The advocate and Topeka tribune., 1892-12-07

hold the owners Of the bonds TO accept
them.
The United States owes no debt either
contracted or payable in Europe, al
though its bonds, payable at home, are
largely held there. 1t has created no
foreign debt since the revolutionary war.
All it's debts and bonds are payable in
this country and in dollars. The law
gives no advantage to the creditors OF the
United States who live in foreign coun-
tries over creditors who reside in this
country. They occupy exactly the sams
position, equitably and legally. Many at
tempts have been made to induce con-
gress to authorize the issue of bonds
payable in foreign countries and in for
eign money, but such attempts have
never succeeded, except in the single in
stance Of one small loan Omitted States
Statutes, vol. IL, page 260l which was
authorized but never negotiated. Euro.
peans and all others who purchase United
States bonds do 80 voluntarily, and ex-
clusively FOR their own profit and advan.
tage, and not for the profit or advantage
Of the United States. They purchase
them with a full knowledge of the laws
which authorize their issue, and specif-
ically set forth their terms. The laws
are open to the examination Of all, and
no one has the right to plead ignorance
Of them as reason for pervertiDg in his
interest their plain meaning. No bond
has ever been issued without having
printed ON it's face q reference to the law
authorizing it, together with substan-
tial statement Of it's terms. 1t is lncred-
ible that any bonds have been purchased
without q full knowledge Of their terms
on the part Of the purchaser; and, be
that as it may, the United States, in
dealing with its debts, must be governed
strictly by the laws authorizing them.
These laws were intended not less scrup-
ulously to protect the rights Of the nation
than the rights Of the bondholder, and
no safeguard Of the interests Of the ma
tion can be lost because it was over
looked by careless creditors.
The legal right Of the United States to
pay its bonds in gold or silver, at its OPP
tion, is SO clear that no serious denial Of
il is made. The claim that they should
be paid only in gold is placed on vague
and shsdowy grounds. SO far as it Is
possible to apprehend these grounds,
they are, that when these bonds were
issued silver was out Of use as money;
that the larger part Of those held abroad
at the present time are held in countries
which do not recognize SILVER as money;
that whenever coin has been paid for
these bonds, it has been gold coin and
not silver coin; and that the purchasers
expected TO be paid in gold; and that on
account Of these considerations both
equity and honor demand that they
should be so paid. The truth is, that
gold has been as much out of ordinary use
in this country as silver during the whole
period covered by the negotiation and
sale Of these bonds, and that Germany,
where the earliest and largest purchases
Of them were made, did not recognize
gold as money until December, 1871, and
has now quite as much silver as gold in
it's circulation. Down to 1873 the coin
purchasers of the bonds did not forget
that they had an option between silver
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