The daily gazette., 1880-01-28
FIRST EDITION.
BAYARys GREAT SPEECH,
UNITED STATES NOTES.


to-day resumed the consideration OF the
joint resolution Withdrawing the CON-
pulsory legal tender pow or of the United
States notes reported adversely from the
Committee on Finance, and Mr.. Bayard
proceeded to speak in support OF the
views Of the minority Of that committee.
Mr.. BAYARD said -
My object in urging the adoption Of
the present resolution 10 10 bring about
an actual resumption Of specie payment.
Whatever else may be flected by this
resolution is secondary and merely Incl
dental to this one Cardinal object. l ar
IDENTIFY desire the prosperity OF my couD-
try. wish it to endure, and know
that TO be permanent IL must rest upon a
sound basis, and / know that a sound
currency Is essential and that real money
is The only basis of a sound currency.
have said that desire TO effect real re-
sumption Of specie payment, for i do
not believe what is at present called re-
sumption is real or reliable, because it
is neutralzed in all its resumptlve ef-
fects by the immediate reissue of the
notes just redeemed. To resume by
such a deusive process is as idle to bail
water with a seive. This resolution Is
| intended to secure the resumption of a
standard of value based upon value and
not upon mere credit. IL is not intended
to destroy the convenience and assistance
of the pl eseDt paper currency, but feel
assured that by letting men feel conf
dence that stable standard is Ultimately
TO measure all their contracts they will
naturally feel safer to enter into con-
tracts.
This will encourge capital to embark
upon enterprises which will give employ
ment To the laboTing classes, and will
insure TO labor an honest equivalent.
IL Is unfortunate that notes should be
called "money," as 1t tends to produce
confusion and iIjustic; at best, notes are
promise, and until that promise Is paid
ID money IL Is unperformed. The issue OF
the notes was proof that the government
had no money-that they thought it un-
advisable to tax the people to obtain II
and, therefore, the United States notes
we're merely instruments Of the govern
ment 10 obtain supplies to carry ON the
war witho ut paying for them. And let il
here be noted that making notes legal
tender does not oblige any man to sell
| his property for such notes; it only COM
pels him to receive them fer debt then
due; in other words, the legal tender is
, debt paying power, put can never be
/ made debt contracting power, and no
! amount of tyrannical force in the history
| of the world has ever been able to
accomplish this last.
EVIDENCES OF DEBT.
Paper currency In all its forms, bills
ofexchange, promissoIy notes, bank bills,
are all u.s. full auxiliaries OF money, but
are evidence of debt and not Of wealth,
and possess no inherent value. Every
piece of money represents the value OF
the labor which IL cost to produce it.
The value of any commodity can only
be measured by money IL does not de-
termine the value, but il expresses 1t
when it has been agreed upon and mea-
suTes it. The first step In the increase OF
wealth isthe organization, n,thecombination
and division of labor, Capital is the child
| Of labor, and born of its eXertions. BY
the very la ~ its birth and origi % |
cannot be useful without the employ
ment of labor so that the laborer must
share the advantages OF capital. Increase
of capital brings with it increased de-
mand for labor and capital and labor,
having a common origin, are natural al
lies aud not enemies.
For all the varied productions OF human
industry machinery and measure oi
exchange is required. A universal me-
dunn of exchange is necessary. In nc
civilized country can all the exchanges
of property be carried on by the agency
of coin alone. Paper notes are an essen
tial auxiliary to coin, but, let 1t never be
forgotten, they are not coin, are not mo-
ney, but are substitutes for 1t. They are
moi actual payments, but promises TO
pay-evidences of debt which the Ian
will enforce and do not give value fol
value, and their acceptance must be
based on their credit, on their conve-
nience, and be always voluntary in or
der to be safe. When paper note, an
evidence OF debt, is made a compulsory
tender in payment of debt-the great
law of honesty-the great law of money,
that value is to be given for value, is
broken aud disregarded.
THE TERRIBLE MONEY POWER.
Mr.. President, we have heard in this
chamber illusions somewhat vague, but
none the less alarming, to an unseen,
underlined, but terrible "money power
What is meant is, suppose, the power
of capital How shall the law deal with
il? Capital is the result OF labor and
frugality. Wealth and property Of all
descriptions are but forms of capital: Is
there to be discrimination, suspicion and
assault visited upon those individuals OF
society who have been more successful
than others in the accumulation of prop
erty? Is 1t not "money power" that
enable poor laborerto become the own
ar of the pickaxe or shovel with which
he prosecntes his daily task?Is it not"mo-
ney power" that enables him to educate
his children and fit them for an improved
condition in life? do not shut my eyes
Mr.. President, TO the fact that the equal
and wholesome distribution If property
which it was hoped by the founders Of
our government would be attained by
the abolition of the rules of primogeni-
ture, of entalments, of perpetuities and
the division of intestate estates among
daughters and SONS alike, have been
greatly defeated. | am inclined to be.
lieve the system of incorporation which
we have introduced into all branches oil
industrial pursuits will be found nearly
equal to the effects of primogeniture and
! mortmain combined in its influence up
on the aggregation of wealth.
But the millionnaires of to-day, now
to be counted by scores, where twenty
years ago they were to be counted by
unita wpre twenty wears AGO nenniles