Kansas agitator. [volume] (Garnett, Kan.) 1890-1905, 1890-06-28
WE clip the following from the Iowa

Senator Reagan said in the Senate
last Wednesday:
"We have already sacrificed $4,000
600 and bnrdened the people with that
much more than it was necessary to
burden them with in order to hold for
ten years $100,00OO00 worth Of gold in
the treasury to answer no purpose ey-
cept to take its place on the debit and
credit side of the treasury report.
"The Senator from Ohio and those
who agree with him assume that this
is necessary to sustain the character OF
the legal tender notes. | will not say
that anything the Senator says is alb
surd, but l will say that do not think
there is an intelligent man in this
country not influenced by some pre-
conceived and mistaken opinion who
does no: know that the legal tender
notes will be just as valuable, just as
much sought, and just as little liable
to be presented to The treasury for re-
demption after that $lOO,OO0,OOO of
gold is paid out as before and if that
be so, what is the use of retaining il
hundred millions dollars of gold idle
in the treasury when there is dearth
Of currency which has been Oppres
sively felt in all the rural portions Of
this country. What can be the rea-
son for it?
"Now, then, in answer to the sug-
gestion that that is the only security
upon which the value of these notes is
preserved, | have to say what [ SAID
once before on this subject, that the
government does not stand like Il
banking establishment. Its finances
are not carried on like the finances OF
a banking establishment; at least they
ought not to be, though the effort OF
late years has seemed to me TO be "
make great banking establishment,
of the United States treasury. "A bank
has no revenues except the interest Oh
loans which il makes. The govern
ment is not in that condition, but it i,
receiving at the rate Of a million and
half dollars in perhaps more
than that. 1t has 81, 100000 a day o.
revenue coming i'll from various
source Of taxation. That Of itself is a
guarantee of the governments abilil,
10 pay ali its current expenses, because
its current expenses do not amount to
that much.
"Besides that may say that by t!''
act Of 1877 the law which required til
legal tender notes to be taken up am
Cancelled as they were paid into the
treasury, was repealed, and it was pro
vided by The act of 1873 that when
those notes were received in the treas
ury as the property Of the governments
they should be reissued and kept IN
circulation. 1t was the deliberate
judgement of Congress that these
notes should be treated as money and
not treated as debts.
"OfcOurse the monometalllsts, those
who want dear money and cheap
property and cheap labor, avail them
selves of this and every other means
to contract the volume of the currency.
and TO make money dear and difficult
to be obtained, and to make the labor
of the country and the property Of the
country correspondingly cheap.
Now, if there can be no practical
need of this $lO0,000,000, L trust We
are not to go on and pay 100000 in
terest' per year in order to deprive the
people of the use Of $100,000,0O0 ot
gold kept in the treasury under the
acts of 1875 and 1882, if that shall b.
held as proper setting apart OF this
money. That the Senator from Ohio
seems to question, and L do not know
but he is right; but whether right or
wrong, the secretary OF the treasury