The weekly clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1863-1882, 1880-01-28
The Demonstration of Greenbacks.
Sketch of Mr.. Beck's Speech in the
United States Senate Opposing the
Measure.
Special DIspalel : de World.l

Measure.
; Special Dispatel to the Wo'ld.l
WAsHTNGroS, January 2l.--Whea the
morning hour expired. the Senate took W
the resolution Of Mr.. Bayard Dem, Del
for the Withdrawal OF the legal-tender power
OF q eenhacks, AMI Mr.. Beck dem, Ky }
pFoceedcti 10 speak against il. He said that
in 1878 Mr. Bay ARD Offered this identical r. $
oiutIou and it WIS vus, down by large
J majority in both houses. L any objection
was ever II be made To the power OF Con-
greS> Ia issue notes in time OF peace that
was the time for il. Since then the Seere-
tary had accumulated 1925 600 0s10 in gold
and silver coin. Sl60,09u GOO of which was
available or all purposes. We had oa hand
more than could possibly be necessary for
the Sinking Fund. The debt was dim inish-
in. every cav. and We were growing in
prosperity aud numbers. The people did
not ask gold TOR greenbaeks, Yet the New
\ ok petitioners claimed that greater con-
/ iidencr il business would follow the pas
I ; &c OF this resolution. He denied il. What
/ greater confidence MAS needed: Could there
be greater security than that Implied in our
| declaration that tie greenbackS shall be
/ Issued and stand at their fuIl vaIue: Ii was
always safe and generally wise to let well
enough alone. We were prosperous be-
cause God in his providence mad seen tit to
I bless It's aad to visit other nations with Ca
( iamity. y reverse might come and our
I prosperity vanish quickly as it came.
There was Anxiety expressed lest the peo-
pie indulge in wild speculation and bring
back the former unhappy condition OF az
fairs. Ii the people were tit to be free they
had right 10 use their energies as best
suited them. Ii was arrogance for any
body OF men TO say they knew better than
the representatives OF the people how much
money was needed. Ii all the money issued
were now in existence it would only
amountto Sl5 or SIS per head. France
had $50 per head. Belgium had 1882
per head. Germany had $l7 per capita.
She had in an unfortunate hour attem pied |
10 demonetize silver. but had been obliged
in the interest of business to stop selling
silver and to begin to reissue. Great Brit I
ain had $50 per capita. ct Mr. Beck and
those OF his opinions were denounced as re-
pudiatorS, fools and knaves by many news /
papers so well paid by banker, and brokers /
of New York. The amount Of greenbacks |
outstanding was probably less than $780, |
100000 and Sl79,0000O0 of this was held by |
banks and the Treasury on May l, 1879. Or /
the remainder 500, 900 was in bills of
500 aud upwards. practically no betlerY
than bonds He did not believe the origi-
nal issue of the notes was constitutional
He had always denied that it was. We had |
them upon us, and he was determined TO
make the most of them. The bill authoTiz-
ing the issue up TO the fall amount of 500,
0O0, 600 was vetoed, not because uncoaStitu-
lonal, but only on technical grounds. and
the amount was then made 1882 900 900. an
iBCiSdSe VI FSO.UUOuOU- tue PRESENT EtGTtIa-
~ of the Treasury voting for 1t in the face
of former report by him condemning the
issue of S5,000000 made by the then Secreta-
ry of the Treasury.
Mr.. Bayarj requested Mr.. Beck to admit
that he (Mr. Bayard' had then urged this
measure in committee and in the Senate.
Mr.. Beck replied that he gave the Senator
credit for perfect consistency in all his ac-
tionS. and believed that he was actuated by
patriotic motives. He believed that Con-
no that
Judge of what constituted an eXigency such
as would warrant the issue of not s. As
Stunning that the war was such, so long as we
were taxed for interest on the war debt and
for pensions there were eXigencies requir-
ing the preservation of these notes. The
national banks could, by forming a ring,
avert the payment of gold. They could
send their notes to places distant from the
place of issue and it would be impossible to
get them redeemed prom pity. If the legal
tender quality of greenbacks Were with
drawn no contract could be enforced where
offer Of payment was a condition precedent
to its fulfilment. This was a scheme to
make national bank notes the only availa-
BILE money. On paid in capital of $780,
900 the First National Bank of New York !
had on January |, 1879 "A surplus fund OF 6
s. 100000, and on Aovembes !, 1874, $1,000 | t
200. On January l, 1879. the undivided
IN june l, $1,000; on October, l, f.
1904 OOO. If these were separate items =
the total would be $2132.000 of undi- =
vided profits on 100000 capital. If none
mad been drawn out, that it represented
what had run along through the year, it still a
showed SS00000 profit. On January l. 1879 e.
he bank had S24,OUO,oO0 of United State mon y
~ on which it could bank; on April T. $69-
300 coo; on June IA, Sl28, 900, 000 on October p
|, s., 10000. The interest on the deposits in /
June was S2i 600 day. Further there was p
profit on syndicate operations of s., 81, 600 all
IN 100000 capital Mr.. Beck concluded that
he han italt hat a ma coul1
vas the goodwill and patronage of the Sec
-etary of the Treasury. =
Mr.. Morrill, Rep, Ft.) said that the First :
National Banks capital, though originally ,
$4,000 had received an accession to it of
surplus of over 81, ri, 900, and that
t paid last year 1927 ,479 in taxes. The Sec o
,etary never deposited single dollar in the II
oank. All that was deposited was by the sub [
cribers to the loan. T
Mr.. Beck said these profits were made out
If capital of $500 900. They had surplus
besides all these profits and syndicate profits c
# s., 600, 600 a
MIR Morrill, said they negotiated SECS, Co., O
100 of bonds and made less than $40 of per Of
ent. profit.
Mr.. Beck said it was a vicious system. The
legislation by which the bonds were made
payable n coin instead of greenbacks, and
n gold instead of gold and silver, eff \
Ort of the money power to benefit themselves
IT the expense of the people. We could trade
With ourselves and with nobody else. Even W
+ we got better prices far our products o
,uy in cheap foreign markets. He referr- a.
d TO the facts that the Kanawha Salt Works IL
we're stopped in order to allow the price of &
alt to be kept I'D and that the Vulcan Iron =
Works of St Louis had been closed for ten y
years by agreement between them and The u
3essemer pool, by which they received so, GOO g
ionGs last year for stopping the furnaces, be u
fdes $1,000 as their proportion in the pool is
Fl ght hundred men were thrown out of en- :,
oloyment by the stoppage of these works =
This called protection to American labor. r
We were expQrtiGg nothing but breads tufts d
s hich starving people were oblige TO buy of IL
Is. The Pacific railroads might as we'll new K
II have been made for all the trade they bring =
is from the East The capitalists had the y
IONS share of everything. Believing he eff
ect of the passage of the resolution would he q
o increase the power of BODY of 4nen who y
ave no interest in eou.ulon with the people, =
lie Tou oppose 1t until he saw money com
ng from abroad by other causes than an ac- L
idental state of things which might cease at a
my time. w