Seattle daily post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, W.T. [Wash.]) 1881-1888, 1884-03-22
lime SETS EVERYT00NC T0
R1C0TS."
EDITOR Posr-ISTELLreEycyR

EDITOR Posr-ISTELLreESczR:
My old Greenback gun in se.tins
somewhat rusty, and would like 10 a.,
II of once more at the advocates OF
gold and silver as the only sokstance,
ont If which money can be made
lime, II is said, "corrects all mis-
takes, and sets everything to rights. =
II Is only question Of time, and in nv
judgment, very short time. when the
people of tits nation will come TO IN.
dei stand that money is not a substance
OF any kind. but is the creation of Law
inaklne power OF government or ma
ton.
On the Bird instant decision was ZEN.
drred toy tile Supreme Court of ths
United States IN the long pending legal
tender case Of Augustus ID. Jailliard vs..
thomas ,. GreeuInan, brought there by
wtit of error to the Circuit Court OF
the United States for the southern dis
trict If New York. The question pre-
sented by this case, ss 1t il stated by the
Court. is whether notes OF the United
States, issued In time of war, under acts
OF Congress declaring them to be legal
tender IN payment Of private debts, aud
afterwards IN time of peace redeemed
and paid IN gold coin at the Treasury.
aud then rslssued under the act Of 1878,
can, under the Constitution Of the
United States, be legal tender in pay
| rnent Of such debts -
The Court Is unanimously of opinion
that the present case cannot be dis
tinguished in principle from the cases
heretofore decided and reported under
the name legal tender cases (l2Wall.
457J, "DoOley Va. Smith Oh Wall, GOA
Railroad Cong pany vs.. johnson" Us
Wall, 1857, and Maryland vs.. Rail-
road Company" (22 Wall, 1867.
Congress" the Court says, "as tie
Legislature of u sovereign nation, being
expressly empowered by tho constitu-
ton TO lay and collect taxes, to pay the
debts and provide for the common de-
fenss and general welfare of tue United
States,' and to borrow money on the
credit of the United States and to
ooin money and regulate the value
th, reof and of foreign coin,' and
being clearly authorized as incidental
to tue exercise Of those great powers to
emit bills of credit, to charter national
banks, and to provide national cur
rency for the whole people in form Of
com, treasury notes and national bank
of the Government legal tender IN
pa ment of private debts, being one Of
the powers belonging to sovereignty in
other CIVILIZED nations. and not express
ly withheld from Congress by the oon-
stitutlon, we are irresistibly impelled to
the conclusion that the iDpressing upon
the treasury notes of the United States,
the quality of being legal tender in
u.p yrnAnt Of r1rlvutx. Anhta -
pirate means. conductive and plainly
adapted to the execution of the un-
doubted powers of Congress-. consistent
vita the letter and spirit of the consti-
tuition, and, therefore. within the mean.
ing of that instrument. necessary and
proper for carrying into execution the
powers vested by the constitution in the
Government of the United States"
II follows that the act of May 81,
1873, is constitutional and valid, and
that the Circuit Court rightly held that
the tender In Treasury notes reissued
aud kept III circulation under that act
WAS n tender Of lawful money in pay
ment of the defendants deUt to tho
plaintiff"
The Judgment Of the Circuit Court
il affirmed" Opinion of Justice Gray.
.. ye exclusive hard money LUNA
tics ~ read I foregoing decis over
and over, and ponder we'll upon the
force of the words power" irresist-
IDLY. appropriate" plainly" un-
doubted, consistent" letter."
spirit" meaning" proper" ETC.,
and contemplate the source from which
they are applied to the subject under
consideration.
The Washington, d. c., Post says
The Supreme Court decision i'll the
legal tender case is as important as any
utteranoe that has ever eInanated from
that body. 1t declares that the most
important limitation OF the power of
Congress heretofore supposed to exist
has existed in Imagination. not III the
Constitution" 1t says that Congress
may substitute paper for gold and sll
ver." 1t says to the fiat money advO-
Gates -Solon Chase. of Maine /; General
Weaver, Of Iowa; Rev. De LA Matyr,
of Indiana. and George w. Jones, of
Texas-that they 1" were n the right in
their Interpretation Of the Constitu-
ton" The Post says that, whether
liked or disliked,a decision Of court
of last resort il decree from which
there Is no appeal, except u the same
tribunal"
The special correspondent in Wash
ington, ID. c.. of the New York HerdH
of March 4th says: The decision of
the Supreme Court in the legal tender
case caused a great surprise here, and
WAS much discussed in conversation
among Representatives, and Senators
today" Space will rot permit of more
than enc or two quotations from tho
many opinions at hand of those wise y
men IN regard to the result of that de-
oislou. One Representative said If
l were still merchant, ~ once WAS, l
should put all my business on gold
basis at once, make all INV contracts for
gold, and keep my bank account in
gold, not knowing or seeing that by
this very decision all OF Mis- gold con
tracts for debts could be paid in legal
tender greenbacks. Another Represent
ative said "Suppose-what Is the log
ical OUTCOME of the courts decision
Congress does what prominent men Of
both parties have repeatedly and re-
Gently asked to be done, make the du
ties pay able in legal tender notes, what
thenI Then oar coiamercial isola-
ton will be tolerably complete.
We shall have our own money.
so-callsd legal tender here, use
full on some terms in the home
market, but acceptable nowhere else!"
A lady now in this city. who has trav
eled in nearly every country In the
world, told me less than 4 week ago that
in nearly every foreign country our
twenty dollar greenbacks we're prefer
able to twenty dollar gold pieces; that
in the stores in Europe the merchants
would refuse to take our gold except by
weight. but would take our greenbacks
without discount or a word of grumble.
Such is experience aRsiAst opinion. In
conclusion, permit me to say that this
decision of the Supreme Court Of the
United States puts qu'etu' on the
great bugbear argument used here
tofore by the exclusive hard money ad
vocates, that "the greenback Was only a
war measure and not money in time
of peace" a most profound % arRu-
ment for men claiming to be logical in
their arguments. The idea that great
nation csn make money in time Of war
that ceases to bs none, the moment the
cannon's roar dies out, il, to SAY the
least. placing the powers Of a govern
ment in very ludicrous position.
N. 3. BOorH.
So...ta Ma-ch 81 1894