The advocate., 1892-04-13

enables us to place Mr.. Sherman
where he belongs, among the COM
mon, every day liars Of his party.
They are all in the same boat. We
sincerely wish we could send to every
voter in the country a copy of the
Congressional Globe containing Mr..
Shermsn's speeches and reports, or
copy of D. Appleton & Co.'s compila-
ton of the same. As we cannot do
this we will quote, giving page Of the
book where the quotations may be
found.
On December II, 1867, in the
United States Senate, Mr.. Sherman,
as chairman of the senate finance
committee, submitted a report in
which we find the following:
The question now arises whether these ave-
twenty bonds are redeemable at the expiration
Of five years from their date in any other money
than the coin of the United States?
II this question rested solely upon the act of
February %, 1862, and the bonds had been negO-
table under that act alone it would be mani
festly breach of faith to redeem the bonds with
the present United States notes. They are very
different from the first legal tender notes, which,
from the limited amount authorized, and the
privilege to convert them into bonds, could not
have had less market value than the bonds.
But Il was found that with such restrictions upon
the notes the bonds could not be negotiated, and
it became necessary to depreGtdte the notes IN
order 10 create q market for the bonds [See
page 144 Sherman's Speeches and RepOrTs.l
Again, in a speech in the United
States senate Februry II, 1868, he
says:
wish to read little further, to show that the
secretary Of the treasury, Mr.. Chase, year
afterward, In December, 1868, In his report,
again stated that congress, having relieved him
from the restrictions of the act Of 1852, enabled
him to sell the five twenty bonds, He says:
On that day, March g. 1868, the act to provide
ways and means for the support OF the govern.
ment received the approval of the president and
became law. In addition to various provisions
for loans, 1t contained clauses repeating the re-
StrlctlOns affecting the negotiation OF the hVe-
twentles, and thus diseDgaged that important
loan from the embarrasSmentS Which had pre-
vlOusly rendered It almost unavailable
Then he goes on and says that almost every
dollar of the loan was sold in short time, pre-
senting remarkable case Of success but 1t lOdS
MT sold under the act of February 25, 1862. On
the contrary, there was an utter failure to sell
the loan under that act. 1t was sold under the
subsequent law which repealed the restrictions
of the act of 1862, and it was sold upon basis Of
currency amounting to S45O,OOO 900, and when the
notes had been so deprecated by our legislation,
Intentionally, for wise purposes, when the right
to fund was taken away, and no right was given
to the notes except to be paid to the government
in the wy of taxes. [See page 162
Again, in speech of February 28,
1870, he says:
At the date of this act $780, 100000 of United
States notes were outstanding, with the dis inct
right printed on the face of them that they
might be converted into bonds bearing per
cent. interest in gold. Why was this right taken
away from them? Was 1t because we did not
wish them converted into bonds? On the con-
trary, this provision was adopted TO induce their
conversion. All our bonds, eUep FER cent gold
bonds, lUere then BELOW THE PAR OF
UNITED safes NOTES; and in order to ex.
pedlte the conversion Of the notes into bonds,
WE DEPRECATED THE NOTES. IL Is a
grave question Whsther this measure Cds not a
breach Of public faith. 1t was clearly so, unless
we regard 1t as simply limitation Of the time
within which the right to convert should be ex-
ercised. It was inserted in the senate with
grave doubts, and the error was, that It was so
framed as to be mere temporary suspension OF
right and not a permanent denial; stay law,
and not an absolute repudlatiOn under pretense
of short act Of limitation.