The morning times., 1896-04-05

sa credly finds himself in possession of old
! paper which the junk shop might accept al
| one-half cent a pound.
| WHY IT Is so.
There is a reason Tor this ana it re-
veals an interesting history. 1t demon
strates that Great britain believed thorou gil-
| ly in the adage that ''all is lair in war,
ana pia4eu II IIIck on the American rcYo-
luuonists that came very near proving
| successful, but fortunately did not.
| The real reason why the government re-
! fuses TO accept and redeem colCmaI money
| is lot unau IL IcpuulateS It's early oblsa-
| Ions, but il is Il Matter OF the greatest
difficulty, in fact impossible, TO establish
| the validity of these Obligations. The
| British finding it extremely difficult to
furnish men, horses, ammunition and proSeDder
hit upon u most ingenius method of weak
| emne the KEY Vol.tiuuary government.
The bulwark of a nation is its finance.
The currency is the strength OF finance.
With excellent deduction the English ar
gued that q broGdSide at the treasury
would be as effective as charge OF
grape aud canister into the ranks OF the
army. They set about counterfeting our
money. The finest penmen, etchers,
draughtsmen and copyists We're put to
work reproducing the currency OF the colo
nies. Presently paper money became so
plentiful tnat its purchasing power was
reduced TO q minimum. Every one was
supplied by 1.-The generous English. The
counterfeit was so perfect that there was
no distinguishing, no detecting the genu-
Inc from the spurious. 1t was clever
ruse but it failed.
This astonishing fact is established and
admitted both as to the scheme of coun-
terfeiting and the unsuccessful outcome
in letter from Gen. Clinton in January,
1870, at the time iu command OF the red
coats in this country, from which the FOL
lowing quotation gives the giSt:
GEN. CLINTON'S LETTER.
mo experiments suggested by your lord
ship; no assistance tnat conlu DC drawn
from the power of gold, or the arts of coun-
terfciting have been left uninterrupted. But
still the currency. like the Widows cruise or
oil, has failed the Congress. My hopes on
this hand, must acknowledge, were much
With the appearance or IN enormous guam
tity. still it is all the debt which the people
have to struggle with; and in this view, and
when compared with that or other nations,
it shrinks into very inconsiderable sum.
The people begin TO be sensible of this. Bat
on the other hand, all men, even the friends
of the British government, residing in the
rebel States, would be unwiSe sufferers,
did the money fall to the ground without
substitute. The different acts OF the States,
which made it lawful tender, forced IL
the war; the almost total disa ppearance of
specie, and the necessity there was for
employing some medium for trade, Or
auxiliary, in the way of barter, assisted
further in its general PRONUNCIATION, till at
length every individual found it his in
terest, so closely connected with its value,
that it is candiily my sentiment. no efforts
)f ours can make il less. If it is to he
destroyed at all, il car only be by Congress;
and in this case, it will undoubtedly be sue
ceeded by some substitute more valuable and
/
continue assiduous in the application OF
those means entrusted TO my care; if they
cannot work its destruction. yet they can
embarraSS government, and ma Ike the carry
ing on the war more precarious, burden
some and less energetic
Mr. Miilard Warner of the Treasury
Department, Il gentleman who has made
extensive study OF tie euIiosities of that