Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1884-12-06
OUR FUTURE TIN.
National Bank Notes Win be Driven
Out of Use by the Payment
Of the Public Debt.
Their Place VIII be Filled by an Ex-
olusivsly Government Currency
Of Coin and Paper Notes.
No Indication Of the Retirement Of
the Legal-Tender Notes or Of
the Silver Dollar.

NEW YORK, Dec. 5.--The Sun In y
notable double-lesded editorial dis
cusees the question Of our coming ma
iionaI currency and reaches the con-
clusion that the national bank ourren-
cy must 40 and give place TO govern
ment currency of coin and paper
money.
The article notes carefully the rapid
decrease of our national bank circula.
ton and the rapid increase IN coin
and coin certificates and says this Will
give us by 1891 grand total OF 81 1885,
600 900 of government currency,
against 500, 0O0, 600, and probably less,
supplied by the banks.
Id goea on 10 say: "Of cQmae much
may happen 10 modify or prevent this
result. The conduct of men cannot be
predicted 40 confidently az that OF in-
animate things, The legal-tenders
may be redeemed aud withdrawn
sue coinage OF silver dollars
may be auepended aud the supply OF
gold may be diminished at the mines
or be taken to foreign countries. The
decrease of bank circulation may, on
the other hand, be checked by legisla-
ton; but the probabilities are greatly
against these eventa, and, rs
we said At the outset II Ia much
more likely that the national
bank notes will be driven out Of use
and their place tAkon by AN exclusive
! ~ government currency.
'aThe existence of our national bank
circulation, it must be remembered,
depends entirely upon the profit u
yields the banks. These institutions
are conducted upon commercial, not
upon philanthropic principles,
| so long IA the bonds required
IA security for their circulation
bear sufficiently high rate OF interest
| they will Issue the notes, but so soon
as the notes fall below the paying
point their circulation viii be With
| drawn, At present there aro enough
8 per cente TO be had 10 make II worth
the while To take out n circulation
upon them, but these bonds Will all
soon be paid of and the comptroller
tells us that the l's and Al's
are already too high TO make them a
profitable basis for circulation. The
43's will surely be redeemed ~ their
maturity In 1891, and the ~ are rising
Ia price continually under the oompe-
tition for them by the executors OF
trusts, the banks and umid
investors. That the people OF
the United States will, for
the sake OF the banks, sanction any
leqislation by which either the ma
tional deb. shall be prolonged or the
interest upon IL be increased, II Is Idle
10 suppose that they will permit the
banks To issue circulation on any
less secure q basis than United States
bonds, Il equally incredible, There Is
no escape that we can see from the
hard logic of facts. The national
bank currency must 20, and that
pretty soon.
"Of the possibility Of the retirement
OF the legal tender notes there ~ no IN
dication. The contracting Of them Ia
this way was stopped in 1878 by The
popular clamor, and, as we have re-
marked, they have remained liked At
their present amount ever since
without efforts by either par.
ty to reduce IL. Tho same
may be aaid of the coinage Of silver
dollars Every attempt to check or q
euapend IL has been ahortive. The
West almost unanimously tayors II
and will support II 10 the last
"As TO the danger that tho with
drawal OF the bank circulation may
cause monetary striDgency, concern
ing which 30 much solieisude ID ex
pressed, 1t need only be remarked that
the coinage Of gold aud silver alone VII
more than I'll any vacuum thni
created. Whether the coin goes int
circulation as coin, or az government
receipts for coin deliverable on de
mand, is immatenal. There II sure u
be circulating medium enough for tbs
needs OF the community. We Ehnl
always do well 10 remember that th'
natural forces are often stronger thar
Legislation. and that the common
sense Of events constantly sets aslu'
the transcendental reasoning Of the
orlsts and philosophers"