The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1893-12-08
QUESTIONS OF THE DAY
A FINANCIAL HISTORY.
Course and Effect of Legislation
Since 1851.

Course and Effect of Legislation
Since 1851.
BY N. A. DUNNING.
From The National Waterman.
No. ".
It must be remembered that at this
time the demand notes were not legal
tender. The act above mentioned
created what is known as the legal
tender notes. A statement of all the
facts connected with the passage of this
bill is most interesting indeed. Mr..
Spauldlng, chairman of the sub COM
mittee on finance at that time, gives
the whole in his book written in 1869,
entitled Financial History of the War
and Legal Tender. From this history
it appears that the banks and money
owners of the East exerted their utmost
power to prevent the enactment of any
legal tender legislation. They under
took to sidetrack the bill by numerous
devices and openly attempted to bride
members OF Congress. They kept a
large lobby in Washington working
with all the methods known to that
class, to defeat the measure.
They seemed determined to have all
paper money issued as bank currency
and made subject to the usual bank
tribute and control. AS it was, the
banks were strong enough to force the
committee to draft bank bill first and
attach the provision issuing legal tender
currency to that. Since this position
of our financial history is the most
interesting and difficult to obtain, l
will quote from Spaulding's history,
page l3 to 25:
Mr.. Spaulding. while preparing the
national currency bank bill, upon ma
ture reflection came to the conclusion
that it could not be passed and made
available quick enough to meet the
crisis then pressing upon the Govern
ment for money to sustain the army
and navy. He therefore drafted q
legal tender Treasury note section to be
added to the bank bill, hoping, at first,
that it might be made available by
issuing legal tender notes direct from
the Treasury, while the bank bill was
put in operation throughout the coun-
try. In order to bring the subject of
issuing legal tender fundable notes
before the country, the section thus
prepared by Mr.. Spaulding was fur
nished to the New York Tribune, and
published in the issue of the 3lst of
December, 1861, and is as follows:
''That for temporary purposes, and
until the circuitlne notes authorized by
this act shall be issued and put in cir
culation by corporations and associations
to the aggregate amount of 100000
900. the Secretary Of the Treasury be,
and he is hereby authorized to issue
$50, 900, 900 of Treasury notes on the
faith Of the United States, payable on
demand, without specifying any place
Of payment, and of such denominations
as he may deem expedient, not less than
SIS each, which shall be receivable for
all debts and demands due to the
United States, and for all salaries, dues,
debts and demands, owing by the
United States to individuale. corpora
tions and associations within the
United States; and such Treasury notes
shall also be legal tender in payment
of all debts public or private, within
the United States. and shall be ex
changed at any time at their par value
the same as coin, at the Treasury of the
United States, and the Offices of Assist
ant Treasures in New York. Boston
Philadelphia, St. Louis and Cincinnati
for any OF the coupon or registered
bonds which the Secretary of the Treas
ury is now, or may hereafter be author.
lied to issue; and such treasury notes
may be reissued from time to time. as
the exigencies of the public service
may require. Such Treasury notes
shall be signed by the Treasurer of the
, United States, OF by some officer OF the
Treasury Department designated by the
Secretary of the Treasury and shall be
counterslgued BY the Register of tn
Treasury, or by some officer of the
Treasury department designated by the
Secretary of the Treasury for the Reg
lister. And all the provisions of an act
entitled can act to authorize the issue
of Treasury notes, approved the 23d
day of December. 1857" SO tar as the
same can be applied to the provisions
of this section, and not inconsistent
Herewith, are hereby revived and
re.enacted."
Upon more mature consideration and
further examination, Mr.. Spaulding
came to the conclusion that the bank
bill, containing sixty sections, could
not, with the State banks opposed to it,
be passed through both houses OF
Nonoeans for aaUeral months and that