The Dalles times-mountaineer. [volume] (The Dalles, Or.) 1882-1904, 1896-08-15

the s. F.-ESa:nfner, the redeemability
in gold of our s346. .0Oo,0 of green
backs had been maintained without
| friction or Inconvenience to the gov
ernment. The treasury had legal
right to pay its notes in either gold or
silver, but the demands for redemption
We're so small that no embarrassment
was caused by allowing the holders to
| choose the kind of coin they preferred.
The Sherman Act added new ele-
ment to the currency-about $3.50, ,0O0,-
600 of notes issued in payment t, r sill.
yer bullion and redeemable in coin.
1t was expected by congress that these
notes would be habitually redeemed
in silver, and that the bullion for
whose purchase they were issued would
be coined for that purpose. But the
Harrison administration decided that
this bullion should be treated as junk,
and that the notes should be paid In
gold on demand. This policy increased
the gold obligations of the govern
ment by about 40 per cent, while fail
ing revenues and increasing expendi-
lures were diminishing its ability to
meet them.
Soon after the passage of the Sher.
man Act the banks seem to have de-
cided that the time had come for
systematic and prolonged "objeet
lesson that would not only scare the
country into stopping silver purchases,
but would induce it definitely to adopt
the gold standard. Up to that time
the great bulk of the, customs reve-
nues had been paid in gold.
The first Sherman notes were issued
in August. 1890. At the end of that
month there were only 3.609,00p Of
them outstanding, and of these 454. .45l
had been gathered up and paid into
the custom-house at New York for
duties. At the end of the next month
there were ss,069, 900 in Sherman notes
ourstandin-, Of which. sl,734,404 had
I
In two months the proportion of Gus.
toms duties paid In gold at New York
had fallen from 954 to s5.6 per cent,
and the proportion paid in Sherman
notes had risen from nothing to II per
cent. The next month the payments
in Sherman notes increased to 15.5
per cent, while those in gold declined
to s1.1. In June, 1893, not single
cent was paid in gold, while IS per
cent Of the total payments we're in
Sherman notes.
This object-lesson was successful.
with the help of the closing of the In
dian mints and heavy demands on the
treasury for the redemption of both
greenbacks and Sherman notes in
gold. in securing the stoppage of sill
yer purchases. But there still re-
mained the definite adoption OF the /
gold standard and the retirement Of |
greenbacks.
The Sherman note scarecrow. hav-
ing served its turn, was promptly
dropped. The customs payments In
such notes at New York fell OFF to IL
per cent in September, 1895, or less
than one.half as much, when there
were S143, $3.50, ,280 of such notes out
standing, as in the very first month of
the law, when only $500 900 of them
had been issued. 1t was the turn of +
greenbacks to serve as the object les
son. In February, 1894. tthe month of
the first bond issue), they constituted
20.5 per cent Of the customs payments
at New York: November of the same
year (the month of the second bond
issuel, IS per cent; in February, 1895
(the month of the syndicate loan), 63.1
per cent, and, in September of the
same year, 7s-1 per cent: and still con-
gress did not retire them. Meanwhile
gold, which importers had ceased to
pay into the treasury, the bankers
were rapidly drawing out.
In February, 1884, the month of the
first bond issue, They drew $40, 49,, 1854
by putting in greenbacks and treasury
notes and demanding gold. OF this
they; exported s1,06s, 1886 and stacked
the other s1a.0 600. 900 away.
In November. 1894, the month of the
second bond issue, they drew 81, ,7s9,-
AZ, all of which they Kept, importing
b, ,507, 1888 in addition. They whetted
heir appetites and during the next {
iwo months they had depleted the ,
reasury of s37, ,o24,959 of the gold they
lad just loaned it.
They sent s34, 122, 1928 of this to Eu-
'ope and kept the remainder in their
'aults. Then the Belmonts, Roth /
childs and Morgans saved the treas.
Try by buying s62, ,3l6.40O of bonds at
0ia, the same bonds selling in the
market from ll91 to 124s as soon as 6
hey were offered to the public.
This process has continued steadily II
Until the present time. When We
we're buying silver under the Sherman
Act we were told that if the purchases I
we're stopped the drain on the treasury 9
took. of gold would be relieved. The
purchases were stopped and the banks g
lave drawn more gold from the treas
Try than they had done before in the {
Whole period since the resumption of 8
pecie payments. Now they are be- g
coming alarmed at their own work.
rhe .'object lesson" is not working as t
hey expected and they are patriotic
lily returning to the treasury some OF +
he gold they took out. But note the t
,rocess. u
. The metal was withdrawn by pre- In
enting legal tender notes and de- q
handing their payment in gold. The :
,old is now returned in exchange for t
he same notes. But under the policy v
by Harrison and Foster and | i
ontinued by Cleveland and Carlisle t
be government simply holds that >i
'oldson deposit for the holders of these v
otes. They can withdraw it again O
'henever they choose. They have d
hown that their appetite for bonds is a
nsatiable. Only the necessity of pam
erinp to public opinion in The crisis | 1