The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1896-12-15
Letters From the People.
CLEVELAND'S COURAGE.
He Pats Heavy Finger on the FinGn-
ciaI Sore SD0t.

He Pats a Heavy Finger on the Finan-
ciaI Sore Spot.
To the Editor of the San Francisco Cati-sIR
Perhaps majority of the American people do
not regard President Cleveland as q man OF
courage and they would refer you to Hawaii
and Cuba; but think they do him injustice.
In his message to Congress, December z, he
boldly confronts 6 ,306 ITO OF his own country
men-befng but 342. 057 less than half of the
whole l3, 296, 1884 voters-and fatty tells them
TO their faces that when they voted a month
ago for an increase in the volume OF money
and against the issue of any more interest
bearing bonds he defies their convictions and
proposes to contract the volume OF money and
issue bonds galore. And this in part is what
he said:
81 am more convinced than ever that we
can have no assured financial peace and
safety until the Government currency obliga-
lions, upon which gold may be demanded
from the treasury, are Withdrawn from circu-
lation and Cancelled. This might be done, as
has been heretofore recommended, by their
exchange for long-term bonds bearing low
rate Of interest. or by their redemption with
the proceeds of such bonds. This plan OF issu-
ing bonds for the purpose OF redemption GER
tainiy appears 70 be the most efiective ana al,
banks should redeem their own notes. They
should be allowed to issue, circulated to the
par value of bonds deposited as security for its
REDEEM ption, and the tax on their c1rculatlon
should be reduced to u olHl per cent"
want every man who has a few dollars IN
vested in business or has job at which he
earns q living to weigh we'll these words from
Mr.. Cleveand's message and consider deeply
what here follows: 'sThis plan of issuing
bonds he says, certainly appears to be the
most effective ana direct path to the needed
REFORM; and the significance of what he
says lies in the TACT that he speaks for the So
called National banks and other fundholder
OF the country. Win TINS plan ADOPTED ana
carried out he undertakes TO say that eve can
have assured financial peace and safety.
pass by the other obnoxious form of Low
eminent paper money known as treasury
notes." issued in payment OF silver purchased
under the Bland-Allson act and the sherman
law of 1890, amounting to $129, 6S3, $50, by
remarking that $35, 1l2,421 OF 1T has been
retired" and Cancelled contrary to law, dur
ing the past year, thus contracting the cur
rency of the country when money is so scarce
at the rate OF SIS, 100000 a month--a TACT that
ought to arouse the indignation OF every man
in business throughout the country; for at
that rate in three years more the last dollar
of this form OF full legal tender paper money
will disappear, and this Will leave the DEAD
silver idle in the treasury.
According to the treasury reports there are
$346 6S1 O16 in old legal-tender notes or
greenbacks of the issues OF February 70, 1867,
July IL, 1852, and March 8, 1868. still i'll ex-
istence, though it is not probable that more
than $500 600 900 do exist, for the act OF June
81, 1879, estimated the loss of the fractional
currency at tnat OaIe 10 De FS,olOtSo4 out U
the $4,000, 600 issued, which is about q per
cent in seventeen years. The greenbacks
would be destroyed by fire, by sea and by
other ways quite as fast, and In thlrty-four
years the loss of only 10 per cent would leave
but $312,0l2,917. In word, by the use OF
paper money the Nation has undoubtedly
gained $46 ,6SI ,016 in thirty-f0ur years. Mr..
Cleveland ana his banker friends then propose
to place at least $500, 000, 900 In bonds, bear
ing interest, in exchange for that sum In
greenbacks in order to supply them with that
amount in bonds on which to issue banknotes
to the full face value of the bonds at one
quarter of per cent interest
Now why does he thus brave the expressed
population of the country? Why does he tor
ture the patience OF so many indignant peo-
pie? He claims that his object is TO prevent
further raids on the gold of the treasury, and
assigns no other ostensible reason. In order
not to heap up 800, 100000 OF idle gold in
the treasury to redeem green backs as they are
presented by .money-mongers or dealers in
money he would destroy the Government
money itself and let the banks issue their bills
in place Pitt, thereby putting the whole vol
urne OF money in the hands of private specu-
lators in money.
In the beginning of the war, July IL, 1861,
treasury notes to the amount OF $3.50 zoo, 900,
"these notes to be of q less denomination than
800, not bearing interest, but payable on de-
mand at the Assistant Treasurer's Office" and
$50, 900 600 of these demand notes." as thew
were called, were issued, but the bankers re-
rused to receive them, and thus succeeded In
discrediting them in that dark hour of the
Nations peril. Congress was loyal to the PEG.
pie, however, at that time, and six months