Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1879-01-25

ely of the silver bill. 1 approve it;
but | know many think that gold 4
ought to be the exclusive standard I
of value, and quote the depreciation I
of silver bullion in the markets of /
the world against the justice of pay I
ing interest in silver coin. That is /
not the question all these things
may be arguments in favor of re
peal of the law.
THE QUESTION now Is, 4
shall the Treasury be required to
obey the law, or may he disregard
il with impunity? | insist that he
must obey and execute it, so long as
it is the law. There can be no sta
bility, no safety in administration,
if executive officers can annul or
defy Congressional action, as they
too often do. Half of our deficiency
bills arise from executive disregard
OF law. The frightful increase of
the principal of our interest-bearing
debt, nearly 500, 100000 in the last
year, with the threat of indefinite
increase hereafter, is the result of
the determination Of the Secretary
TO ignore the provisions of the sill
yer bill and make gold the sole
standard of values in defiance of
Congress. Every step taken by him
Is in favor of incomes against pro-
duction. That is the struggle. 1t is
not between capital and labor.
Active capital is the friend and in
dispensible ally of labor. To pre-
vent the obstruction of industries
| further contraction CT the currency
| yet the Treasurer last report shows
that on the 1sto July last the legal
/ tender notes of the denominations
from one to fifty dollars had been
! decreased SI0,9l4,1 ZIG below what
were outstanding on the Ist day of
| July, 1877, while notes of the de-
nomination of 500 increased 3d.
407 800 during the same period, and
| orders looking to still further sub
stitution of notes of large denomi-
nations for small notes have been
already issued.
Contraction of the currency can
be carried out quite as etfectually
by the withdrawal of the only de-
nominations of notes that enter into
retail trade and the everyday trans
actions of life, and by the substitu-
ton therefor of notes Of large de-
nominations, as in any other way.
And the Secretary tells us that he is
looking to still further issues of
notes of large denominations,
although the statute approved May
81, 1878, which repeats all acts and
parts in conflict with it, orders the
further retirement of legal tender
notes to stop, and provides that the
same notes received at the Treasury
from any source shall be re-issued,
paid out and kept in circulation,
and shall not he destroyed. 1t must
be obvious that any power the Sec
rotary had under any previous law
to change the denomination of legal
tender notes was bv this act taken
from him, as it would be impossible
tor him to issue other notes without
initiating the currency to the extent
of the issue of the notes Of larger OF
} other denominations, he being per-
emptOrially ordered not to cancel
or destroy the notes received. The
words "ro-issued ,""paid out again.
and 'skept in circulation" neces.
sarily require the original notes to be
kept in circulation. The prOViSO 81
the act makes this construction ab-
/, sUlutely certain, even when notes
are received so mutiIated that they
cannot be re-issued, paid out again,
or kept in circulation ; other notes
of like denomination must be issued
in their stead. Congress did not in
, tend to give the Secretary the pow
er even to change the denomination
of the small fragment Of the 1916
600, 900 of legal tender notes that
. might become mutilated and unfit
for reissue, yet the Secretary, in
, plain violation of law and of his
known duty, is contracting the cur
rency by the substitution Of large
for small notes, and avOws his in
. tentiOn to continue to do so.
The act of May 81, 1878, (see page
} 81 of the acts of the last session oil
this Congress), reads as follows:
Be it enacted by the Senate and
House Of Representatives OF the
= United States of America
in Congress assembled. That from
and after the passage of this act il
shall not be lawful for the Secretary
of the Treasury, or other officers
under him, TO cancel or retire any
more of the United States legal
tender notes; and when any of said
notes may be redeemed or be re-
ceived into the Treasury under any
law from any source whatever, and
, shall belong to the United States,
they shall not be retired, cancelled
or destroyed but they shall be re-
issued and paid out again and kept
in circulation: Provided, That
nothing herein shall prohibit the
cancellation and destruction OF
mutiIated notes and the issue OF
, other notes of like denomination
in their stead, as now provided by
law.
All acts and parts of acts in con-
flict herewith are hereby repealed.
Senators will he astOnished, il
they take the trouble to examine
how small proportion Of the out
= standing legal tender notes are in
: any available form in Circu.
lation among the people for
their daily wants, when the amount
which has been lost or destroyed
by fire and flood in the last four
teen years is deducted land it is &
/ very large sunny. Some idea of il
may be formed when it is stated
that from J TO l per cent. is the
. yearly estimate of loss, and WheT
! we find 5000, 900 of fractional cur
rency outstanding yet, nOtWith
standing all the efforts to retire it
: out of an issue of less than $50. 000,
OO0. it being now almost certain
. that One-fourth of the fractional cur
rency is lost or destroyed in tht
hands of the people. That is, o
: course, a larger proportion Of los:
: than the legal tender notes vii
show, but the loss in regard t
them will amount to many millions
: of dollars. Add 10 that the large
: amount held in the Treasury anC
the amount required to be kept il
! reserve by the national banks anc
boarded by them in preparing FOL
resumption, and it is very doubtful
; if there is anything like One-hal
. of the outstanding legal tender note
! in circulation. If the Secretary
who takes in $40, 700, 900 year fOl
internal revenue and now issues hi:
! order to receive legal tender note;
: for customs dues, proceeds, as he il
doing, to convert them into note
of large denominations, and refuse;
/ to nav out silver coin for interest