Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1886-02-18

above par when we must soon buy them
with our surplus revenues. -
/ may observe here that silver oertlf-
Gates are now and have always been a
popular currency. ..it
The Treasurer in his last report, page
"a, says: ~, -.
The issue of silver certificates by
Treasury officers in the South and West
for gold coin deposited with the assist
ant treasurer at New York, under de-
partmental circular of September Is,
1880, was discontinued In January last.
The amount which had been issued In
that manner to the date named was
$50, 730, 800. .l.-9.i.l ,Tl-1 81. HsH
The Treasury order referred to reads
.l. TRAsURY DEPARTMENT, A
SECRETARY's Office,
WASHINGTON, d. c., Sept. Is. 1880.
Until further notice the United States
assistant treasurer In New York will
pay out at his counter standard silver
dollars or silver certificates In sums Of
$40, or multiplies thereof, in exchange
for gold bullion deposited with him..
Upon the receipt by the Treasurer
of the United States in this city of an
original certificate of deposit issued by
the United States assistant treasurer at
New York, stating that there has been
deposited with him gold coin or gold
bullion In the sum of $40, or any multi
pie thereof payment of like amount
in standard silver dollars or silvercer
ficates at the counter of any United
States assistant treasurer designated by
the depositor will be ordered.
JOHN SHERMAN, Secretary"
The Treasurer Of the United States in
his report to Congress dated November
l, 1880, says: .
The demand for silver certificates
under the circular of the Department
dated September IS, 1880, authorizing
their exchange for gold coin and hull
ion, has been quite extensive at New
Orleans, st. Louis, Chicago and Cincin-
natl, and there were paid out at these
points during the month of October
S3, 4S5 900 in silver certificates for an
equal amount of gold coin deposited in
the sub-treasury in New York.
And in December. 1881, the Secretary
of the Treasury in his report says:
The Department has issued silver GER
tificates at the several sub-treasury off,
ces, upon deposit of gold coin in like
amount with the assistant treasurer at
New York, and through this means GER
tificates have been issued for nearly all
the silver held by the Treasury. These
certificates amount to about $66, ,000, 900
and are now outstanding.
That condition of things doubtless
rendered the following order necessary,
as all or nearly all the silver coin in the
Treasury was represented by outstand-
ing silver certificates:
TREASURY DEPARTMENT,
SECRETARY's OFFICE,
WASHINGTON, u. c., Nov. l, 1881.
Until further notice the exchange of
silver certificates for gold coin deposited
at the office of the United States assist
ant treasurer at New York will he sus-
pended and Department circular No.
IS, ofSeptember 1S, 1880, is hereby mod
flied accordingly.
H. F. FRENCH,
Acting Secretary.
Subsequently this restriction was re-
moved for time and over $S0, ,000, 900
of silver certificates were taken princi-
palIy by the people of the South and
West in exchange for gold coin. The
privilege was finally withdrawn in
January, 1885. I ask in view of these
facts how it can properly be charged
that the people will not use the silver
coinage, that they are boarding gold,
that the deprecated paper will soon
greatly impair the purchasing power of
the poor mans wages, and that we are on
the verge of financial crisis unless we
bring allour~ transactions ut once to a
gold basis? ...-..
1t must not be forgotten that all the
gold coin deposited for silver certifi-
Gates became at once the property of
the United States; it was not held i'm
the Treasury for their redemption. An
equal amount of silver coin took its
place for that purpose at once. Men
who owned gold all7over the South and
West, in Louisville, indianapolis, Nash
Vile, and other places, as well as those
cities named in the report, sent their
coin at their own expense to the assist
ant treasurer in New York in order to
have silver certificates delivered to them
for use as currency at home. Yet, dur
ing all that time, the bullion value of
gold in London was at least Is per cent.
more than silver, and the country was
oCiht5 1uu SOU-
gress advised by our officials that gold
was leaving the country, that silver
was degraded standard of value. and
that it's coinage must he stopped or its
weight increased or ruin would speedily
he upon us because of its depreciation
in the London market.
The facts have stated overthrow all
the speculations of the theorists. Our
business men gladly exchanged their
gold coin for silver certificates and did
not ask any better security for the paper |
thay took than the silver dollar deposit
ed in the Treasury. So far from hoard
ing gold because of its greater bullion
value i'm a foreign market, they sent it
to distant depository to get the paper
we are advised is dishonest money be-
cause it is deprecated 15or 20 per cent.
below gold in London. have thus
outlined the reasons why |
,annot sustain at this time a policy |
which seeks to withdraw either our
egal-tender notes, the silver certifi-
,ates, or stop the silver coinage, and
zee no proprety in increasing the
standard value fixed by law in July,
1870, under and by which all our out
bonded Indebtedness is regu-
ated. am convinced that we can no
onger look with safety to the national
banks to furnish the country with a
'table currency.
insist that every cred tor of the Gov
is by law EMIT led to be paid in !.
he same coin, and that our Treasury +
officials should be required to pay silver !