The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1895-01-19

[hlhOli III ln' NEW 1DTh Sul, WHOSE ARTICLES
on finance have attracted deserved attention
from flnancers and business men, argues
that this feature will make it impossible to
maintain gold payments, and urges, instead,
retiring the bank notes and increasing the
volume OF government notes.
To the banks the issue of $500. 900 900 of
notes secured by $4,000 900, would mean
an annual profit on $500, 0,OOOO 600 To the
government the retirement of $500 900. 900 of
notes secured by 5000 600 of reserve,
would mean an annual loss of the same mag
nitude. The public, we do not believe, will
submit to it to provide itself with paper
money not legal tender, and issued by Il class
i'll place of paper money that is legal tender
and issued by the public. No power of money
to oppress in this? Oh, no.
The money of the contract was the green
back. President Lincoln foresaw the danger
of retiring the greenbacks, when he penned
these prophetic lines: when Il nation enacts
debt in one kind-of money, and contracts
or changes the money before the debt is paid
it is guilty Of the most heinous crime which
can be perpetrated against IA people,"
John Sherman, when the patriot, before
he was banker, in II speech in the United
states Senate in 1869, said 1.-THE contraction of
the currency is far more distressing opera
ton than Senators suppose. Our own and
other nations have gone through that process
before. 1t is not possible to take that voyage
without the sorest distress to every person.
except capitalists out of debt, or Il sularied
officer, or annuitant. 1t is II period Of loss,
danger and lassitudc OF trade"
Comment on the essay being in order, Mr.
Gillespie said, he thought that Col. Noyes
had painted "A true picture of the existing
financial condition OF the country How to
remedy the condition was demanding the
attention of the best and wisest men of the
Nation.
Mr.. Wilson said he had listened to the
paper with interest.
Mr.. Sutton said he had prepared "A few
thoughts on the subject treated by the
Essayist, as Col. Noyes had at Il previous
meeting given notice of his subject, and sub
mittcd the following:
can hardly dare to hope, in fact will not
he presumptuous enough to undertake to
give you much light upon the mysterious and
mystiying question of finance Notwithstand-
ing think the subject too profound for the
common mind to understand | nave read and
thought over the matter, and by lis .ening to
the discussions of your club members, have
about concluded that probably paper money
is preferable to every other form of money.
Theorists do not like it. bankers do not like it.
but believe that We the common people do.
1t is said by some that money can only be
made out of coin. They denominate every
thing else mere promises to pay money. DO
not promises to pay answer the purpose of
"A medium Of exchange and "A measure of
value? While it has no value in itself. that
is intrinsic value, it has nevertheless "a com
mercial and eXchangeable value. 1t repre-
sents credit, the credit of the entire govern
ment.
Says Edward Kellogg: Money is the
national medium of exchange for property
and products"
says Prof. A. l.. Perry: "Money is a
medium of exchange and measure of value
Just as you use a yard-stick or a peek mea-
sure to neasure quantities, but it need not
necessarily be gold or silver any more than
than the yard-stick or peck measure may be
gold or silver-hence money can be made
of paper without the association of either
gold or silver"
Herbert Spencer says: THAT barbarous
nations use only coin as money. Nations in
state of civilization use coin and paper but
Il thoroughly civilized and enlightened nation
would use only paper money. Silver not be-
ing money metal by virtue of law, why
make it so? The power to create money lies
i'll Congress anything is money which it
chooses to declare money-then why not have
only paper money! As money is only a
medium of exchange, it seems to me, the
cheaper and more convenient YOU make this
medium the better. Paper answers the pur-
pose much better than silver and gold and it's
cheapness is in its favor. The owners Of
silver and gold mines are interested in having
the products of their mines coined into
money. but we are not, so long as paper
Silver is demonetzed, so much is gained, now
let us get gold demonetized Should these
metals he not used as money, what value
would they have? They could not sustain
the life of IL single one of us for day They
cannot be eaten; they can not be used for
clothing; they are no better than sand or
cement, and not half as useful as iron in the
construction of dwellings. What, then i'm
parts value to them2 1t is the agreement
among the producers of articles of use to
recognize and receive them as medium of
exchanged We agree, in other words, to
redeem gold and silver with the products Of
our labor, wheat, corn, etc.-all our wheat
corn, manufactured goods, &C., represent
labor, used for the benefit of the country. On
the contrary the labor that is expended in
mining gold and silver is wasted. The miners
themselves may not have lost their labor,
for they exchanged the product of their mines
for the product of other peoples labor, but to
the world as whole it is labor thrown away.
If your paper money is accdently destroyed
you have the consolation of knowing that
your loss is the governments gain. If IA gold
or silver coin is destroyed it is an absolute
loss, no one being gamer thereby. Accord
ing to one of the best authorities, it has cost
the United States upward of billion dollars
worth of labor to furnish coin for our cur