Mexico weekly ledger., 1895-12-05

me sth day Of July, 1896 The performance q
checked for o time the Withdrawals of gold
and brought on a period Of restored confidence
and such peace and quiet In business circles as
ware of the greatest possible value to every
interest that affects our people. Ihave never
wisdom or propriety Of this arrangement, and
am quite willing to answer for my full share of
responsibility for its promotion.
ThouPh the contract fentioned stayed for a
time the tide OF gold withdrawal, its good re-
suits could not be permanent. Recent with
571 $50 on the 9th day OF July, 1895, to s9 $685.
900. How long IL VIII remain large enough TO
Gs eoeie a.s rner theSe an oefsa larry IS S Shlg mass1s
for Shipment In the immediate future are pre-
dicted In weli-informed quarters. About si6:-
Of November
ARE NEARLY WHERE WE
The foregoing statements of events and con-
dittons developes the fact that after increasing
our interest-besrfng bonded Indebtedness more
than sl62,000,oO to save our gold reserve. we
are nearly where We started, having now in
such reserve sg7 ,S33. 1865. as against S6a,438,3T7 liz
February, 1894, when the first bonds were is
sued. Though the amount Of gold drawn from
the treasury appears to be very large, as gath
cred from the facts and figures herein present,
it actually was much larger, considerable SUNS
having been acquired by the treasury within
the several periods stated without the Issue OF
bonds.
THE WITHDRAWALS OF GOLD.
On the esth OF January. 1885, 1t was reported
by the secretary OF the treasury that more
than 10000 600 of gold had been Withdrawn
for boarding or shipmen during the year pre-
cedfng. He now reports that from January /,
1879. to July IA, 1890, a period of more than
eleven years, only a little over s2s.000.O00 was
Withdrawn, and that between july IA. 1890, the
date Of the passage OF me law for an increased
Der, 1895, or within less than five and q half
years, there was withdrawn nearly s375. 100000,
drawn from the treasury in gold since January
J.. 1879, the date fixed in 1873 for the retirement
of the United States notes.
THOSE GoLD-RAIpING NOTES.
Nearly sas7. oOo, 900 of the gold thus with
drawn has been paid out on these United
States notes, and yet every one of the $4,000
600 Is still uncaueelled and ready to do service
in future gold depletions. More than s76.-
900, 600 in gold has, since their creation in 1890.
been paid out from the treasury upon the notes
given on the p9re s ss Of silver by the soysEn-
100000, except a little more than siolOOo.00a
which have been retired by exchanges for sill
outstanding and prepared to join their
older and more experienced allies in
In other words, the government has paid in
gold more than ufne-tenths OF the United
paid in gold about one-haf OF its notes given
for silver purchases without extinguishing by
such payment one dollar OF these notes. When
added to all this we are reminded that to carry
on this astounding financial scheme the gev-
ernment has incurred a bonded Indebtedness
OF sl62r Sl5.400 In efforts to maintain IL.
that an annual interest charge on such
bonded Indebtedness Is more than sll,-
course may result in further bond issues,
and that we have suffered or are threatened
with all this for the sake of supplying gold for
foreign shipment or facilitating IT'S boarding at
home, q situation is exhibited which certainly
ought to arrest attention and provoke imme-
dinte legislative relief. I am convinced the
only thorough and practicable remedy for our
troubles is found In the retirement and cancel
lation CT our United States notes. commonly
called greenbackS, and the outstanding treas
ury notes issued by the government in pay
ment of silver purchases under the act of
1890
REMEDIAL LEGISLATION SUGGESTED.
L believe this could be quite readily accom-
plished by the change OF the notes iof United
States bonds OF small as well as large
denominations, bearing u low rate of interest.
They should be long-term bonds. thus inereaS-
ing their desirability as Investments, and be-
cause their payment could be we'll postponed
to a period far removed from present financial
burdens and per plex1ties, when, with increased
prosperity and resources, they would be more
easily met. To further insure the cancellation
OF these notes, and also provide a way in which
gold may be added to our currency in lieu OF
them, a feature in the plan should be an au-
tlortty Civ en- to the secretary of the treasury
essary, to complete the contemplated edemp-
tion and cancellation, permitting him to use
the proceeds OF such bonds to take up and can
Gel sny of the notes that may be in the treas
ury, or that may be received by the government
on any account. The Increase of our bonded
debt involved in this plan would be amply
compensated by re ewed activity and enter
prise in ali business circ es. the restored conf
dence at home, the reinstated faith In our mon
etary strength abroad, and the stimulation Of
every interest and industry that would follow
the cancellation OF the gold-demand oblig1-
tions now affecting us.
In any event the bonds proposed would stand
for the extinguishment of a troublesome in
debtednesS while in the path We now follow
there Turks the menace OF amending bonds
with our Indebtedness still undfscharged and
aggravated in every feature. The obligations
necessary TO find this indebtedness would not
! equal IN amount those from which We have
been relieved. since 1884, by anticipation and
payment beyond the requirements Of the sink
Ing fund out of our surplus revenues.
The currency Withdrawn by the retirement OF
the United States notes and treasury notes
amounting to probably less than SiS8,0o0,0 o,
might be supplied by such gold as would be
used in their retirement or by an increase in
circulation OF our national banks, Though the
aggregate capital OF those now in existence
amounts to more than sos Ok 10000, their out
standing circulation based on bond securities
authorized to issue notes amounting TO 80 per
cent. of the bonds deposited to secure their CIR
s sSeqf eapi paf a II eS e a,fa t 6sye ara d bbn sme y bs "
the 1 per cent. tax on the circulation they issue,
INCREASED NATIONAL BANK
L think they ought to be allowed to issue cir
~culatiou equal to the par value of the bonds
they deposit to secure it. and that the tax on
their circulation should be reduced to one
fourth Of one per cent, which would undoubt-
eddy meet all the expensesthe government in
ours on their account. In addition they should
be sllowed to substitute or deposit in lieu OF
the bonds now required as security for their
circulation those which would be issued for the
purpose OF retiring the United States notes
and treasury notes. The banks already exist
ing, IL they desired to avail themselves of the
provisions OF law thus modified, could issue cir
~culation In addition to that .already outstanding
amounting to S17SI0O0,cO0 which would nearly
or quite equal the currency proposed to be
cancelled. AT any rate L should confidently
expect to see the existing national banks or
others to be organized avail themselves of the
proposed encouragements to issue circulation
and promptly I'LL any vacuum and supply every
currency note. 1t has always seemed to me
that the provisions OF law regarding the capt.
tai of national banks which operate as q liini-
tation to their location fails TO make proper
compensation for the suppression Of state
banks which came near TO the people in all
sections OF the country and readily furnished
them with banking accommodations.
lAny inconvenience or embarrassment aris-
Ing from these restrictions on the location of
national banks might well be remedied by bet
ter adapting the present system to the creation
OF banks III smaller communities, or by per-
uniting banks Of large capital to establish
branches in such localities as would serve the
people, SO regulated and restrained as to Sc
cure their safe and conservative control and
management. But there might not be the me-
cessity for such an addition to the currency by
new issues Of bank circulation as at first
glance Is indicated. II we should be relieved
under conditions that constitute it
and II our treasury should no longer be the
foolish purvevor of gold for nations abroad or
for speculation and boarding by our citizens at
home, b! should expect to see gold resume Its
natural and normal functions In the business
affairs of the country, and cease to be an object
attracting the ttmid watch of our people and
exciting their sensitive Imagination.
THE s1r II sEIGNIoRAGE.
do not overlook the fact that the c~ancella-
ton Of the treasury notes issued under the sill
ver-purchasing act of 1880 would leave the
treasury In the actual ownership OF sufficient
silver, including seigniordge, to coin near
~ s~i7stO90,00o in standard dollars. II
is worthy of consideration whether
this might not, from time to time,
be converted Into dollars or fractional coin.
and slowly put into circulation, as in the tudg-
ment of the secretary of the treasury, the
necessities Of the country should require.
o A QUESTION OF QUANTITY, But KIND
In the present stage of our difficulty it is not
easy to understand the extent to which our
revenue receipts directly affects 1t. The i'm
portant question Is not the quantity OF money
received in revenue payments. but the kind of
money we maintain and our ability TO continue
in sound financial condition. We are consid-
ering the government holding of gold as re-
lated TO the soundness and as affecting
our national credit and our monetary
strength. If our gold reserve had never been
impaired; IL no bonds had been issued TO re-
plenish; If there had been no fear and timidity
eon as q su S1 par aDl " u 20 eo ns4m ! sera Pa )
paid in gold, and IL we could look to our gold
receipts as q means OF maintaining a safe re-
serve, the amount of our reyen les would be an
influential factor in the problem. But, unfor-
t~unately. all the circumstances that might lend
weight to this consideration are entirely lack
ing. In our present p~redicament no gold is re-
eeiVed by the government in payment of reve-
nue. charges. nor would there be Ii the revenues
were increased. Tn r, cefpts of the treasury
when not in silver certificates, consist Of
United States notes and treasury notes issued
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