Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1896-12-28

of the government While the government
has power to borrow money, it is not its
| duty to issue public obligations merely for
| the purpose of providing a paper currency
! for use in the transaction OF business, nor
has it the constitutional power, in my opin-
ion, TO make its promises legal tender in
| the payment of private debts. Such pol
| icy, even If sanctioned by the constitution,
instead OF lmparting strength and stability
70 our currency system, seriously endangerS
! 1t Dy the introduction Of political and par
| tisan considerations into the management
or a subject which ought to be regulated en-
| t1rely by the business interests of the peo-
| pie and by the laws of trade and the prn-
| clples which control honest commercial in
| tercOurSe
Although the actual ability of the gov
eminent to redeem it's notes promptly in
| gold coin may be undisputed, still the ques-
( tlon whether they will be or ought to be
| so redeemed must be open to public dis
cusslon, and it is well known that the con-
slant agitation Of this question during the
past rev years has upon several occasions
| greatly imported the safety of our entire
| currency system. SO long as the United
States notes remain in circulation, questions
| as TO the mode and manner of their re-
| demptlon and as to the means Of procuring
| and maintaining a coin reserve for that
| purpose will be made political issues, and
SO long as the questions remain in politics
| public confidence in the stability OF our
currency must be more or less disturbed.
Even it the agitation of these questions af-
the consequences would be sufficiently seri-
Gus to Justify a demand for their permanent
retirement, but the character of our cur
rency is such that whatever creates a doubt
I or suspicion concerning their prompt re-
demption in gold on presentation necessarily
impairs confidence in the whole volume of
injury upon the public than could pos
slOly result from the failure Of ordinary
banking institutions to redeem their paper.
Every menace to the gold reserve and every
manifestation of a formidable public senti-
ment in favor of the redemption Of our
notes otherwise than in gold coin at once
alarms the whole business community. de-
presses trade and industry and impairs the
! value of our public and private securities
in all the markets Of the world
There Is but on certain way to remove
our party politics and that is to retire and
cancel the notes. All attempts to hoard
them permanently by the government must
fail, for the obvious reason that our people
| will not consent to be taxed merely for
| the purpose of accommodating and holding q
| large and useless surplus in the treasury.
Besides. the notes must be Withdrawn from
circulation in order to be boarded, and when
withdrawn from circulation it would be far
| more advantageous to the public to cancel
| them than to keep them on hand as con-
| slant temptation to indulge in unnecessary
and extravagant expenditures
We must not be deluded into a feeling of
security by the fact that there has been
| suspension Of gold Withdrawals during the
| last few months and a large accession to
our stock of gold from abroad during the
same time, because there is no sufficient
reason to believe that this condition of
affairs will be permanent if our existing sys-
tenn is maintained.
vised will furnish the government with
either gold or silver unless it pays for it
with means already collected by taxation
or by contracting an indebtedness to be
paid by the people in the future.
I am thoroughly convinced that the re-
tirement and cancellation of United States
notes of both classes, under such reason
able limitations and restrictions as to time
and methods as Congress may see proper to
prescribe, or as a prudent secretary of the
! treasury will adopt in the exercise OF his
official discretion, would not result, either
permanently or temporarily, in an injurious
| contraction of the currency.
The people. if left free to conduct their
business affairs in their own way, will al
ways decide for themselves how much
money they need and unless prevented by
artificial distractions the necessary amount
will always be supplied, whether from their
own resources at home or through ex-
changes abroad. The volume of business
transacted determines the amount of money
and credit required. and whenever the vol
ume of business demands an additional sup
ply of money or an extension OF credit the
demand will certainty be complied WITH
provided the laws do not interfere to pre-
! vent it. AS rapidly as our notes are re-
deemed and Cancelled gold, or currency
as good as gold, will take their places in
the circulation il the interests Of the coun-
| try require it.
with a liberal commercial policy promot-
Ing the profitable Introduction Of our large
! surplus products into the markets OF other
countries and a sound currency system.
! promising safe investments for foreign cap
ital in our domestic industries, we may con-
, tidently rely upon the operation of the nat
| ural laws Of trade and finance for an album
| dant supply of good money to transact all
! the business CT the people and fully de-
| VelOp the great resources at our command.
Bonds to Buy Gold.
In my last annual report it was recon-
mended that the secretary of the treasury
| should be authorized to issue from time to
!
est at I; rate not exceeding 3 per centum
per annum, and having a long time to run,
and to exchange such bonds for United
States and treasury notes upon such terms
as might be most advantageous to the gov
eminent or to sell the bonds abroad for
gold whenever, in his judgment, it might
thus obtained in making redemptions Of
outstanding notes. The terms in which this
recommendation was made and the sugges-
lions submitted in support of it showed
that it did not contemplate the retirement
of ali the outstanding notes at one time, but
that the process should be so conducted as
traction Of the currency. Believing that
this plan of redeeming the notes and at
the same time submitting an absolutely
Sound currency in place Of them, promises
the most certain means of accomplishing
the desired result within reasonable time
I adhere to the views then expressed but
the object to be attained is so essential to
the future financial safety of the country
that it ought not, in my judgment, to be de-
feated or abandoned simply on account of
differences of opinion concerning the meth
DDS of securing it.
While an act comforting express and plen-
ary authority upon the secretary to issue
bonds and use them or the proceeds of their
sale for the purpose of retiring a certain
amount of the notes each year would in
my opinion, be the most e1fectual and eco
nomical way to accomplish that object it
NAV be that so radical a measure would
not receive the assent of Congress in the
present state of the public mind on the
Subject. and, if so, it is submitted that at
the very least authority should be given
to retire and cancel a maximum amount of
notes each year when voluntarily presented
by the holders and redeemed in gold; and
if the maximum amount fixed by Congress
should not be retired and cancelled i'll any
year by redemptions out Of the gold re-
serve the secretary of the treasury should
be clothed with authority to apply to that
purpose any surplus funds in the treasury,
and in addition, if necessary, to issue the
character of bonds above described to a
sufficient amount to comply with the pro
a policy would give immediate assurance
of purpose to return within reasonable
period to a safe and elastic currency sys-
tenn and would remove much of the doubt
and uncertainty which have for many years
disturbed the public mind and embarrassed