National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1881-03-11
One Hundred and Thirty-Eight Ma
tioIaaI Ranks and Their Greenbacks,

| any iuedSuI6 W0rO IO SNdIlu III tlhS iOo
bies ofCongress, and rush into print with
infammatory threats Of disaster and de-
struction to business interests if that
measure should pass and if they should
actually begin the work of destruction,
with view to demonstrating the sim
cerity of their threats and their ability to
execute them, would it not be pusillani-
nous In Congress to- change front under
such a display of ruffianism? The last
Congress was chosen by upward of seven
millions Of voters. 1t represented the
people SO far as there were free elections.
| For any set of men to club together and,
for the furtherance of some scheme OF
their own, to seek to intimidate Congress
and prevent the passage of such laws as
the majority deem wise and proper, is to
substitute the rule of a mob for the rule
of the people This was done boldly and
shamefully during the month of February.
Provision had to be made for meeting
some $500, 100000 of bonds soon to become
due, and common honesty dictated pro-
vision for redeeming some 5000, 100000
more, which the Government can soon
exercise its option to pay, because it is
| known that we can borrow money at low
rate and extinguish higher rate of in
terest which these bonds are now bear
\ ing. The Government nersr sells its bonds
ADORE par. Those who hoped to buy the
eight hundred millions at par were, there
fore, interested in having them made
worth as much more than that as pos
sible, which could only be done by put
ting up the rate of interest they were to
bear. The opinion prevailed with large
minority in Congress that three and a
half per cent. was as low rate as would
insure the sale of bonds at par. This was
the belief of most of the Republicans, and
may have been correct. But majority
in each branch of Congress believed that
three per cent. would sell at par, and
voted accordingly. The national banks
are more than two thousand in number,
and, taken as whole, they have gone
along about their business, and left the
representatives of the people to exercise
their own judgment on the subject under
discussion. They have a circulation of
about S320,000,000. But one hundred and
thirty-eight of the banks lent themselves
as the cat's-paws of the sharpers who un-
dertook to legislate instead of Congress.
The brokers had decreed three and half
per cent as the rate, and filed the air
| with remonstrances against lower one.
They spoke through the press under
| their control, and swore that a three per
| cent. bond would not be tolerated by the
national banks; and that if they were not
allowed to dictate the funding legislation
the banks would precipitate panic by
Withdrawing their circulation under the
| law. This menace had no effect ON Con-
gress. Then, in order to induce a veto of
| the measure, these one hundred and thir
| ty-eight of all the banks in the country
fraction of about one-twentieth--wer
induced by the handful of operators al
luded to to actually deposit about eight
cen millions ofgreenbacks with the Treas
ury and give notice that they would retire
from circulation like amount of national
bank notes. This reduction of the vol
ume of circulating medium was thought
to be sufficient to produce panic and dis
treSs in the country, and either for that
reason, or on his own opinion as to the
feasibility of floating three per cent.
bond, or out of Difference to the advocates
of higher rate, President Hayes vetoed
| the bill.
Now, the one hundred and thirty-eigh
national banks which lent themselves to
the brokers and defeated public measure
to satisfy private greed come forward
and virtually say to the Secretary of the
Treasury: eve were only in fun. What
we did was simply to frfghten Congress,
and, failing in that, to eoerce the Presi-
dent. We never intended to retire our
circulation. Please let us have back our
eighteen millions of greenbacks. We may
| want them to use again at an extra or
regular session of Congress for bull-dozing
purposes. Don't hold us up to our own
little game" Wehope the Secretary ofthe
Treasury will say: You are not the rep
resentatives of the national banking sys-
| tenn, asking for construction of the law
| important to its interests and safety. You
are small detachment, which, faithless to
the interests of the whole, have brought
them all into disrepute by allowing your
selves to be used by few brokers, who
themselves desired to make some millions
at the expense of the people. You have
insulted and outraged the Nation by at
tempting to set yourselves up as higher
than its chosen representatives. Your
greenbacks are in the Treasury by your
own act. Neither law nor precedent ex-
lists for their return. There will be as
many banks chartered as can make the
business profitable; indeed, you can, by
compliance with law, increase again the
circulation you have reduced. You can
make no panic in the country, nor in this
Department, nor in this administration
Go, and hereafter attend to your business,
while the men chosen for the purpose by
the people make the laws"
We have no knowledge of what is to be
done in the premises. But we have a
very clear idea that whatever seeks to be
above law in this country must be re-
duced to good behavior or be destroyed.
Whenever the Congress or the President
shall act under duress, or to buy off de-
stuctives who threaten harm if not
obeyed, then our Government is already
subverted. The question as to whether
three per cent. bond would sell at par is
not now the question. The new Congress
may decide that it would not, and may
| fix a higher rate. The real question is