Wichita eagle., 1889-11-27
SILVHR CONVENTION.

| insist that it shall buy its silver at the
time of purchasing, and redeem its certif-
4 Gates at the value of the bullion, or in the
standard dollars at the option Of the holder
at the time of redemption. La this way
the government. and not the individual,
| would profit when the p rice OF silver ad-
vances, and the government, and no. the
| individual, undergo the loss when it de-
| clineS. just as merchants or other dealers
suffer loss OK gain in the purchase or sale
of other commodities.
Finally, the proposition is to make
these silver certificates which are termed
| warehouse receipts legal tender.
"The proposition giving the legal tender
quality to circulating notes, as ! have
said elsewhere, was discussed by the people
OF this country previous to the adoption
OF the constitution. 1t was, perhaps, the
most difficult question that was considered
by the fathers in the convention that pre-
pared and finally adopted the constitution
of the United States.
"This question involves such serious,
such far reaching consequences that its
discussion has been avoided by all the
great financiers, by all the public men of
this country from the outset. From time
to time it has been brought before con-
gress and laid aside as impracticabie and
unwise, but finally placed upon the statute
book, not as measure of choice, not be-
cause any considerable number of men,
bers OF congress believed in it, but because
they reluctantly came to the conclusion
that it was measure necessary to provide
for carrying on civil war unequaled in
the history of nations.
The whole volume of business of this
country was carried on from its organiZa-
ton to the year 1862 without any legal ten
der money. All political economists and
all financiers of note agree that the giving
OF the quality of Legal tender to paper
money by any nation is great mistake.
We are in favor of the retirement rather
than the increase of legal tender. But
this proposition is to keep on buying silver
bullion monthly for nine years, upon a
rising market created by the purchaser. to
give the legal tender quality to 800, O00, 600
of certificates which now represent an in
trinsc value of ~ cents to the dollar.
should be received in payment of public
dues. but should not be legal tender in
payment OF private obligations
There is really no prejudice among
bankers or among business men anywhere
against silver coin or silver as a material
for money, but they do object to all exper-
iments and particularly to experiments on
large scale, to be continued for series
of years, which are almost sure to result in
degrading the standard of money.
1.-The policy of congress and the legisla-
ton of late years has been to increase the
circulation OF the present OVer-valued Sill
Yer dollar of 4l21a grains, and it was the
policy of the last administration, if not of
the present, in order to strengthen the gold
balance, to encourage the retirement of
the national bank note, and the smaller
of legal tender notes. to
make room for the circulation of the paper
OF forced silver coinage, in
every respect an inferior currency to the
forms of paper for which it has been sub
1.-The capital and deposits of the banks
are loaned to millions of the people, and
often at rates much lower than the rates
fixed by law. The gold coin and the other
assets Of the banks belong to the deposltor
first, and then to the stockholders, who as |
a rule, are not rich men, but men of mod
crate means And it is the depositors,
rather than the banker, who suffers most
from an inferior currency.
at is the duty of the officers of banks to
insist that the borrower shall pay in dollars |
having the same intrinsic value as those !
that were borrowed, in order that depos- !
itors may be paid in dollars like those |
which were deposited. To do less than this |
would be gross negligence. Strict justice |
and rigid performance of contracts are
the proper foundations of all monetary
Institutions"