The Indianapolis journal., 1896-08-28
THE POPOCRAT PLAN.

In his Chicago speech nominating him.
self for President Mr.. Bryan said:
They tell US the issue of paper money is
function of the bank. and that the gov
ernment ought to go out of the banking
business. / stand with jefferson, rather
than with them. and tell them. as he did
that the issue of money is a function of
the government, and that the banks ought
10 go out OF the government business.
The platform on which Mr.. Bryan stands
declares as follows:
Congress alone has the power to coin and
issue money. We therefore demand
that the power to issue notes to circulate
as money be taken from the national banks
ana that ali paper money shall be issued di-
rectly by the Treasury Department be re-
deemable in coin and receivable for all
debts public and private.
Mr.. Bryan has repeatedly said that he
heartily approves of every declaration in
the platform, and it is evident he is in
full sympathy with the attack on the ma
tional-bank currency and the demand
that all paper money shall be issued direct
ly by the government. This implied asser-
tion that Jefferson favored the emission of
circulating notes by the government shows
ignorance of Jefferson's views or purpose
to misrepresent him. jefferson would have
cut off his right hand before he ever would
have written line favoring a permanent
issue Of notes by the government, even
to meet a temporary emergency. and then
only on condition that they should be re-
deemed by means of special tax levied for
the purpose and retired as soon as pos
sible.
The platform declares that Congress
alone has the power to coin and issue
money" This is a cunning attempt to de-
ceive. The Constitution gives Congress
power ito coin money and Ito borrow
money on the credit of the United States"
but it does not confer any power to issue
circulating notes. The original draft of the
Constitution gave Congress power Ito emit
bills on the credit Of the United States" -.
but 1t was stricken out in the convention
by vote of nine States to two. None
Of the trainers of the Constitution or of
the early statesmen of the Republic ever
dreamed of claiming that Congress had
the power to issue notes to circulate as
money, much less to cothe them with le-
BARTENDER quality. and it requires stretch
Of the Constitution to justify it even as
a war measure.
Without doubt the weak point of our
present monetary system is the outstand-
ing volume of government notes. common
ly called greenbaclSs. amounting. since 1879
TO S346.6Sl,0 ,015 By requiring the mainte-
nance of a gold reserve for their redemp
ton and protection. and by furnishing the
chief element OF an endless chain to deplete
the treasury of gold. they constitute a
continual menace to the government cred
1t and the stability of our monetary system.
Mr.. Bryan and the platform which he
stands favor the removal Of the present
restriction the amount of these notes.
their unlimited increase by Congress and
their redemption, if at all. in 53-cent silver
dollars. AT present the greenbacks are
par, because, at great cost to the govern
ment, their convertibility into gold has
been maintained for nearly twenty years
and is still maintained by continual effort
and sacrifice. Under the Popocrat plan
they would sink with the whole mass of
our currency to the silver level, as would
fnt