Virginia free press. (Charlestown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1832-1916, 1896-04-01
Lelter Fror Hon. W. Z. UNISON.
OFFICE OF THE POSTMASTER GENERAL
WASHINGTON, March 6, 1896.

Sir. note what you say about Mr. Carlisle,
aud your criticism upon his sale Of bonds
last February to the Morgan syndicate
When you haye got possession of all the
facts in the case you will find that he served
the people of the country as faithfully ana
as effectively in that transaction as IN any
other Of bis public acts, aud that the abuse
which is heaped upon him has absolutely
no foundation whatever. There is no truer
Democrat. or more honest man, in the coun'
try to-day, and few statesmen anywhere In
the world more deserving Of confidence and
respect for character and ability than Mr.
Carlisle. cannot give you all the facts in
q letter. but will remind you Of few OF
them.
The Sherman law which was passed IN
1890 by the Reed Congress started a run on
the gold in the Treasury, just as a run Is
started on bank when people begin to fear
that it is shaky. From the first Of January,
1879, to July IA, 1890, period of more than
IL years, only IS millions of dollars OF gold
were withdrawn from the Treasury, where
Is. between July IA, 1890, when the Sher'
man bin was passed, and the lst Of Decem-
Der. 1895. which is less than five years and
4 half. nearly S75 millions of gold were
withdrawn from the Treasury by people at
home and abroad who held our securities
who we're afraid they would not be paid in
the present standard money. In order to
meet these Withdrawals and redeem the
preenbacks and Sherman notes in gold
which is the standard money Of the country
it has become necessary during this run
upon the Treasury from time to time to buy
gold 70 keep up the supply. Mr.. Carlisle
FIRST tried popular loans, but he found that
the gold went out almost as fast as 1t came
in. as people that bought the bonds drew out
the money to buy them with. Time and
again the President brought this to the at
tention of Congress, and asked for legisla-
ton TO cure this trouble. Ia January, 1898,
be addressed a special message to Congress
asking for legislation, which Congress re-
fused to grant. At the very last moment,
after waiting to see whether any action
would be taken by the Senate and House,
when there was probably not gold enough
to last for two days, and we were on the
verge Of a great panic that would have in
volyed us in bankruptcy and loss far beyond
everything that ever happened in the coun-
try, but of which, fortunately, the people
generally were not informed, Mr. Carlisle
entered into the contract Of which you speak
with a syndicate of bankers, by which he
exchanged 81 millions of bonds for little
more than 90 millions of gold. On the very
day that the contract was made the Presi-
dent communicated it to Congress and in
formed Congress that ne had reserved the
right i'm this contract to substitute per
cent bonds at par if they would authorize
him % make them payable in gold, which
was certainly proper, as ne was TO get gold
for them l. myself, reported bill giving
him this authority aud tried to get 10 through
the House, hut did not succeed. This put
all the responsibility on Congress, and no.
thing remained but 90 carry out the contract
with The syndicate, by hich they agreed TO
furnish. and did furnish, more than oae-half
OF the gold from abroad by which they
agreed to protect the Treasury, as they did
protect it, for more than six months against
any Withdrawals of gold and under which
they did furnish to the Treasury many mil
liols more of gold than they had contracted
TO iurnish-the latter in exchange for green
backs.
la this way a panic was prevented and
we had year of comparative prosperity
from February until the beginning of the
present Congress, when the President aud
Mr.. Carlisle both appealed to Congress for
legislation 10 prevent the necessity Of issu-
Ing any more bonds for the purchase Of any
more gold, which, agail, was refused.
This is bu, an outline OF very few Of the
facts in what was a very desperate and diff
fcult situation, but it is enough, l think, to
show YOU that the responsibility has been
upon Congress, aud not upon the President
and Mr.. Carlisle, for lailsre TO deal with it
in more satisfactory way l think it Is
enough also, TO suggest 10 you that the mere
statemen, that bonds were sold to a syndi-
cate at less than their value in the market
is not a correct statement because there were
other advantages derived from dealing with
the syndicate which were worth to the eouu-
try many times more, perhaps a hundred
times more, than the apparent loss in the
bonds; but even in dealing with the syudi
cate, the Presiieu, and Hr Carlisle resery-
ed for ten days the risl, 90 substitute bonds
which would have saved us Is millions Of
dollars, it Congress had passed The bill 10
which l have referred
Very truly yours,
WM L. WILSON.
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