Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1892-12-24
SATURDAY. DECEMBER 81, 1892
Nothing But Promises to Pay Money

Nothing But Promises 10 Pay MONEY
Returning 20 the subject of the TDHss
editoyal on "Delusions," and begging 10
be excused for our delay IN the matter We
will LET that paper tell us what sort OF cur
rencv the people of this country VIII nave
when i,s notions rs TO what ought to be
done 70 supply the place of greenoacks are
mt into practice. The Times says
.The principle. therefore, Of cheap money
driving out dear money has no sort OF place IN
any discussion concerning the issue OF notes ny
state hanks, because those notes VIII NOT oe
money. or possessed Of any OF the iuhcuohs VI
r,o,av They will be nothing but promises 70
nav money, differing in no respect Whatever
tom a merchants negotiable note promising 10
pay money Al,
So the Times is in favor of allowing the
State banks TO issue "promissory notes -
notes which will not be possessed OIL any
90 tl,e functions of money" Now, these
Dromissorv notes will not be worth the
paper used in making them unless they
are 10 DE employed as currency. And, OF
con,se. the attempt will be made thus to
aunlov them. No independent State
banks will be established unless 1t IS
npderstood that their notes will be en-
,,Loped as currency. And what sort of cur
rencv would they constitute? A poor
substitute indeed they would prove 10 be
for the national bank-notes and green
hacks. which now pass as freely IN Name
and Wyoming as in New York or Washing
TON city. Why should we discard the best
currency the world ever saw, and substi-
tute "promlssory notes having none OF
the functions Of money" notes differing
in no respect whatever from merchant
NEGOTIABLE note promising TO pay money!
Is this the entertainment to which the
friends Of sound currency redeemable IN
gold and silver are invited by the advo-
Gates of independent State banks
We quote the Times again
1.-The notes TO be issued by State banks would
not be legal tender for debt, 80 that no man
would have to receive them unless he pleased
And no man would receive them II he
could get greeubacks or national bank
notes by refusing to receive them.
Again, We quote:
80 we reply that We have said nothing OF
notes 20 be iss ! by weak banks. The whole
discussion assumes that the banks issuing notes
will be able 10 redeem them on demand. 80, II
The bank Is always able TO redeem its notes IN
coin when called on TO do 40, We see no reason
why It is any better when located IN New YORK
than il would be II located in Farmville."
THE whole discussion assumes that
currency which will not circulate away
from home is better than one which does
circulate away from home. The new banks
NAV be able for while to redeem their
notes on demand, but the public will be
afraid Of those notes, and the banks Will
be called upon every day to redeem them.
And as these Independent banks will issue
three times as many notes as they can re-
deem upon q sudden and unexpected de-
mand, they will have TO do as they always
did under like circumstances in ante-bel-
lum times-namely, suspend specie pay
ments
We want no circulating medium of this
sort to be substituted for that which we
now have. And we have no fears of such
result. Our currency must not be dena-
tionalzed, nor our money debased.
We trust that we have not in the slight
est degree mlsrepresented our neighbours
positions or arguments