The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1896-01-14

To those persons who have been led 10
consiier the so-calied gold reserve con
crete and sanctired thing we commend q
reading OF the statement OF Secretary CAR
LIsIE in response to a recent resolution of
the United States Senate asking IL the
sum OF sioO, 600, 600 or any part thereof hiss
at any time since the esta blishment OF the
so-csled gold reserve been actually seq
regatod or set apart from the other cur
rency or money in the treasury depart
ment, in gold coin or gold coin and gold
certificates, or either, for the redemption
of the legal tender notes and different
forms OF paper money OF the Government,
| and requesting further information as to
the reserve, it's object and practical use.
AS we have frequ ,ntly taken occasion
to point out in these columns the gold
reserve is much of a myth. II was never
heard OF, populsrly speaking, SO long as
the revenues of the nation exceeded its ex-
penditures.. it gave no concern TO the
treasury officials or to the Government and
so far as it was a feature OF treasury
bookkeeping it took care of itself without
need OF hardly so much as the Office boy
| to watch il. IL is only in re-
cent months. since the CLEVELAND ad-
min istration came in and the business OF
the country was so conducted that, IL per-
sisted in, only limitless borrowing power
would postpone inevitable bankruptcy,
that we began tc hear OF the gold re-
serve. This so-called reserve was, in
word, brought into prominencs to blind
the eyes OF the people 10 the real condi-
tion OF the finances OF the nation. The
"endless chain" idea and no end OF sup
posititious evils accrued In the imagina-
tion of the President and the Secretary
Of the Treasury, accordingly, and the
kindergarten financial writer's OF few
fabbergasted papers like the Providence
Journal fell into the trap and began to
prate about the calamity OF a depleted
gold ressrve' and the horrors of On "end
less chain, OF greenbacks draining the
vitality OF the country as IL incom, and
expenditure were mere figments OF busi-
ness.
We taes 1t that Secretary CARLISLE.
the President himself, and the Senators
who asked the questions must all have
known that there was no such thing as a
gold reserve to be maintained at 300, 000,-
900, or any other fixed sum. But the
resolution has callei out from the Secre-
tsry a statement of what the reserve really
is, that is, we believe, the first authorita-
tive statement from high official source
that has ever boep made else the Senate
would have had at it's command on the
files the information it asked for. There
is nothing new in what the Secretary tells
because the whole thing was es plain as
the nose on your face before he told it.
But the statement ought to be valuab BILE
NJ an influence in correcting sn impress
sion that is even now probably wide |
spread, although not so universal as il
was when the so-called gold reserve first
began TO be heard about.
The Senate is informed in response to
its query thar at no time since the estab.
lishment OF the so-cslled gold reserve has
the sum OF s1oo, 900, 900, or any other sum,
been segregated or set apart from the
general cash in the treasury, for the re-
demption OF any other form OF paper
money for which the United States Is
liable. There is no provision OF law re-
quiring separate fund or separate &C.
count TO be kept, and ell moneys received
into the Treasury, from whstever source,
are deposited In the general cash. The
fund for redemption OF United