The great West. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1889-18??, 1891-05-22
The Lessons Of History.

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The Lessons Of History.
Advocates OF a specie basis, contin-
ually charge that money not based
on specie is worthless, and one OF
their favori e illustrations is the de-
probation of the continental cur
rency, issued by the American colon
les during the war, which was never
redeemed, and deprecated to next to
nothing. 1t will astonish most of
them to learn that it was the very
fact OF it's being supposedly based on
specie that made the continental cur
rency worthless.
1t wac not money at all. Every
note contained these words:
"The United States of America pro-
mise to pay bearer Spanish milled
dollars"
Every body knew that the United
States had no Spanish milled dollars.
Everybody knew that at that time
the United States were not united at
all, but simply conglomeration of
struggling colonies, without consti-
tuition, without power to levy taxes
or enforce the laws enacted, without
even the power to compel the accept
ance Of the notes promising to pay
Spanish milled dollars that did not
exist.
The amount of the notes issued,
taking prices, amount and all other
things into consideration would be
equal to about $500 per capita un-
der present circumstances.
The French assignats were not
money any more than the continent
tai promises to pay Spanish milled
dollars. They were land warrants
issued by a revolutionary govern
ment in a catholic country on land
confscated from the catholic church.
There was little faith in the stability
of the revolutionary government
which in fact had little power out
side OF Paris.
In addition they were counterfeited
in England |, which waged war upon
the French republic. In the crude
stage in which the art of engraving
existed at that time this was easily
done, and as no punishment was
meted out for the act, counterfeit
assignates, that could not be dis
tinguished from the genuine, became
as plentiful as the sands of the sea.
Is it any wonder that they depriciat-
ed?
The Argentine cedulas are another
proof of the fallacy OF the argument
of money monopolists. They are not
money at all, but land warrants, is
sued not to the people, but to banks.
A farmer mortgages his land to a
bank, and it issues him a government
cedula, that he may sell as best he
can for what money he can get for it.
This does not increase the money
supply. 1t has been conceded that
gross frauds have been perpetrated
in the issue of cedulas and hence this
illustration of the money monopo.
lists is also a failure.
So are all the examples of the de-
probation of money in Haiti and the
South American and Central Ameri.
| GILL republics. VOU Ouc VI UI1Clu utts
stable government; their inhabitants
are ignorant and excitable. The rul.
er to-day may be the exile tomorrow
and no dependence can be placed on
the varying and shifting govern.
ments by which the money is issued
The people who quote continental
money, assignates, cedulas etc. fail
to quote the experience of stable and
prosperous countries.
England had nogold orsilver mon.
ey in circulation for q quarter of q
century, from 1893 to 1923. During
that time it was engaged in almost
continual war with Napoleon, and
vet Allison says in his History OIL
England" speaking of this period Of
exclusive paper circulation:
1.-The period of it's use was the most
glorious, and taken as whole the
most prosperous the British Empire
ever knew"
He says too that ''the exports, i'm