Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1879-02-04

is an evil; and excepting England and
her eopyist, the United States, there Is
not a nation existing, believe, which
tolerates paper circulation" And yet
Mr.. Ewing and Mr.. Wendell Philips
would have their countrymen believe that
Mr.. Jefferson advocated such paper CIR
culation in time of peace. That Mr.
Jefferson entertained lifelong hostility
to banks of issue, every student Of Amer
lean history knows full well. He disa-
greed with General Hamilton in the Cab
met of Washington about the first United
States Bank. lie denied that Congress
was competent to create such an insntu-
ton, but he never denied that each State
could create banks OF issue. de held
that coined money was the only money Of
the Constitution. In the letter OF No.
vember, 1918, he devOtes twenty pages to
show why he could not assent to Adam
Smiths paper theories He felt that three
fourths of the States would never conseo;
to surrender by a constitutional amend
ment their banking rights, and that the
only open path was to ask the State
one by one to give up by a legislative act
"the EXCLUSIVE Tmsrk the word J power
Of establishing banks of discount for pa
per-" To the existence of banks OF dls-
count tor cash, such as are found on the
Continent of Europe this hostility to Eng
land is constantly cropping OUT. there
can be, Mr.. Jefferson says, no objection
Even banks of deposit, where coined
money should be lodged "sud pspe,
acknowledgment taken out as Its repre-
sentative. entitled to return Of the CAsg
on demand, would be convenient" lie
thus concludes this long letter:
ssThe sum of what has been said Is that, pr
tsrmittinE the constiIu tional question on tho a.
thority oil Congress and considering thts aFpiios
tor For national bank on the grounds Of rea
son alone. 10 would b. bestthAt our medium -hou q
DE 30 pr0portionod 20 our produce a. 20 De on 81
psr with thai OF the countries WIKI which W
tra.ic and whose medium d, Ia sound state IN
spscis IS fks most perfect Medium because . tit
Preserve Is otrl srti. because having lntrnslc -
universal value it can never die IN our hands, ard
b. Is fhc .urc-t resource 90 .clsucc ia time cd
war. thai the triiing economy OF paper "a a.,
cheaper medium o. - convenience Tor transmits
sion weighs nothing IN opposition o. the advsn
tagts oi the precious metals, that u is likely q
b. abused has been, is and ever will De abusel u
every country 10 which it hss been permitted
- Instead tEen OF yielding 90 the cries ~ scar
iJy OF medium, set mp ov .reculators. protector
aud commercial gaIlu.ore. no eudcayors sbou e.
De spared % begin the work OF reducing . b,
such srsdual means A. may give lime 90 prlSai,
fortunes 60 preserve their polse and settle down
with tue sub-iding medium and that Tor this pu.,
pose The states should De urged % concedc 20 thc
General Government, Wi-h saving OF chartere1
rghts, the exclusive power Of establishing oaak7
% discount for paper
After this we need not say that no SELF
respecting man, unless he pleads Ignorance
Of the printed history Of his country, vii
pretend TO cite the great name Of JeffeE-
son il support Of the Greenback socialism
Of to-day. The Democratic statesmen
of the era in which Jefferson wrote thor
oughly and deliberately discussed in an
other form and finally decided the very
issues which are now yexing u, a. on
further reference to that discussion and
decision may be most unanswerably shown.