The citizen. (Frederick City, Md.) 1895-1923, 1895-12-06

circumstances that might lend weight
to this consideration are entirely
lacking.
No Gold Received.
In our present predicameut no gold
Is received by the government in pay
ment of revenue charges, nor would
there be If the revenues were increased.
The receipts of the treasury, when not
in silver certificates, consists of United
States treasury notes and treasury
notes issued for silver purchases. These
forms of money are only useful to the
government in paying its current ordi-
nary expenses, and its quantity in gov
eminent possession does not in the
least contribute toward giving us that
kind of safe financial standing or con-
dition which it built on gold alone.
If it is said that these notes if held by
the government can be used to obtain
gold for our reserve, the answer is easy.
The people draw gold from the treas
ury on demand upon United States
notes and treasury notes, but the propo-
sition that the treasury can on demand
draw gold from the people upon then.
would be regarded in these days with
wonder and amusement And even if
this could be done. there rs nothing to
prevent those thus parting with their
gold from regaining it the next day or
the next hour by the presentation of
the notes they received in exchange
for it.
Inasmuch as the withdrawal of orr
gold has resulted largely from fright,
there is nothing apparent that will
prevent its continuance or recurrence,
with its natural consequences, except
such a change in our financial methods
as will reassure the frightened and
make the desire for gold less intense
1t is not clear how an increase in
revenue, unless it be in gold, can satisfy
those whose only anxiety is to gain
gold from the governments store 1t
can not therefore be safe to RELY upon
increased revenues as cure for our
present troubles. | can not but think
there has been some confusion of ideas
regarding the effects of the issue of
bonds and the results of the with
drawal of gold. 1t was the latter pro-
cess and not the former that by srbsti-
tuting in the treasury United States
notes and treasury notes for gold in
creased by their amount the money
which was in the first instance subject
to ordinary government expenditure.
1t is neither unfair nor uni Just to charge
large share of. our present financial
perplexities and dangers to the opera
ton of the laws of 1878 and 1890 COM
polling the purchase of silver by the
government. which not only furnished
a new treasury obligation upon which
4 Il I'LL
creased the fear of an overwhelming
food of silver and forced descent to
silver payments that even the repeal of
these laws did not entirely cure the
evils of their existence. No govern
ment. no human contrivance or act of
legislation has ever been able to hold
the two metals together in free coinage
at ratio appreciably different from
that which is esta blished in the markets
of the world. Those who believe that
our Independent free coinage of silver
at an artificial ratio with gold of 16 to
/ would restore the parity between the
metals. and consequently between the
coins. oppose an unsupported and inn
probable theory. Those who advocate
a blind and headlong plunge to free
coinage in the name of bimetallism and
protesting the belief, contrary to all
experience, that we could thus estab-
lish double standard and a concurrent
circulation of both metals in our coin
age. are certainly reckoning from
cloudy standpoint. In conclusion
especially entreat the peoples repre-
aentatives in the congress to promptly
nd effectively consider the ills of our
ritical financial plight. l have sug-
ested remedy which my judgment
epproves. ] desire, however, to assure
he congress that / am prepared to CO.
operate with them in perfecting any
ether measure promising thorough and
Tactical relief.
GROVER CLEVELAND.