The Norfolk Virginian. [volume] (Norfolk, Va.) 186?-189?, 1896-08-08
Convicting "Reminiscences.
(New York JournaD.


The banks have come 10 the relief OF
the Treasury. giving it gold in exchange
Tor legal tenders, in order to spare IL ihe
necessity of issuing more bonds before
erection. That IL kind of them. but their
action suggests a few "reminiscences.
Tor eleven years before the passage O:
the Sherman act. IN 1890. the redacmab!l-
ny IN gold of our S346.0O000 of green.
backs had been maintained without fr,c-
mon or inconvenience TO the government.
The Treasury had a lesal right to pay i'm
noFes in eNher,gold o. silver, but the de-
nands Tor REDEMPTION were so small tina I
no embarrassment was caused. by allow
anG the holders 10 choose the kind of coin
they pre- ferred
Inc sherman act added a new element
10 Nhe Crrtncy-about $3.50. 900, 600 of
ilo"eS issued IN payment for silver bull
eon and ledeemable in coin Ii was ex-
Denied by Congress that these notes
would be habitually redeemed IN siiver
ana that the bullion for whose purCha Sc
they were issued would be coined for
that purpose. Bun the Harrison admin
ostration decided tina; this bullion should
De treated as junk. and that. the notes
should be paid in gold on dsmand. This
policy increased the gold obligations OF
the government by about 40 per cent
Mhile failing revenues and increasing ey-
IpenditureS Were dinlin .sh:ng its ability
to meet them.
soon after the passage of the Sherman
act ehe banks seem TO have decided that
She TINE had come for systematic and
prolonged object lesson" that would rot
oniy scare the country into stopping sill
yer purchases, but would iE6uce il defn-
1teiy 10 adopt the gold standard Up Ia
thad time the great bulk of tine customs
revenues mad been paid in gold The
hrst sherman notes were issued in Au.
gust, 1880. AT the end of that month
Iihere were only s3609. 900 of them out
standing. and of these s454.5H had been
saf nered up and paid inSo the custom
mouse at New York for duties. At the
snu or IN" next month there were S..
D69o0o in Sherman notes outstanding. OF
%h'ch N,7S4 ,f0i had been paid in for Gus.
IONS at New York In two months the
proportion OF customs duties paid in gold
eE New York had faIcn from 95.4 10
oo'o per cent. and the proportion paid in
Shernan notes had risen from nothing
10 III per cent The next month the pay
ments in sherman notes increased 20 Is!
per cent, while those in, gold declined &c
hi per cent. In June. 1893. not a sin.
gle cent vas paid in gold, while 80 pc,
cent. or the total payments were in Sher.
man notes
/ rms object lesson was success sful. with
| me heIp of the closing CT the Indian
| "i'''H anu heaNy demands on the Trea
| SuFy for he redemption OF both green.
| backs and Sherman rotes in gold in So.
curing the stoppaGe of silver purcha SEES
hut there stan remained the definite
adoption of tEe gold standard and the
retirement of the gseenbacks. The
sherman note scarcrow. having served
its turn, was promptly dropped. The
| customs payments in such notes at New
nolR lei off 10 IL per cent in September
| lss'. or less Than one-half as much when
mere were Sl43ss6,2sO of such notes
OUTSTANDING as in the very first month
OF lhe law. when only $685. 900 OF
| them mad been issued. 1t was nov,
the turn of the greenbacks TO sarvn as
| me OBJECT lesson. In February. 1884
cine month of the first bond issue). they