Tombstone prospector., 1896-08-28
THE HONEST DOLLAR OF
The Plutocats. What Does it
 Mean? How Did it Come?
TOMBSTONE, Ausus. a7, 1897.

TOMBSTONE, August 27, 1897.
 EDITOR PRosPEcroR-Whea l was ip Bisbes abou: ten days ego met an old fsiend, man of more than average education and intslligeIce. who sp- pesrsd to bs very much surprised that 1 had bsc< me . Populiss, and in strong terms bsmosned the possible t.ec,i, n of W. J. Bryan to she office of presi- dent of the Usit~d States, and the consequent triumph of whA, he called populistio heresies, and said: "ihops you will get all you want (n,eanine the election of Bryan, free coinage. etc and then you will zee { years of such stsEnstion, distress and sufs ring that ihs p opls will riss up aud drive out oi politics all these modern dem : agogs and crsnks with their herssies and fads." These are not his sx .cs words. but think give his meaning fairly and moderately.
 Nov, 1t appears to me that this gen. man, whether from his early training or from the reading of gold-bug liter atare. has imbi' ed false notion-that no dollar can Dc honest except . gold dollar. or paper dollar purrortinG to have gold behind it to redeem 1t when called for-and, as it also appears to me, that :his gentleman and osheTs of his kind, are honest In expressed conYietions, I think it becomes me to sta.e for their their benefit my views si this so-callsd "honest dollar" and my reasons therefor.
 SOME HISTORY.
 In 1861 at the break cut of the war, congress by sct authorized the enlist- ment of 90 days volunteers, believing that sufficient to suppress the rshsl- lion, and also authorized the treasury 60 issue one hundred million dollras in treasury notes (soms gay more some les-. but the amount is not matsrisl) to be . legal tender for all demands rublic and private. These treasury notes were never discounted though there wac no gold to redeem them nor any expectation of redemption in gold or silvsr. and they could not be dis counted because they were ss good ss gold in payment of customs duties, internal revenue and taxes, and all men were glad to get them.
 About this time ali, or nearly all gold and silver had disappeared from circulation and been hosrdsd by the bsnks, with the expectation of con- trolling the currency and all b1siLess ; but soon the banks found that their gold s"d silver was lying idle on their hands, as nobody needed it. treasury notes being goed enough for all other people. Theu it was that the money changers of London with their sgen ts in New York and other cities of Amer ica seeing that . continuous issue of these treasury notes would stop their profits and curtail their power, be- sieg.d congress with whole battalli ns of lobbyists, male and female, and whether by persuasion or bribery, or both, care not, persuaded that body shss the treasury must have gold to suppress the rebellion. The old story "Try what you please, but there is neth,ng like leathsr." So the next issue and all issues of treasury notes contained the joker excepting duties on imports and intsrsst on the na- tional debs" from its legal tender qualities.
 This oi necessity o.ss..A demand for gold and silver coin e aii import CTS must have it to pay duties and the treasury must have it to pay interest, and thereby gave the money changsrs the power to reduce the treasury note so discount of from 95 to 34 cents on the dollar e measured in coin.
 Thus the treasury had e issus bends payable in coin, and the money chan gers bought the treasury notes, (csllsd greenbAcxs) as the discount men, toned. probably averaging 50 etc. on the dollar, and then gos another act of congress passed by the same means authorizing the trsssury to issue bonds, dollar for dollar, pay sbis |. coia to redeem shsss 50 cent dollars. So that by this thimble ring game they got cue hundred dollars in bonds for every fifty dollars paid, aod on all thess bonds, except these redeemed, they have already drawn over thirty years interess ct sn average of 6 to : per cent. making nearly two hundred dollars in interest for every fifty dsl- lars paid out.
 Rut ahsa vas noN snouoh- if vas