New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1883-02-19
cPFFNRACK NOTIONS.


r. find fine conspicuous Greenblck people ou'-
o,do If CONGRESS more rational than some Oh
tbeir conservatives. Perhaps the representa-
two may feel that there is n sort of treason 10
his faith if he permits himself TO absorb any
mental light. But the men whose thinking
r,ol,os sucb members possible haveno such Inn
itations. They cannot stop thinking II tleS
would. and may at some time iii upon
rational idea.
For instance Mr.. Spinner, the former reaS-
urcr Cf the United States, whose ingenious
signature adorns 40 many of our DIS mas VIII
ten \ letter on the currency question In which
NO ntters some truth. The money question: II
NAV be said. is not out of the way vet ana
never will be so long as the coinage OF elEnty
cent tokens instead of dollars continues Inc
people who realize that they made uhlliii'eu
fools of themselves on other phases oil the cur
rencv question. as a great many did, have mao
some reason TO congratulate themselves thaC
Tins tonic had ceased to be of instant ana vital
;mnor,ance inasmuch as public forgetiuIness OF
the touic might carry with 1t pubic rorget'ui-
ness of their nonsense. But those VINO are no'
willing to be forgotten are still Oestlfring
themselves, after a fashion, and Mr.. spinner
takes occasion to show the folly OF continued
silver coinage. His argument Is original ahu
conclusive. He says:
There is no pretcnse that the silver dollar worm vas
neto ANYTHING like It's face value, ana the irh''oha'
,,,rs are sin more deprecated, compared Win inc
II os of mi. or nny other country. IN truth. the
silver coins of our county simply tohcns Now
Tokens are TO be used u currency ia lien oi Iu IA'e
value coin then the cheaper and more convenient "'
token Of the Government should hc Issued ~ h'r'''
The boarding of the deprecated silver doHa'N ' 'h'
Treasury vaults throws stl heavier burden on 'n' poo
pie II would bc bad enough Tor the Government ="
hoard real fncc-vauc coin. but 10 hoard mere tokens
,,, rcl r,ourv is The ycfcst ab-urdity oi absurd
tiles
This is Mr.. Spiruer's option, and one Is
bound 70 say that there is a great deal oi sense
in it. If we cannot haze real money, and must
have tokens which purport TO be money ana are
not. why not use paper altogether No one can
offer any reply except the owners OF real or I'M
aginary silver mines, whose voice Is heniu
whenever Congress undertakes 10 consider this
subject To them. it would not be pleasant 10
have the country cease To buy t"o-thluS oI
their yearly product in order to help the sale oil
silver and of stocks in silver mines. 10 every
body else. the dscoutinuance OF silver coinage
seems. a. it does to eXTreasurcr Spinner emil
nenty desirable.
Perbars il is hardly worth while to call atten-
ton to the fact that these gentlemen are stu
wandering in the gloomy and trackless catacombs
If uncertainty about other phases OF the money
question. 1t is dark down there, ana they have
no light, and it is their misfortune To have To
deal with dead things almost exclusively Ihey
talk of the national issues Of paper money just
~ if thev did not know that the only value OF
the bank note and of the legal tender, for some
wears mast. had been derived from the fact that
either WAS exchangeable on demand for gold.
The money question, rs respects the repudia-
ton of public pledges to pay gold dollars for
,ts notes. is as dead as Julius Caesar, and the
Greenback PEOPLE alone imagine that there can
he any question about It,
Still the late lamented Wallace p. Groom,
who once obtained, when in life, ticket to be
badly beaten A. Republican candidate for Con-
errss in a district not Republican, takes occa-
sion to observe that paper currency ought {" he
issued by Government with It's volume regu-
lated wisely and Justly (hence automatically
and in "A note he explains that automatic rcSu-
iation" of the currency can only be secured
through nterchangeability with bends bearing
an equitable interest. In pleasing note, he
is kind enough to explain that IAN equitable
rate Of interest might be found, ultimately, to
be minus mot plus quantity That Is to
saw. the bonds might eQuitably be 50 adjusted
that holders should Toe obliged to pay Govern
ment something for the privilege Of holding
them, instead of Government paying them
something for interest. And the ideal alto
gether perfect and automatic currency would
be fixed in value by that Of bonds of this highly
interesting description. If body held any
currency, he would at least know that he could
get it redeemed in bonds which he would have
to pay the Government something for the priyi-
lege of holding every year. That would make
it quito automatic, 10 doubt. Mr.. Spinner's
note VAS only u stray CLEAN Of light The
fools are not all dead yet.
Duties ON STEEL
-, G,iluro of Avnr's Sopg