Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1896-09-17
SILVER and THE PUBLIC DEBT
Springfield Republican.

Springfield Republican
There has been published an opinion, adj
dressed to.a savings bank by the New |
York lawyer, John r. Dos Passos, to the |
effect that Congressional action looking to |
the payment of the national debt in freely |
coined silver dollars would be unconstitu-
tioual. tf
Mr.. Dos Passos bases his contention
chiefly on section 4 of the 14th amendment
to the Constitution.
'"rhe validity of the public debt of the
United States authorized by law, includ-
ing debts incurred for payment of pensions
and bounties for services in suppressng
insurrection or rebellion, shall not be
questioned"
Proceeding to show that substantially
the entire debt of the United States out
standing is a war debt, MIR. Dos Passos
comes to a consideration of the meaning
of the word validity and the intent of
Congress in proposing such an amend
ment.
1t is, of course, well known that the
amendment was intended to stop any at
tempts at Reputation of the debt which
might arise from the possible election of n
| Congress hostile to the results Of the war.
But manifestly Reputation or partial re-
pudiation from any other cause or source
would be as nntagonistic to the amend
ment as would Reputation by Congress
controlled by sympathizers with the Con-
| federacy. The sweep of the amendment
in this respect is well exhibited in one of
| the Congressional resolutions introduced
in 1865 by Samuel j. Randall, which was
a forerunner of this constitutional amend
ment, wherein these words are used:
Resolved, That the public debt created
during the late rebellion was contracted
4 upon the faith and honor of the nation;
that it is sacred and involate, and must
and ought to be pnid; and that any at
tempt to repudiate 1t or to impair or scale
the said debt should be unanimously dis
countenancel by the people and rejected
by Congress If proposed"
Now II is manifest that in fact, If not in
law, the payment of this debt in silver dol
lars worth less than gold would amount to
some measure of scaling il down in com
parison with payment in gold And it is
also manifest that if this were constitu-
tional, it would be- constitutional for Con-
gress to SO far initiate the currency with
legal tender paper issues as to make pos
sible the payment of the debt in dollars
worth less even than silver.
1
answer2 How many men would stake u
thousand dollars ON the disposition or abil-
ity of the courts to overcome an attempt
J by Congress to introduce the freely coined
silver dollar as money for the settlement
! of the debt? Very few, we think.
'el When the debt was created and when il
! was refunded after the war in coin bonds
gold and silver were co-ordinately the ulti
: mate standards of value in the country
, towards whose restoration in fact as wei
! MS law the government and people were
bending their energies. Silver was strick
e en- out in 1873 us a standard coin of the
g United States, but was restored in 1871
t us a coin of full legal tender quality ex
: cept where otherwise specified In the con
: tract; and both houses of Congress, b,
r large majorities, passed the Matthew
e resolution declaring that the paymen
b of the debt in such silver coins was mo
e in violation of the public faith nor il
/ derogation of the rights of the publ
i creditor"
o Now the government, in fact, havin
i from the beginning held to itself an optioi
t to pny in gold or silver, had ut the he
It ginning chosen gold. But the gold dolla
e Mt that time, as Mr.. Dos Passos freely nd
& mits, was the cheaper coin of the two-''i
~ ! was tlt
It liquidatc its Indebtedness in gold than 4
l. the former metal" If, therefore, tn
IS choice then of the cheaper metal in whic
e to pay the debt was in no wise contrar
# to the constitutional provision quoted, di
n not involve any measure of invnlidating q
: scaling the debt, how could the choice G
II the cheaper dollar to-day come under tn
~ prohibition of the Constitution?
* Some such question as this seems [
s. have suggested itself to the lawyer, for h
" goes on to say that well settled rule {
IN law is that where party has an option I
re pay in either of two different mod,
lie and he adopts one, This election is fini
s. and his option to pay in the other is gone
And to such u slender basis descends al
ii parently the main body of his contention
o. For ourselves we must say, in view of thi
tn that we would not give five cents for
Ii unanimous opinion from all the lawyers
ut the country as calculating to detcrmil
Ia the action and success of the courts 9
IN that line against hostile Congress al
lie. Executive.
d, The fact is that your Uncle Sam, viii
IS all ulong intending, we doubt not, TO
ng entirely honest in the settlement of
g. obligations. has been very foxy" in Il
i'd writing out the terms of his bonds al
| Tue way bttH ltil CitaT VI
by fall in silver to settle the debt in cheap
CHI than the gold dollar, in entire harmon
he with the letter of the contract. This who
RS matter consequently depends upon the vC
m dict of the people and not of the court
ne and anybody who thinks that we can sal
,ct ly fall hack upon the courts in case Il
nd verdict this fall goes against gold is We
ire much mistaken.
ed But even if the courts should ventu
a to step in in this case, their action cou
ar not long stand. The stream cannot ri
res above its source. The Supreme Court
in powerful, bur it does not. as a Michig
ny senator said the other day. offer ia
for refuge to free people" If the nation
ice debt is to be paid honestly the people mt
III decree it at the polls this fall.
his
er- PARK OoMMISsI0N WORN.
pre-
KetuiuinR Wall A HINT IDOua-Eant Isrtd,