Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1878-10-17

hat it's execution will render resumption
mpossible, and perpetuate the
egime of ,iFredeemable paper currencyforan
Indefinite period. In fact, if there'is any ,
ogic in this programme, it means the per.
Aanent. establishment Of irredeemable
,aper money, with all its disastrous conse.
Iuences. -
First-They demand the prompt repeal of !!
he resumption act. | remember some
Democrats in the senate who voted against
he resumption act, not because they did
lot desire resumption, but because they did
lot think the act clear and effective enough.
myself criticised it on account of some OF
ts. imperfections, but voted for it because l
vas determined to support any step in that
direction. have ever since been glad that
did SO vote, for the resumption act, in
spite of its imperfections, has proved far
more effective than many supposed itwould.
demanded the repeal of the resumption act,
not because the convention was against, but
because, according to its declaration, it was
for resumption, and because, as
was pretended, the resumption act was an
obstacle to resumptiOn,-a thing which
have never been able to understand. And
now your Democratic convention and
many others demand the repeal of the
same resumption act, not because it
is an obstacle to resumption, but because it
has brought it on. And, indeed, unless
they hurry up that repeal quickly, it will
appear like the repeal of last years almanac.
Now what is the meaning of this demand for
the repeal of the resumption act? Here
stands the government and says: "For six
teen years we have promised to redeem
these treasury notes on demand, dollar for
dollar,-a dollar in coin Tor a dollar in
paper. For sixteen years that promise has
stood dishonorcd. Now l am able and
ready to fulfill it. am able and ready to
make and keep the pensioners and the Ia
borers' dollar, the merchants and the manu-.
facturers' dollar as good as the bondholders
dollar. am able and ready to give to the
business of the country the safe foundation
of sound currency, uniform and stable in
value, in harmony with the money OF the
world. All l want is to be permitted to
execute the law, whereupon you, my Demo-
cratic friends, answer, "Whether you be
ever so able and ready to do all this, we
say, 'Thou shall not do it," and then you
proceed with number of propositions,
each and all of which are designed to take
and keep from the government its ability to
perform it's long-dishonored promise and to
do the bene6cent things it stands now ready
some $346, 900, 600 in greenbacks to take care
of. With the coin I have I feel strong
enough to commence and maintain the re-
demption of all of that quantity that are
likely to be presented for redemption,
There are now $324,5OO,OOO of ma.
tional bank notes in circulation,
which are redeemable in greenbacks.
This system aids me powerfully in com.
mencing and maintaining redemption mas
much as it relieves me of direct RESPONSE
bility for about one-half of our paper cur
rency, while all of it will maintain the same
current value. Were l directly responsible
600 OOO-my coin resources would not be
sufficient to resume specie payments"
Whereupon you, my Democratic friends,
answer, '.We demand that the national
bank currency be withdrawn and green.
backs, for which the government is directly
responsible, BE- put in its place. This we
demand whether it renders you unable to
resume specie payments or not" The gov
ernmeat says further: "The resumption of
specie payments renders necessary con-
siderable reserve of coin in the treasury.
on imports, which, however, was mostly
needed for the payment of interest on ma.
tional bonds. 1fspecie payments are assured,
that source of coin revenue may be dis
pensed with, but only then to enable me to
accumulate a reserve of coin it was neces'
sary that be permitted to purchase coin
with bonds, and was permitted to do SO by
law. If, by the substitution Of greenbacks
for national bank currency, the amount OF
paper currency, for which am responsible
be doubled, it will be all the more necessary
to maintain the payment of duties in coin
and to 20 on with the sale of bonds for coin
if we are ever to prepare for resumption
Whereupon you, my Democratic friends
promptlv answer: eve demand tina
duties on imports shall be paid in green
backs, and that the sale of bonds for tn.
accumulation of a coin reserve shall
| cease"
Now need tell any intelligent beinl
what the consequences will be if thes
| Democratic demands be enacted into laws
Not only to prevent the resumption
specie payment now, but to render the re
sumption of specie payments utterly i'm
possible forever as long as such laws exist
! 1t is simply doubling the amount of pape
money which the government will have t,
redeem, and at the same time stripping thu
government of every means to provide TO
that REDEMPTION. The sources from whicl
the government derived its coin for the pay
ment Of interest on the public DEBT bein,
stopped. the coin reserve now in tn
treasury will have to be drawn upon TO
such interest, and that reserve will sool
vanish into nothing. How the government
Is then to get coin even for the payment 0
I interest on the public debt, our Democratic
friends fail to tell us. Finding no employ
90 abroad, where it is in demand for sucl
employment, and we shall be further ava,
from specie resumption than ever before.
I repeat, therefore, that a'thoronehbre'
inf1ationist should advocate this programm
as intell1gible-it serves his purpose. Blu
when man who ever again desires to Sc
specie payments restored in this countr
I adopts such platform, what shall we thin]
of bis understanding or his conscience
The defeat of resumption will no be tn
| only result; no sooner is such policy in
aug urated than the premium on gold vii
again reappear and rise; the value of tn
greenback, now within hairs breadth g
gold, will again be subject of speculation
and gambling.
! This is inevitable, tor everything will b
| thrown back into fluctuation and uncel
| tainty. The step back from epecie pay
ments will put even the good faith of tn
1 nation in question; confidence will be NOR
shaken than ever. A black cloud of ne'
doubt will hang over every business intel
est, for when policy SO insane rs to ru
away.f ON specie payments can be adopted
every imaginable nonsense will thencetort
|:appear possible. Then goodbye revivin
prosperity; we shall he at sea again til
Lord only knows. how, long. ~!
helped our Democratic friends very it'll
to put forth the fantastic promise "tha
the amount of paper issues shall b
so regulated by legislation or by .organi
law as to give the people assurance of sts
bilitv in the volume of the currency, as tn
conseq uent stability of the value" The ide
was to establish by constitutional amene
! ment to be pssented to by three-fourths {
the States, that is by twenty.eight Stat
. Legislatures, how much money the countr
is to have,-and when the amount so fixe
is. found too large :or too small, that
. should not be found possible to change
until the assent of twenty.eight State Let
islatures be again, obtained for the change
That idea is SO childishly .prepostercus tina
we must wonder how serious men coul
ever have entertained it. i. :. %. !.
=" The other proposition that congress, b
Legislation, is to.be the permanent authorit
to regulate the volume of the currency; an
consequently the value, is scarcely less a.
tonishing, coming as it does from Demo
Gratis, WHO pretend to be so faithful to thel
I time.honored principles; Have you consid
cred, my Democratic friends, what an awful
nower Won thus propose to perpetuate in tn