Mississippi leader. (Jackson, Miss.) 1892-1895, 1892-05-05

amount to amply meet the demands
Of the various bnsinrss Interests Of
the country. To this extent all true
reform organizations are agreed, and
this and the complete suppression of
the beverage liquor traffic, together
with the absolute control of the means
in the interest of the people, the re-
clamation of all lands nov held by
aliens aud private corporations, for
the use of actual settlers, and tariff
commission ant!lbrized to regulate the
tariff schedule from time to time, SO
as to protect American labor from the
inequalities incident to different coun
tries, and leave capital to compete
with other capital on equal terms
should constitute the nucleus around
which all reformers should concen-
trate. Ii embodies financial relief,
moral reform, the universal diffusion
of intelligence, and the unrestricted
interchange of commodities. 1t would
mean happiness for the home, pros
perity for the country, contentmeht
for the masses, aud the rekindling of
the fires of patriotism in every heart.
TO ISSUE SUCH CURRENCY WITHOUT A
METALLIC BASIS
is to provide a good enough home
medium of exchange, but not one
suitable for carrying on international
commerce. To adopt metallic basis
Is to provide a financial system ample
for both purposes. This government
has ample resources for doing either,
and hence should select the better
plan.
To provide uniform and stable
currency to rest on metallic basis
we already have a good beginning,
and need only to enlarge upon itsuf-
ficiently to meet all necessary de-
mands.
We have three hundred and forty
millions of dollars of treasury notes
in circulation, based upon one hun
dred million dollars in gold pledged
for the redemption of such amounts
of it as its holders may desire.to have
redeemed. and any citizen of the
United States would rather have one
dollar of that greenback for ordinary
uses than dollar in gold or silver.
But strange to say. we have four hun
bred and forty four million dollars
more of gold and silver in the treas
ury upon which only dollar for dollar
of paper money-gold and silver GER
tiiicates-has been issued, and the
government buying five millions more
of silver q month, OIL which to issue u
like amount of currency, and yet this
currency has no greater value than
the greenbacks. There might be adj
ditional paper currency issued on this
deposit of metal amounting to ten
hundred millions five hundred thou
sand dollars-ten dollars each for
every man, woman and child in the
government, and still that money
would rest on precisely the same basis
as our present greenbacks. And so
the five million dollars worth of sill
yer bought each month he made the
basis for over sixteen million dollars
of currency of equal value. Then
again, the amount of gold and silver
bullion authorized to be purchased by
the government might be increased
so as to absorb ALI of the surplus in
the United States, and a like amount
of paper currency issued thereon. In
this way our national currency might
be increased to an extent sufficient to
satisfy the most extravagant initiation
lists, without increasing the interest
bearing debt of the government one
dollar, and yet every dollar of that
currency has q metallic basis equal to
that of our present greenbacks. The
exclusive right of the government to
coin, print and issue money would be
the value giving source of such cur
rency, and hence no private individ-
ual could object to the exercise of
such prerogatiye by the government.
No difference whether the gold and
silver constituting such basis be coin
ed or moulded into bars, as it would
only be needed for purposes of inter-
national commerce, our own people
always preferring the paper currency
when made legal tender for all pur
poses.
If the demands on the government
were not. sufficient to get this money
into circulation rapidly enough, other
methods might be devised, among
government loans to States at min
imtim rate of interest, for State bank
ing purposes. might we'll be considered.
The purchase by the government of
gold and silver bullion, and the paying
for it in paper currency, would be
equal to free coinage as an imitation
measure, to say nothing of the two
hundred and forty per cent. additional
currency to be issued on every dollars
worth of it.
WHAT THE COUNTRY NEEDS IN ORDER TO
HAVE GENERAL PROSPERITY
is plenty of money, with a low rate of
interest fixed by law, and the right. to
issue that money lodged alone in the
government, and not in private indi-
yiduals or corporations. This condi-
ton of things, even with the defective
system of State banks and irregular
rates of interest, kept the country
prosperous prior to the civil war, and
made farming the most independent
and desirable avocation of all Ameri-
can industries. At is the scarcity of a
circulating medium, the private con-
troll of that medium, land the fictitious
value that such control has placed up
on it, that is destroying the industries
and pauperizing the people of this
country. This is by no means the re-
suit of an impoverished condition of
the country, but because political dis
honesty and imbecility have supplant-
ed honest craftsmanship, and political