The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1894-02-14

WASHINGTON, Feb 10-Secretary
Carlisles exact views and policy on
! financial questions. including silver seig-
niorage, bonds and finance in general,
were set forth and amplified in an i'm
! portant document which reached the
| house from the committee on judiciary
| today. 1t is the stenographic report of
| Mr.. Carlisle's secret hearing before the
| committee some time since. The testi-
mony Of the secret hearing before the
| committee shows that concerning the
| coinage of silver seigniorage Representa-
| tive Oates said to Mr.. Carlisle:
| Il want to ask you If there is any oh
| lection to tho proposition about coming
the seigniorage or issuing certificates
| against that?'
Secretary Carlisle-"Well the effect OF
| that would be that The secretary Of the
| treasury would issue silver certificates
| calling for dollars, suppose, when there
were no dollars behind them, and if they
came in for redemption, as they might,
| the secretary of the treasury would be
compelled I suppose. to use gold or
| whatever else he had to redeem them"
Mr.. Boatner-"Could you not coin the
| silver and use that"
| Secretary Carlisle-"Yes, I'm about two
years; it would take about that time
! Mr.. Stone of Pennsylvan Have you
not got enough silver to redeem it?"
| Secretary Carlisle-"No. sir; certif-
Gates are outstanding against what we
have, except about 100000 or $1,000
| OOO"
| Mr. Stone-"What would be the objec-
ton to issuing certificates on account
| of the seigniorage?"
| Secretary Carlisle-'T was going 10
state that if we should issue certificates
/ with nothing behind them but bullion,
1 think they would be greatly discredited
in the public mind
! Mr. Stone-'And IN order to keep up
the credit You would have to redeem
! them II gold"
! Secretary Carlisle-"They would have
to be redeemed i'll something.
| Mr. Stone-''If you redeemed it in sill
| yer It would be discredited, and you
| would have to redeem il in gold?"
| Secretary Carlisle-"They would call
for silver dollars, and there arc 10 silver
| dollars to redeem them"
In answer to a question as TO how fast
| the coinage of the seigniOragc could be
! pushed Mr.. Carlisle said: IF all other
| coinage was suspended at the mlntS.
| estimate that we could coin about 4.OOO,-
600 silver dollars a month, or slS,OOO,O0O
| a year."
| Concerning Bonds.
Tho bond question was treated very
| deliberately by Mr.. Carlisle. His pur-
pose as to using the proceeds of the sale
of bonds is sharply set forth in the fol-
| lowing colloquy:
| Mr.. Stone-'I understand your pur-
| pose is simply to sell bonds to redeem
| United States notes and treasury notes
and the surplus to replenish the reserve
/ fund? -
| Secretary Carlisle-"That is nv pur-
| pose; but l want to say to you, gentle
| men, that the secretary of the treasury
| may be confronted hereafter with a very
| serious queStiCn-aS to what he will do
! in the event congress fails or refuses to
| make provision to supply the deficiency.
| Suppose. for instance, congress passes Il
| law, which il does every session, MAX
! ing appropriations for some particular
purpose-the payment of pensions. for
J illustratiOn-and makes 1t the duty of
J the secretary Of the treasury 10 pay
| them out of any money in the treasury
| not otherwise appropriated, which is the
| language Of all of your appropriation
laws. and the secretary of the interior
| makes a requisition upon the treasury
| department for money to pay pensions?
| The secretary of the treasury finds no
money i'm the treasury not otherwise APP
| propria ted. except the money that has
| been realized from the sale of bonds.
| He will be confronted with the question
/ whether he will stop the payment of
| pensions. whether he will stop the pay
| ments upon public buildings, whether
he will stop payment for work upon
| rivers and harbors, whether he Will with
I hold salaries, or use the money in the
| treasury not otherwise appropriated"
| 4 Plain Duty.
Mr.. Boatner-"Would you consider It
| improper to give your opinion as 10 the
| duty of the secretary of the treasury
Secretary Carlisle will give it very
! plainly. 1 believe it is my duty to pay
pensions and all other public obligations,
| and unless congress stops me. l shall do
| So While ] stay there / shall endeaVOr
to maintain the credit of the government
| by paying it's obligations"
MIR. Boatner-"Out of the proceeds of
| the bonds which you now propose to
| SELF"
! Secretary Carlisle-"I would not use
the proceeds of bonds if it were possible
| to avoid; but l would not let the obliga-
| tions of the government go to protest
and fail to pay the appropriations made
| by congress for legitimate purposes, and
| for carrying on the expenses of the gov
| eminent as long as there is a dollar in
| the treasury
Mr.. Carlisle further stated his re-
luctance in resorting to bonds. As to
| the kind of bond which Mr.. Carlisle
| thinks congress should authorize there |
| was the following:
Mr.. Boatner-"The plan that you sug-
| the secretary to issue bonds for a specific |
| purpose; is that the point?
Secretary Carlisle-"I think a short |
| time bond should be authorized bearing |
| a low rate of interest, to be issued in |
small denominations, which 1 think |
would be taken largely by the people |
| who have money in savings banks and |
! the secretary could sell them, or use |
the proceeds in the payment of expend- |
| itures and redeem them out of the !
! further revenues. That was my recon- |
mendation the subject, simply be- |
cause L saw it was impossible for con-
gress to provide by taxation any revenue |
which could be collected in time for this |
| fiscal year. l concluded TO issue bonds |
under the existing authority. thing L
| dislixed much as any gentleman upon
| this committee, for L did not want to see
! the public debt of the country increased |
in any way whatever or for any pur-
| pose whatever
The Gold Clause.
The gold clause in Mr.. Carlisle's Of
| flee bonds brought the following ex-
| PLANTATION from the secretary:
Mr.. Bailey-"How are you TO be paid |