly that there is not enough;
that the currency ought to be increas-
ed, and that no increase, however large
can debase it as paper dollar, issued
bv the government and called dollar,
is in fact dollar and always worth a
dollar without any regard to the ques-
ton of its redemption. What pity
these gentlemen had hot thought of
this bright idea before, and thus saved
all the shrinkage in values consequent
upon the panic and the return to spe-
Gle payments. What a misfortune
they could not have lived in the ear
lier ages of the world so that the gen.
erations now in their graves might
have profted by their knowledge and
made their money out of nothing, bot
toned upon nothing! Pizarro sought
for Ell Dorado in Peru, Cortes in Mex
leo, De Soto in the southern states of
this union. They, in common with all
mankind, believed that money could
only be made out Of the precious met
ais and must be dug out of the bowels
of the earth. They did not know that
money was made simply by setting up
printing press and issuing bills of de-
nominations to suit convenience accord.
ing to the fiat of the printer. If it
could have been known before it would
have saved much bloodshed and much
sweat.
The 6atists all agree that gold and
silver are useless and more than use.
less as money because they furnish a
s'changeable standard ofvalues." ;" The
fiat money must then, be based upon
the other wealth Of the nation. What
particular portion of what character of
property is pledged for its payment?
Is it the rebel archives and General
Twiggs' sword, and property of that
kind, or is it the wheat and corn?
And if the latter, how many bushels
shall stand for dollar? For when we
have ba1ished the precious metals as
the standard we will have none, and
must adopt another. These are GER
tainly important questions to any man
disposed to take a fiat dollar. What
is he to receive for his fiat dollar? The
answer is evident. 1t is created out of
nothing and promises to pay nothing;
it is bottomed on nothing and worth
nothing.
1 Iregard our present currency as
excellent 1t is certainly the best We
have ever had We have S346 ,O0O,-
900 of legaltender notes and S322,-
100000 of national bank notes. This
forms the great bulk of our circulation.
Our present system has worked we'll,
and it may well be doubted, whether it
can be improved upon at the present
time Still there are great many
who believe that national banks should