The weekly clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1863-1882, 1879-12-31
The Maintenance of the Legal Tender
Quality of Greenbacks.
TUE ESTORATION OF SILVER
COINAGE.
Speech Delivered in Favor OF these
Propositions by Hon. John T.. Morgan,
of Alabama, in the United States
Senate, December Il, 1879.

Senate, December IL, 1879.
Mr. MORGAN l hold in nv hand a resolu.
ton which desire to present 10 the Senate
this morning, and ! ask the indulgence of the
Senate while 1 submit some remarks upon it
| viii send the resolution TO the Clerk desk
and have it read for the information Of the
Senate.
The VICE President The resolution will
be reported.
The Chief Clerk read as follows:
Resolred Jg the Senate, That the continuance
Of the ext ting volume of United States
~ preserved, and die maintenance of their
equi valency IN value vi tn coin, is demanded
by the present necessities Of trade, commerce,
and industry; and that the full restoration OF
silver coinage TO an equality with gold Is
necessary to secure to the people of the United
States sufficient and permanent supply of
money to maintain our national prosperity
By unanimous consent the Senate proceed
ed TO consider the resolution.
Ma. MORGAN. Mr.. President the resolution
which offer Is antagonized in principle to
the Joint resolution already referred to the
the honorable Senator from Delaware, Mr..
Bayard,l aLd which will read:
That from and after the passage of this
resolution the Treasury notes of the United
States shall be receivable for all dues to the
United States excepting duties on imports,
and she II not be otherwise Il legal tender; and
any of said notes hereafter reissued shall bear
this superscrlption.
Ia the city of New York this resolution is
strongly supported by the classes that control
the large mercantile, commercial, aud ban kin g
interests of the country.
Their opinions are set forth in petition TO
Congress- which has been largely signed as
inf cd nv I he N aXVa ana ash
for the passage of the joint resolution of the
Senator from Delaware. | will refer TO that
petition as expression of public sentiment,
and although it has not been presented, hope
there is no impropriety in referring to it, a
popular movement, in advance of its actual
presentation here. 1t Is useful, a public
tac', to the proper argument of the resolution
that | propose to offer. | will refer to the
petition as it appears in the public prints.
| n discussing the resolution l propose to
offer the merits of the resolution of the Sena-
tor from Delaware and the petitions that
support it seem to be drawn directly in
question.
Stimulated, if not overborne by a strong
demand for radical legislation in reference to
our financial system coming from the great
center of banking power, there is danger that
we shall go too fast and too far in the asser-
ton of theories that may hold to with
strong convictions, but which cannot be en-
forced at this time and under existing cir
cumstances without serious injury to the
people.
We are too prone to believe that our present
prosperity is permanent, and | fear we are
600 confident that it will be maintained.
Starvation in Ireland and depr, ssion in
Germany and France and England because of
the reduction of their volume of money,
shipped to this country to purchase food, have
resulted, in the usual manner, in putting the
price of labor in those countries down to a
very low figure. Already they are beginning
to undersell us in our own markets, and they
ha nj la inn
markets. American patriotism, like the pat
riotism of all other people, is not severely
shocked at being permitted to purchase foreign
goods at low prices. If foreign countries
undersell us here they will get our gold to pay
the balance of trade This condition of affairs
may we'll be expected to come around at no
distant day, and it seems to me that it is
unwise to refuse to recognize its possibility.
When this does occur we shall have need of
all the good, sound money we have or can get,
and possibly more, to prevent a most calami-
tous revulslon in every department of trade
and production.
The petition TO Congress to which l have
referred is signed by many of the leading
capitalists of New York, and represents
largely the best and most success full business
talent in that great city. 1t is entitled to
respect because of the character ofthe signers,
and to the gravest consideration because of
the importance of the subject to which it
refers.
The conspicuous absence of names, on the
list of signatures, of men who represent the
laboring classes and people engaged in small
dealings-havinE little capital-informs us in
the most distinct manner that it is the great
capitalists end large dealers who are urging
this movement.
The industrial classes are all content to earn
u nited States legal tender notes with their
hard labors. But at the first moment after
the peoples credit has lifted this currency to
par with gold, and indeed above par, a sud-
den and furious demand is made for its de-
Of
monetary metropolis. confess that can dis
ern no just cause for this movement at this
time. If a reason ever existed why United
States legal-tender currency should be abol-
ished, it was when it was below par. 1t has
cost the people untold losses sorrows, and
calamities to build up the credit of this mo-
ney, in the face of repressive laws designed
to keep it down, and when they have borne it
in triumph to assured success, it must be de-
stroyed at the bidding of those who fear it's
competition in business.
Tbs people believe in the maxim that moth
ing in the shape of IA promise to pay is money,
in the true sense, that IS not redeemable in
coin; that government that endeavors to
pay its debts, matter of right, and not of
contract, in fiat money, or in promises that
are not to be redeemed cannot have and is
not entitled to have credit at home or abroad.
And faithfully and patiently they have labor
ed and suffered to act upon this maxim, and TO
provide for the redemption of all our promises
IN coin. They will be astonished to find that
very moment when they began to redeem
greenbacks with coin. The injustice of this
reflection upon them becomes very cruel when
we recur to the history of our public debt,
and to the sacrifices it has cost the people to
provide for it. A few of the most prominent
facts are sufficient TO illustrate the cruelty of
this wrongful and unjust suspicion of the peo-
pie.
In the beginning of our new financial system
which sprung from the war greenbacks were
the only public debts that we agreed to pay
in coin. The great body of our interest bear
ing debt was, by express agreement with
every bondholder, payable, at our option, in
coin or in orr legal-tender currency. On the
18th of February, 1862, Congress enacted that
~ United States notes shall be received the
same coin, at their par value, in payment
for any loans that may be hereafter sold or
negotiated by the Secretary of the Treasury,
and NAV be re-issued from time to time as the
exigencies of the public interest shall re-
quire," and that they shall be receiv able in
payment of all taxes, except for duties on i'm
ports, &C. and of all claims against the Uni
ted States, except for interest upon bonds and
notes, which shall be paid in coin, and shall
also be lawful money and legal tender in
payment Of all debts, public and private,
within the United States, except duties on
imports and interest as aforesaid. That law
authorized the issue of one hundred and fifty
millions of these Treasury notes and FIVE hun
bred millions 8 per cent bonds. On the 1st of
March, 1867, Congress authorized the issue of
whole amount of audited and settled dema nd %
against the United States, and on the 18th of
March, 1852, ii authorized the issue of any
amount of certificates of indebtedness that
the Secretary of the Treasury could sell for
coin, upon such terms and at such rates as he
might deem most advantageous to the public
interests. On the 1lth of July, 1862, an adj
ditional issue OF legal tender notes was au-
thorized to the amount of . SO, 600 OO0.
On the 18th of January, 1868, an issue of
one hundred millions legal-tender Treasury
notes was authorized. On the Sd of March,
1888 bonds to the amount of nine hundred
millions, and four hundred and fifty millions
in legal-tender Treasury notes, and fifty mil
lions to redeem postal and revenue stamp cur
rency were authorized Ana by supple
mentary act of March 8, 1884, bonds we're au-
thorized to be issued to the amount of two
hundred millions in lieu of those authorized
by the act of March, 3, 1868, payable at any
period not more than forty years from date in
coin" This was the first express provision of
law for the payment in coin of any of bonds,
and that was limited to 500 Zoo, 900. On the
S0th Of June, 1864 the issue of four hundred
millions WAS AuIhoriyed, the interest payable
in coin. On the Sd of March, iooS, The Seq
rotary of the Treasury was authorized to is
sue bonds to the amount of $500, 100000, ''and