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

Shell in the Ranks Of the enemy.
The Greatest Silver Greenback
Speech Ever Delivered in the
Senate the Lookup Contraction
Schemes Riddled.
SENATOR BECK.
tccn,inuea from Last Week.l
4 EASE TRICK OF THE CONTROLLER OF
CURRENCY.
We onIs redeem such national hank
notes as are returned: and the all
cunt now known TO be lost is 20 great
that the Comptroller is devising I'LL
sorts oil ingenious plans III his report
to get it away from Us for the hene-
fit of the banks. None of them lost
any of it. The people who borrowed
il or worked for it, after the banks
got value received for 1t, were the
sufferers: yet the Comptroller
wants it all for the banks. | expect
they will get it. They have as much
right to il as to have their interest
and principal paid in gold alone Or
TO have our silver stricken down. l
have no idea that S3oO.Ooo,ooo Of the
S346, 10000 Of greenbacks charged
in the reports rs outstanding could
be returned if they were called in to-
day. All lost is clear profit to the
government. 1t is sufficient an
swer to all the clamor about expense
and vaults that the coin Is preserved
from loss and from abrasion. and
that our gain from the the loss OF the
outstanding paper, il it is kept in
denominations in which it will Gil
culate. AS il ought to be. will amply
compensate the United States for all
the expenses OF its safe keeping.
The object we all had III view by
keeping in actual use paper substi-
tutes for gold coins to the extent OF
the coin deposited has been grossly
perverted. The coin is locked up,
and four-f ifths of the certificates is
sued are OF such high denominations
that they are OF no sort Of use as
currency.
The Treasurer's report shows, page
%. that on the 30th of June, 1855.
the outstanding gold certificates
amounted to Sl37. 7Go.sG0. Of which
all but S33 800, 900 We're in denomina-
tons of 500 and upward. more than
Sol. 900 600 Of them being for Sle.Ooa
each. 1T is obvious that the people
get no benefit in the form Of cu,ren-
cy when bills or certificates exceed
slOO.
The Director Of the Mint, on page
90 OF his report, speaking OF these
paper substitutes. says: As these
certificates represent coin in the
Treasury, which coin can only be us
ed in their redemption, they really
form IA part OF the active coin circu-
lation OF the country The Direct
or. perhaps, did not know that 500,
100000 Of them were for S10,0aO each,
as it would be absurd to speak OF
such notes or certificates as forming
part of our active circulation.
The Treasures report page pa
shows that on June 30, 1885, silver
certificates amounting to Sl39.aol.-
GAG We're outstanding. and that Sio3.-
75S,O91 were in ten and twenty dol
lar bills, in about equal proportions.
None were higher than $1,000: SO
that the only real currency furnish
ell the people in the shape OF certiti-
Gates is that based on the deposit OF
silver coin. Yet the dollars SO de-
posted are held up as useless in.
cumbrances, performing no function
OF value, and all our officials join III
the crusade against them and the
certificates that represent them. and
urge Congress TO Withdraw the one
and stop the coinage OF the other. /
do not propose 10 do either unless
better reasons are given why it
should be done than any have yet
seen or heard l would. however,
amend the law SO that no certificate
should be of higher denomination
than $500, and not more than % per
cent OF the amount outstanding at
any time should be of denominations
higher than $50.
THEY FIGHT THE GREENBAcKs. TOO.
The legal tender notes. too, are at
tackled. IT seems as though every
form of currency which costs Moth
ing and enriches nobody is condemn
ed.
1t is assumed that the government
has no right to use its own credit or
to furnish any part of the currency
the people need. Legal tender notes
are denounced as forced loan, rag
babies. shinplasters. indeed every
opprobrious epithet has been hurl-
ed against them by those who insist
that they must be vested with the
sole right 10 issue currency to loan
at a profit TO themselves, and to die
tate through their organization how
much or how little OF 1t Is most prof
liable to them to keep in circulation.
But the people and their representa-
tives have so far sustained the green
backs. and while they have always
been repudiated to the extent that
they could not be legally paid at the
custom house for duties on imports,
and that is the law HOW. over ST.
600 900 Of them were received for
duties last year in New York alone
by executive orders in plain viola
J1On Ol XIV. ATN oA IbI
Senate refused last year TO make
them receivable for duties, and yet
We permit AZ 100000 OF them to be
SO received
Congress by the act OF May 81, 1878
(see Statutes TO Large, volume 20.
page 81, made an effort To retain
what was then left Of the legal tender
notes. aud TO preserve them in such
shape that they would be currency
i'm the hands OF the people, We pro-
yided i'm substance that whenever
legal tender notes are Received al,
the Treasury from any source they
shall not be retired, but SHALL be re-
issued and paid out again aud kept
in circulation. and that new notes Of
the same denomination Of those re-
fnrned because too much INITIATED
for use shall be issued In their stead.
II is obvious that Congress did not
intend To allow any Increase OF the
denomination of isgal-tender notes
80. ,rhos axisfeti when that net