The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1892-04-12

Rusticus was foolish enough to convert
| his million dollars into bullion by de
s%trovinp the government stamp, L
| could bIIv three thousand dollars more
of foreign credit than he could with his
| gold bullion. I a carry one million
dollars of u. s notes with me to Eng
land and convert them into the same
amount of foreign money as you a
with your gold. The foreigner car buy
the same amount of grain or produce
in the United States with his U. s.
notes that he can with the y. S. gold.
Yes, Mr.. Rusticus, l said and proved
that the full legal tender U. S. notes
is better domestic money than gold Or
gold and silver with paper. With full
legal tender u. S. notes you can have
a uniform volume of money per capita,
and with gold entering into our domes-
tic money we cannot. We must have
a uniform volume of money per capita
to have a uniform standard to measure
values.
Rusticus says, granted paper money
is better as a domestic money"
Rusti ;us, you were not aware when
you made this concession that you con
ceeded everything at issue. Don't you
know there Is no such thing as inter
national money! If there were no gold
In the world all nations could as readily
make their exchanges. When anyone
in England wanted to buy grain or
cotton in the United States, they could
deposit their paper money in the bank
of England, receive credit to that eX
tent In this country and buy what they
wanted.
If there we're no private banks in the
United States, those desiring to buy
in foreign countries could deposit the
U. S. notes in the postal banks and re
ceive credit to that extent on any civil
lied nation. The credit of the United
States is better than any firm in the
United States; so is the credit of any
nation better than the credit of any
firm composing the nation. Govern
ments can make exchanges and gold is
not necessary. 1t can all be done by
bills of credit or exchanges. We may
trade with England to the amount of
n hundred million and the balance
in our favor be one million dollars.
This may be paid in gold or not. We
may take the balance of one million in
American securities. If the bank of
England raise the discount on gold we
will take it in something else.
Rusticus disputes the constitution
atty of the legal tender clause in the
u S. notes. He sets up his Judgment
against that of the Supreme Court of
the United States. The Supreme Court
has affirmed the constitutiOnality of
the legal Ten Ter clause, and the people
Congress- has the right to make her
note a legal tender for private debts.
Is this a government of the people, by
the people, and for the peOplel
Does Rusticus believe the people
through their representatives. have
the constitutional power to create a
currency that will contract debts and
plaster the country over with mortgages
and they have not the constitutional
power to make them Il legal tender for
these debts! Does RustiCus believe
that the statesmen made the cOnstitu-
ton so that one kind of money (the
plenty would create debts and then
make another kind scarce gold t pay
these debts7
Does Rusticus believe that Washing
ton and his cO-patriots deliberately
created one kind of money for the credit
class and another kind for the peoplei
This he must believe or abandon his
foolish notion that the people can create
a debt contracting paper dollar, but
cannot create a debt paying paper
dollar.
The power to create a debt, contract
ing money carries with it the power to
make it a debt paying money. Does
Rusticus believe it is right to make a
money that will contract debts and de-
prive it of the power to pay debtsl Do
you think 1t is right for me to loan you
one hundred dollars in currency and
charge you 10 per cent. then refuse TO
receive from you the same kind of
money in payments
Why insert the clause not a legal
tender for private debtsf Why make
this exception2 In whose interest is
this exception made3
All debts contracted by the farmers,
merchants, miners, manufacturers and
railroads are private debts. WhM1
should these great classes rece
money and give their m
npelled to pay t.