Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-10-16
ANSWER OF SHERMAN
To a Radical Woman Writer Who
Has Issued a Pamphlet Charging
SEVEN FINANCIAL CONSPIRACIES.
The Acts She Condemns We're All for the
Country'S Benefit.
ASSERTIONS THAT ARE PROVEN FALSE


ter, written by Senator Sherman, has been
made public:
MANSFIELD, O., Oct 12, 1891.
Mr. Charles F. stokey. Canton, o.:
MY DEAR SIE-Yours of the Sth, accom-
panied by Mrs. S. E. V. Emery's pamphlet
called ''Seven Financial Conspiracies Which
Have Enslaved the American People, is
received.
Some time since this wild and visionary
book was sent to ne, and read it with both
amusement and astonishment that anyone
could read it with approval or be deceived
BY its falsehoods.
The "seven financial conspiracies" are the
seven great pillars of our financial credit,
the seven great financial measures by which
the Government was saved from the perils
Of war and by which the United States has
become the most fourishing and prosperous
nation in the world.
The first chapter attributes the civil war
to an infamous plot of capitalists to absorb
the wealth of the country at the expense of
the people, when all the world knows that
the civil war was organized by Shareholders
TO destroy the National Government and to
set up a slaveholding confederacy in the
South upon its ruins. The "Shvlock' de-
scribed by Mrs. Emery is phantom of her
Imagination The ''Shylocks of the war"
we're the men who furnished the means to
carry on the Government and to put down
the rebellion, and included in their number
the most patriotic citizens of the Northern
States, who, uniting their means with the
services and sacrifices of our soldiers, put
down the rebellion, abolished slavery, and
preserved and strengthened our Govern
ment.
THE FIRST CONSPIRACY.
The first of her ''conspiracies" she calls
the exception clause in the act of February
25, 1862, by which the duties on imported
goods were required to be paid in coin in
order TO provide the means to pay the inter-
est on our bonds in coin. This clause had
not only the cordial support of Secretary
Chase, but of President Lincoln, and proved
to be the most important financial aid of
the Government devised during the war.
Goods being imported upon coin values, it
was but right that the duty to the Govern
ment should be paid in the same coin.
Otherwise the duties would have been con-
stantlv diminishing with the lessening pur-
chasing power of our greenbacks. If the
interest of our debt had not been paid in
coin we could have borrowed no money
abroad, and the rate of interest instead of
diminishing as it did would have been large
" increased, and the volume of our paper
money would necessarily have had to be in
creased and its market value would have
gone down lower and lower, and probably
ended, as Confederate money did, in being
as worthless as rags. This exception clause
saved our public credit by making market
for our bonds, and was paid by foreigners
for the privilege of entering our market.
AN INCREASING CURRENCY.
AS for the national banking systematic
second of her ''conspiracies" is now con-
ccded to have been the best form of paper
money issued by banks that has ever
been devised. 1t was organized to take the
nlace of the State banks, which at the be-
ginning of the war had outstanding over
5000, 600, 900 of notes, of value varying from
State TO State. and most of it at a discount
Of from to % per cent. It was absolutely
necessary to get rid of these State bank
notes and to substitute in their place the
notes of banks which were secured beyond
doubt bv the deposit of United States bonds,
4 system so perfect that from the beginning
unril now no one has lost a dollar on the
circulating notes of national banks. The |
system may have to give way because we
are paving off our bonds, but no sensible |
man viii ever propose in this country to go
back TO the old system of State banks, and |
if some security TO take the place of United |
States bonds can be devised for national |
bank notes, the system will be and ought to
be perpetuated.
The third conspiracy" referred to is con-
traction of the currency. 1t has been DEM |
onstrated by official documents that from |
the beginning of the war to this time the |
volume of our currency has been increasing |
wear bv wear more rapidly than our popula- |
tion. In 1S60the total amount ofall the money |
in circulation was S435, ,000, GOO, when our |
population was 81, ,OOO 900, and half of this |
was money Of variable and changing value. |
Now we have in circulation, 81 900, 600, 900 |
with a population of 81, 10000 and every |
dollar of this money is as good as gold, all |
kinds equal TO each other, passing from |
hand to hand and paid out as good money |
not only in the United States but among all |
the commercial countries of the world. Our |
money mas increased nearly four-fold while |
our population has only doubled. The state |
ments made by NTrs. Emery about the con-
traction of our currency are not only mis- |
leading. but they are absolutely false. She |
states that in 1868 S473, ,000, 900 of our money |
was destroyed and in 1869 $500, 900, 900 of |
our money passed into a cremation furnace |
and in 1870 So 900 900 was destroyed. Now |
these statements are absolutely false. What |
she calls money in these paragraphs was the |
most burdensome form of interest-bearing |
securities, treasury notes bearing $40 per |
cent interest and compound interest notes. |
These were the chief and most burdensome |
items of the public debt. They were paid |
off in the years named and were never at |
any time for more than a single day money |
in circulation. When issued they were re- |
ceived as money, but as interest accrued |
they became investments and were not at
all in circulation.
PALPABLE FALSEHooDS
These statements of Mrs Emery are pal
pable falsehoods, which if stated by a man
would justify a stronger word. 1t is true
that in 1886 Mr.. McCulloc, Secretary of the
Treasury under the administration of An
drew johnson, wished to bring about re-
BY contraction, and a bill was
passed providing for a gradual reduction of
the greenbacS to $500, ,000, 900, but this was
very soon after arrested and the green
backs retained in circulation. 1 was not in
favor of the contraction of the greenbacks
and the very speech that she quotes in
which | described the effects of contraction
and the difficulty of resuming was made
against the bill providing for the reduction
Of the greenbacks.
The next Conspiracy" to which she re-
fers was the first act of General Grants ad-
"to strengthen the public
credit" A controversy had existed whether
the 90 bonds could be paid in greenbacks
maintained and still believe that bv q fair
of the loan laws we had right
to pay the principal of the bonds as they
matured in greenbacks of the kind and
character in existence when the bonds were
issued, but insisted that it was the duty
Of the Government to define a time when
he greenbacks should be either redeemed
4haT II, |