Mexico weekly ledger., 1884-03-27
THE LATE LEGAL TENDER DECIS,

Congress has the power to issue OBJ
legations of the United States in such
form, and to impress upon them such
qualities as currency for the pur-
chase of merchandise and payments
of debts in accord with the usage of
sovereign governments. This power
is incident to the power of borrowing
money and issuing bills and notes of
the Government for money borrowed,
of impressing upon those bills or
notes the quality of being Legal Ten
der for payment of private debts,
was a power universally understood
and to belong to sovereignty in Europe
and America, at the time of the franz
ing and adoption of the constitution
of the United States" In the alb
%stract, the foregoing with reference
20 powers of 4 sovereignty is true.
but that is not the question. The
question is, whether or notthe United
States Government has conferred up
on it by the constitution the right to
''emit bills of credit" The articles
of confederation conferred upon the
Federal government the power ''to
emit bills of credit of the United
States" Fonr years before the con-
vention met, which formed our pres
ent constitution, Hamilton in his
careful enumeration of the defects in
the confederation, said that ''thls
authority to emit an unfunded paper
as the sign of value ought not to con-
tinue a formal part Of the constitu-
ton nor, even hereafter to be en-
ployed." To remedy this defect,
among the many others of the con-
federation, was one of the objects for
which the convention of 1857 was
called. The committee of detail in
the convention continued too the pow
er "to borrow money!" and ''the pow
erto emit bills of credit of the United
States" On the presentation OF
these powers coupled together to the
convention for adoption, Gov. Nor
ris moved to strike out the power ''to
emit bills Of credit of the United
States" and was seconded in his mo-
ton by William Butler of South Car.
DINA. Upon this motion a discus
sion arose, in which it was found that
a paper money had neither friends
nor advocates, and it was thoroughly
understood in the convention that il
this power was stricken out Of the
constitution then there was nc
ground left for paper money to stand
upon. In that discussion Mr.. Ellis.
worth Of Massachusetts, said, ''this
is q favorable moment to shut and
bar the door against paper money
which can IN no case be necessary
When the vote was taken upon Nor.
ris' motion, the authority to issue
bills of credit that should be a Legal
Tender, was refused to the Govern.
ment by the vote of nine states
against New Jersey and Maryland.
Mr.. Madison of Virginia, after.
word president, cast the vote which
put Virginia in the list of states in
favor of the motion. He afterward
in speaking of the vote thus cast.
said "that the pretext for a paper
money, and particularly, for making
the bills a tender, either for public OIL
private debts was cut off," Mr..
Geo. Bancroft in his history of the
constitution Of the United States, at.
ter giving the history of the clause
to borrow money and to emit
bills of credit and ETC., as contained
in the original draft of the constitu'
ton, and after quoting the words Of
Madison as given above. says: "This
is the Interpretation of the clause,
made at the time Of its adoption alike,
by its authors and by its opponents.
accepted by all the statesmen of that
age, not open to dispute, because
too clear for argument, and never
disputed so long as any one nan who
took part in framing the constitu'
ton remained alive"
Then coming to the prohibitions or
the states contained IN the constitu'
ton, the committee on detail report
ed: "No state without the consent
of the legislature of the United
States, shall emit bills of credit
A substitute was offered, "That nc
state shall emit bills of credit
which carried with only n vote
that Of Virginia, as the negative
The remaining clause. "No stats
shall make anything but gold ant
silver coin a tender in payment o
debts" was passed without q dissen'
tient vote. Mr.. Bancroft says il
speaking of this action of the convcn'
ton, $50 the adoption of the consti
tuition is to be the end forever of pa
per money, whether Used by the sew
eral states or by the United States, i
the constitution shall be rightly in
terpre ted and honestly obeyed.'
These Legal Tender decisions arr
based upon two grounds, first, tina
the right to issue a paper money il
on interest in the government
and is q power incident to govern
ment regardless of the constitution
second, that the constitution doe
confer the power to issue pape
money, both Of which positions arr
completely overturned by the histor.
of the formation. and adoption of th'