The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1893-09-20

FACTS THAT NEED ExPLASATIos.
The events Of the present year have
been OF service in the financial education
of the people. The debates in congress 70
be understood have obliged the intelligent
reading public TO understand much that
has hitherto interested only bankers and
statesmen.
A correspondent of the Posr-ISTELrrors-
cER recently denied that there was any
legal authority for the statement that the
United States legal tenders, whether
greenbacks or silver paper, were payable on
demand in gold. and based his denial on
the fact tina. United States treasury notes
read will pay the bearer in coin" These
questions and others almost identical are
asked every day and seem 20 need some
answer. To illustrate: Take the express
sion characterization of silver" as APP
piled 10 the passage of the silver
purchase repeal Law. It is not
correct as applied to the pending PROPOSE
ton Of national legislation. We buy to-
day z.50O 600 ounces Of silver bullion per
month, and pay for it in treasury notes
which are legal tender for all debts, pub
lie and private. and are payable at the dis
erection of the secretary of the treasury in
either standard silver dollars or gold coin.
bat the law which directs this purchase of
silver also declares that it lie the established
policy OF the United States TO maintain
the parity Of the two metals at the legal
rates. OF course the only practicable way
TO do this is to pay all legal tender treasury
obligations in gold on demand. OF course
II gold was asked for and refused il would
be an announcement on the part OF the
government that IL proposed to pay in sill
yer rather than gold. and this would mean
the abandonment ofthe gold standard and
q drop to the silver standard.
The question before US today is simply
whether we viii cease buying silver and
issuing In payment notes payable on de-
mand in gold. II we should do this, we
would not in any sense demonetize silver;
our silver coinage and our silver paper
would remain rs much as ever part of the
legal tender currency of the government,
redeemabie on demand in gold.
Our currency includes five kinds of
notes circulating as money. The gold GER
tificates. which rest on the deposit of gold
coin in the treasury, and payable always
and solely in gold coin. The United
States legal tender notes. or greenbacks,
are by law payable lin COIN" There has
never been any judicial decision as to
whether ''coin" means silver dollars as
well as gold coin or not. When the
greenbacks were issued, silver dollars were
full legal tender. but there were some in
circulation and had been some in circula-
ton since the act of 1884 undervalued
silver and sent IL 10 the melting pot as our
act of 1853 confessed, which was passed TO
retain our silver half dollars, quarters and
dimes in circulation. When the re-
sumption act of 1875 was passed, silver
dollars were not legal tender coin, but
they have since been made so by the act
of February. 1878
The greenbacks since 1879 have always
been redeemed on demand in gold, and
there 10 no honest reason to suppose that
they will not continue to be, for two rea-
sons: first. the only ''coin" in legal tender
existence when the resumption act was
passed was gold; and, secondly. until the
government is ready to depart from the
gold standard which il has practically
maintained since 1884 and legally main
tanned since 1873. It could not possibly
afford TO refuse to redeem the greenbacks
IN gold.
The treasury notes Of 1890 are explicitly
payable in gold at the discretion of the
secretary of the treasury, but the duty
laid upon him of keeping silver at par
with gold forbids his redeeming them in
anything but gold. The silver certificates
issued on the deposit of silver dollars in
the treasury are legally a lien only on
these dollars. but the duty of keeping sill
yer at par with gold applies TO these and
to all our dollars. and the treasury on de-
mand redeems in gold. The national bank
note is not legal tender and may be law
fully redeemed in any legal tender money.
United States notes or gold or silver coin.
Since the resumption OF specie pay
ments. January 1, 1879. they have always
been exchanged for gold when desired
The repeal OF the silver purchase clause Of
the Sherman Law OF lsoo will make no diff.
ference in the legal obligation of the gov.
eminent or Of the banks