The semi-weekly miner. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1882-1886, 1885-06-20
THE sEMI-WEEKLY MINER, BUTTE, MONTANA. JUNE L, 1010

MIN ER BU.
BELFORD ON SIBERIAN.
Senator Sherman has reached Montana,
but made only a brief stop at Helena.
What he has seen Of our mines and Of this
western country will lead him to consider
| the cause OF silver in a more favorable and
a more rational light. Speaking Of Sher-
, man and his pet theory Of coinage on a
market-price basis, Colorado's brilliant
but eccentric ex-Congressman, James B.
Belford, 1.-THE red-headed rooster Of the
Rockies" has the following to say: "Sena-
tor Sherman of Ohio has concluded to visit
the Far West, especially the gold State OF
California. where he is delighting the people
OF that gold-bug State with speeches on the
subject of silver to be coined at it's market
| value. 1t would be a delightful coinage for
a people to enjoy, with a constantly
%fluctuating market. Who is to determine
this market price; is it to be the Govern
ment of the United States that issues the
money and makes it a legal tender at q
fixed sum-, or is it to be two individuals
who may chatter and quarrel about it ?
This distinguished Senator has had a
peculiar Congressional history; he entered
into Congress a poor man, and regarded
as about a ~third-rate lawyer. The bent
Of his genius, however. has always run
to finances, as is proved by the facts that
notwithstanding the costliness of Washing
ton living he has accumulated a fortune OF
over a million dollars on a salary of five
great financial services to the country, and
in honor to the further fact that he depos-
tied millions of dollars of the Government
funds in the First National Bank of New
York city, while Secretary of the Treasury,
it has received the name of "Fort Sherman"
There are some very unpleasant and un-
happy memories connected with his Chair
manship OF the Finance Committee in the
United States Senate. You will remember
that according to the statements existing
in 1868 chat there was a difference in the
price of greenbacks and their par value OF
about thirty cents on the dollar, and the
principal OF the bonds outstanding on the
part of the Government was payable in
greenbacks. During or about this time
the Bank of Amsterdam had bought these
bonds at about seventy cents on the dollar
and decided to enhance their value by max
ing them payable, not in our National cur
rency, which was greenbacks, but in coin,
booo,oo ro;+hor ro11 NOR silver wo IN circn-
lation, and determined to have payment in
gold. At this time a number OF members
of Congress, whose names l presently with
hold, but will furnish when my statements
are questioned by any respectable person
the proposition to these members of Con-
gress was made by the Bank Of Amsterdam.
that if they would make these bonds paya-
BILE in coin, they (the bank would divide
with these members the difference between
the then present value of the bonds and
their par value in coin. The gentleman who
informed me of these facts, being a member
of Congress, told me he had declined to &C.
cept the proposition.
"He returned home rom Europe and was
in the House OF Representatives when Sena-
tor Sherman reported from the Senate Fl
nance Committee Il bill entitled" An act
to strengthen the public credit" Not desir-
ing to make these bonds payable in gold,
his bill provided that they should be re-
deemed in coin, or it's equivalent. When the
Senator prepared this bill he knew that the
law OF 1892 intended to make the bullion
values equal, and to keep them there; and
at the time he prepared this bill he knew
that the existing standard was sixteen
ounces of silver to one ounce of gold and
he knows, furthermore. thatfour years after
this act passed to strengthen the public
credit, silver was 3 per cent. premia:n over
gold, and that a New England robber, de-
signing to establish a single gold standard,
clandestinely carried a coinage act through
Congress demonetizing silver and establish
ing a single gold standard. So occult was
the meaning and purpose of this act. that
it took the citizens of this Republic three
years to find out that the event had oc-
Cured. Even General Grant, who was then
President, and who signed the bill, did not
know that it contained this feature.
"In July, 1879, on theinvitation Of a Sen
ator from the State of Maine, this same
Senator Sherman made a speech on the
Financial and other issues of the Times"
delivered at Portland, Maine, and in which
he reviewed at great length, the financial
condition of this country from 1873 until
the time he delivered this address, and in
this speech he stated, referring to the re-
sumption act, and used the following lam
guage, viz: This was a Republican meas
ure, for though many Democrats.favored
resumption yet party discipline and the
hope of party advantage induced every one
of them to vote against the resumption
act. This measure was a very simple one,
containing but two propositions-one was
that silver coin should be issued for the
redemption OF fractional currency, and the
other was chat on January 1, 1879, the
National Treasury should redeem in coin
any United States notes that were pre-
sented.'
His long financial experience taught
him what the coin of the Constitution
meant, and that one of the chief objects in
forming the Constitution and creating the
Government was to secure a uniformity of
values OF the foreign coins in the various
States; to secure this uniformity the States
granted to the General Government the
right to coin our money, but never con-
%templated in making this grant that the
General Government had the power to
stop the coinage of either metal"
The Engineering and Mining ournalcalls
attention to the fact that Americans visit
ing Europe this summer will have plenty OF
opportunities to visit 'expositions." Lon