The Iowa plain dealer. [volume] (New Oregon, Howard County, Iowa) 1867-1895, 1886-01-28

silver certificates. All other crcdi-
tors are entitled to the same con-
sideration rs the holders Of bonds.
We as q tax-payiny people are no:
Interested in keeping our bonds u
per cent above par when we must
soon buy them with our surplus reye-
nues.
1may observe here that silver GER
tificates are now and always have
been a popular currency.
The Treasurer in his last report
page p, says:
THE issue OF silver certificates by
Treasury officers in the South and
West for gold coin deposited with
the assistant Treasurer at New York,
unduI departmental circular OF Sep
TENDER Is, 1880, was discontinued in
January last. The amount which
had been issued in that Mariner to
the date named was $50. 100000
Over sS0.000.000 OF silver certii-
Gates were taken principally by the
people Of the South and West in cx-
change for gold coin. The privilege
was finally Withdrawn in January.
1885. ! ask in view of thcze facts
how it can properly b. 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 a financial
crisis unless We bring all our trans
rctions at once to il gold basis
1t must not he forgotten that all
the gold coin deposited for silver
certificates became at once the prop
crty of the Z. S.; it was not held in
the Treasury for their redemption.
An equal amount Of silver coin took
its place for that purpose at once
Men who owned gold all over the
South and West, in Louisville Indi-
annapolis. Nashville, and other places
as we'll rs those cities named in the
report. sent their coin Ill their own
expense To the assistant Treasurer
in New York In order to have silver
certificates delivered to them for use
as currency at home. Yet, during
all that time. the bullion value of
gold in London was at least Is per
cent moro than silver, and the Goun-
try was being periodically alarmed.
and Congress advised by our of1ic
ials that gold was leaving the coun-
try, that silver was q degraded stan
dard Of value, and that its coinage
must be stopped or its weight in
creased or ruin would speedily be
upon us because OF lis depreciation,
in the London market.
The facts have stated overthrow
all the apeculations OF the theorists.
Our business men gladly exchanged
their gold coin for silver certificates
and did not ask any better security
for the paper they took than the sill
yer dollar deposited in the Treas
ury. am convinced that we can
no longer look with safety to the ma
tional banks to furnish the country
with a stable currency.
insist that every creditor OF the
Government is by law entitled to be
paid in the same coin, aud that our
Treasury officials should be required
to pay silver as well rs gold when re-
ceieved for custom dues to our bond
holders, as they do to all others who
have legal demands upon the Treas
ury; that done there will be no need
at least for years to come, to strike
down silver in any form. The coun-
try is now rallying from a long peri
cd Of depression. All railroad Sc
curities recently fell 80 per cent. Oh
the average In eighteen months
Wheat, cotton, cattle, hogs, all farm
products, are even now so depreci-
ated that they leave no profit to the
producer, even after he pays the low
est wages for which he can obtain
labor in their production. Foreign
nations are closing their ports
against our leading exports and
throwing all obstacles possible in the
way OF our commerce.
Our carrying trade is gone and is
in the hands OF our foreign compel
itors. We need to use all our re.
sources OF both gold and silver, and
their paper representatives, to en-
able Us to regain our lost prestige
and to develop our resources in the
most economical way. Contraction
or destruction Of any part Of oul
means Is, in my judgment, fatal to
our laboring and especially to our
debtor classes. So believing, / am
opposed to it.
Concluded.