The Forrest City times., 1895-02-01

constantly increasing as to our hnan- cial ability does not rest upon a calculation of our revenue The tune has
 passed when the eyes of investors abroad and our people at home were fixed upon the revenues of the government. Changed condi- tions h Ae attracted their attention to the gold of the government. There need be no fear that we can not pay our current expenses with such | money as we have There is now in the treas ury comfortable surplus of moro than ss3,-
 0O0OO0, but it is not in gold, and therefore docs not meet our difficulty.
 Our differences of opinion concerning the ex-
 tent to which silver ought to be coined or used
 in our currency should not interfere with the counsels of those whose duty it is
 to rectify evils now apparent in our financial situation. They have to consider the question of national credit and the consequences that will follow from its col- | lapse. Whatever ideas may be insisted upon
 as to silver or bimetalism, proper solution of
 the question now pressing upon us only re- quires recognition of gold as we'll as silver
 and concession of its importance, rightfully or wrongfully acquired, as a basis of national credit, necessity in the honorable discharge or our obligations payable in gold and.a badge of solvency. I do not understand that the real friends of silver desire condition that might
 follow inaction or neglect to appreciate the meaning of the present exigieney, if it should
 result In the entire banishment of gold from our financial and currency arrangements.
 Besides the treasury notes, which certainty should De paid In gold, amounting to nearly sooooooeoo, there will fail due in 1901 siUoCO
 900 of bonds issued during the last year. for which we have received gold, and in l9O7 near Iy s6OO,OO0Ooo of 4-per-cent bonds issued in 1877. Shall the payment of these obligations in gold be repudfated? If they are to be paid Tn such manner as the preservation of our national honor and national solvency demands we should not destroy even mperil our n fn rN1to .i.l purpose.
 While am not unfriendly to silver while
 desire to see it recognized to such an extent as
 IS consistent. with financial safety and the
 preservation of national honor and credit am
 not willing to see gold entirely banished from
 our currency and finances To avert such a consequence l believe thorough and radical
 remedial legislation should. be promptly
 passed therefore beg the congress to give the subject immediate attention. In my opin- Ion the secretary of the treasury should be au- thorlzed to issue bonds of the government for the purpose Of procuring and maintain
 Ing sufficient gold reserve and the redemption and cancellation of the United
 states legal tender notes and the treasury notes issued for the purchase of sil- yer under the law of July IA. 1890. We should
 be relieved from this humiliating process of Issuing bonds to procure gold to be mmedi- ately and repeatedly drawn out on these obl- cations for purpose not related to the benefit Of our government people. The principal and interests of these bonds should be payable on their face in gold, because they should be sold for gold or its representative. and be- cause there would now probably be difh- eulty in favorably disposlng of bonds
 not containing this stipulation suggest that the bonds be issued in denomi- nations of s20 and $50 and their multiples and that they bear interest at a rate not exceeding , per cent per annum. l do not see why they ghn hnaf1l not lN. ol,lr date We Of the present generation have large amounts to pay if we meet our obligations and long bonds are most salable. The secretary of the treasury might well be permitted at his dIscF etion to receive the sale of bonds , the legal tender and treasury notes to be re- tired and of course, when they are thus retired , or redeemed in gold, they should be caneeled. These bonds under existing laws could be deposited by national banks as security for circulation; and such banks should be allowed to issue cir culation up to the face value or these or any other bonds so deposited except bonds out standing bearing only per cent. interest, and which sell in the market at less than par.
 National banks should not be allowed to take out circulating notes of a less denomination than Sl0, and when such as are now outstand- ing reach the treasury, except for redemption and retirement, they should be cancelled and notes Of the denomination of Sl0 and upward issued in their stead. Silver certificates of the denomination Of sl0 should be replaced by cer- tificatcs of denominations under sl0
 AS constant means for the maintenance of reasonable supply of gold in the treasury our duties of the imports should be paid in gold all other dues to the government to be paid in any other form of money.
 believe all the propositions have suggest cd should be em bodied in our laws if we are to enjoy a complete reinstatement of a sound financial condition. They need not interfere with any currency scheme providing for the increase of the circulating me- dium through the agency of na- tional or state banks. since they ' can easily be adjusted on such 1 scheme. Objection has been made to the issuance of interest-beariug obliga- l tions for the purpose of securing the non-in- 1 terest-bearing notes. In point of fact how 1 ever, these notes have burdened us with a large load of interest, and it is still accommodating. ] The aggregate interest on the original issue of | bonds. the proceeds of which in gold con- l stitated the reserve for the payment of these notes. amounted to s70.3a6 ,250 on January I, ! 1895, and the annual charge for interest on these bonds, and those issued for the same purpose during the last year, will be So l45,0O0 | dating from January l, 1895.
 While the cancellation of these notes would | relieve us from the obligations already in- | cured on their account, these figures are given l by way of suggesting that their existence has not been free from interest charges and that | the longer they are outstanding, judging from the experience of the last year, the more ex- pensive they will become. saA Nf@& |
 In conclusion I desire to frankly confess my reluctance to issuing more bonds in present circumstances, and with no bet ter results than have lately ac- companied that course. I can not, l however, refrain from adding to an assurance of my anxiety to cooperate with the present congress in any reasonable measure of relief in expression of my determination to leave nothing undone which furnishes a hope for inn proving the situation or checking a suspicion ! of uur disinclination and desirablity to meet