St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1894-01-08
THOUGHTS ON CURRENCY
The Real Nature OF the Green,
back
Written for the Globe.1
CHAPTER II.


6 CHAPTER III.
In our last paper il was shown that
tine stamp or fiat" of government can
not create value. Not the stamp. but
the fact that the government receives
for taxes, or otherwise redeems, is the
real reason why our greenbacks, silver
and subsidiary coins circulate at their
face value.
Lii this paper we will try to ans wer
the question, what is the greenback?"
John Sherman would probably reply,
"A promissOry note which the govern
ment ought to pay and cancel as soon
as possible" and horde Of followers
would echo ile refrain. mo. il is not"
declares the "fiatiSt;' lit is g, OIL money
Just as good as goId-and we can't
have too much of it,"
L think both answers are at least
partly wrong. Originally the greenback
was much like prOnss0ry note. One
That L have before ma reads: 1.-THE
United States Will Pay the Bearer Ten
Dollars at Washington. ID. c." Surely
that Is pr0nisSOry note" Ycsf and
for long time it was very poor one;
for if you presented tie note and asked
the government to pay it they wouldn't
do 1t; but at the same time they passed
- -" IFNI OOi1 ClSC w IT,
ceIye il as legal tender" money. GreaI
government that! Highly moral gov
eminent. Populated its own promises,
but forced every creditor to accept these
same repudIated promises as good
money.
But the time finally came on Jan.
1879. when the government got ready tc
do what it thought was keeping its
promise. 1t really did much better for
creditors than it had agreed to, and, Of
course, TO that extent robbed debtors.
Since then the greenbacks have always
been redeemed on presentation. How
ever. they Fave not been destroyed. as
you would expect if they were still
nothing but promissory notes to be paid
and got out of the way.
Once redeemed, they now lie in the
treasury. Shall we destroy them? Or
may we still find a use for them? The
tact IS, they have been put out again
and again, and have come back 10 the
treasury time after time. and each time
have been redeemed by being received
for taxes
Here, then, we get glimpse OF the
real nature of the greenback as it has
Oeen used since Jan. l, 1879. 1t mas sim
ply Ueen check Or draft drawn, by the
government against its revenues, which
\
receiving III full payment for all taxes
anu dues.
Once returned to the treasury and
honored, the greenback can be reissued
over and over again, and no possible
marin can come from it. 1t is cheaper
ana easier than to destroy them and
print new ones when they are needed.
A carpenter might as well destroy his
hand saw every time he laid it down
after cutting off a board.
Neither IS the So-cailed legal tender"
act of any effect now; and the only
effect 1t ever did have was to help debt
orS to rob creditors.
-" WI by do the people use the green
pack now as currency. do you ask?
Simply because it is good, safe instru-
neht for that purpose, The greenback
Is not issued by the government for the
purpose Of furnishing money for the
people any more than gold and silver
we're made by the Creator for that pur-
pose. The people took to using the
metals as medium of exchange, be-
cause they were about the best thing
they could get nfld of at that time.
Inc government prints and uses the
greehnac6 because 1t is q simple, cheap.
convenient and very efficient instru-
ment for conducting public business
among the people. Its use DIS currency
IS only all incident. On its way from
the treasury, to pay public expenses,
PACK 10 the treasury again to be hUnGred
and redeemed, the government check or
draft. called a greenback, furnishes an
excellent medium of eXchange-prob-
ably the best possible under orr present
civilization. Therefore the people use
them for that purpose as far as they Will
go.
Our silver currency is nothing but
silver greenbacks-a silver machine far
more expensive, more cumbersome,
more clumsy, and not nearly so good,
for doing the work that the paper ma
chine does much better, easier and
cheaper. We should get rid of the sill
yer machines and use paper ones; but
don't let us delude ourselves with the
idea that greenbackS are issued, or
should be issued, for the sole purpose
or furnishing the people with money.
A clear understanding of the real nat
ure of the greenback-merely a govern
ment draft-or, in other words, an ins
strument just like a town order, ONLY
printed Oh good paper, in convenient
denominations. for making payments,
and so executed as TO render counter
letting practically Impossible, A clear
ld2a OF these truths puts us in position
10 understand the possibilities and lin
itationS of the greenback. and to expose
some very grave errors into which most
So-called "greenbackers" have inyari-
ably fallen.
Oar next paper will treat of these DOS
slbilltieS, limitations and errors.
c. j. BUELL..