The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1896-10-03
A FAMOUS EXAMPLE
or Fiat Flmnnclering+I h.signuts OF
Oftle French R.yo alton.

| NhhAouo EAhHlELb
or Fiat "fImnnclering Tho A.slgnats Of
ofthe French Revelation.
baltimore Sun (Dem): IN principle
the free and unlimited coinage Of silver
by this country nlUne Mt the ratio of 10
to | Is simply II project FOR creating non
ey that Is not rCdcemable anywhere. or
by anybody, at Its face value. and COM
Delling II 10 pas current among the
people by the mere legislative decree
OF the government. This idea has been
tried mnny times By dincren; nations
In the past mud has always falleG,
one OF the most famous experiments
OF this kind was made by France a little
mora than Il hundred years ago. The
close OF the year 1859 found the French
revolutionary governments: IN financial
straits. The cry was raised In the ma
tionnl assembly for nm Issue Of paper
money. NcCker, I'M abb, and cOnNcien-
tIons statesman, who was minister OF
finance at the time, opposed tho pro.
ject, and predicted disaster II Il vas
carried through. But the ,lcmng0Enes
prevailed, ana the story OF what follow
ed IL Interestingly told by Prof. An
drew d.. White. formerly president OF
Cornell University. Ia a little book NJ
cighty-slX pages which has Just been
published. The finance cOmmlttG, OF
the French assembly set the bali " Hat
ism rolling by Il report IN favor Ot n
large issue OF paper money, SOM Of
| the language In this report has - curl
Oisly strong resemblance - that which
Is now employed by free silver orators
In this country. II appealed 10 the pa
trlOtisin OF the French people In thcsa
words: Let M show 20 Europe that
we understand our own resources. let
us Immediately take the broad road TO
our liberation, instead Of dragging our
selves along the tOrtuouS anu Ohrctirr
paths OF fragmentiry loans" II cl6aed
by recommending in Issue ~ paper
money. carefully guarded. TO the
amount OF four hundred million francs.
In April. 1890. this amount was rs
sued In the form OF the celebrated as
slgnats. They were not based on any
thing less valuable than the free silver
party proposes now 10 base an unlIm-
tied issue OF dollars. The landed es-
tateS which had been C~onisCated from
the church and the nobility we're pledg-
ed as security for the asEiGnats. These
estates comprised about twO-ihiTds Of
the entire territory Of France. No IT.
redeemallc currency has ever claimed a
better guarantee for Its |SoundneSs and
safety as II circulating medium. 1t was
secured by a mortgage on productive
real estate OF vastly greater value thar
the issue. Thu notes bore Interest at :
per cent. so that there was every rea-
son FOR their being withdrawn from
circulation whenever they became re-
dundant, and It was publicly proclaim
ed that they would be so Withdrawn,
The FIRST issue Of aSsignats vas based,
1t Is true, upon the cOnfscated estates
OF the church only, but these amounted
In value to four billion francs, yielding
u yearly income OF about two hundred
million francs. What could be better
security, II any security at all could
have been good. except a specie reserve
pledged TO Its redemption on demand.
for the Issue OF fiat money 10 the
amount Of four hundred million francs"
1t WINS not long after the first edition
or aSSIgnatS was printed before another
Issue was called for. Mirabcau. who had
opposed the frs; Issue, came forward to
elOQuently advocate the second. lie In
| sisted that there wts no danger tina: pa
per money would become too abundant.
because II would b. absorbed In rapid
purchases Of no national lands. To
ward the close Of his speech. In n burSt
OF fervId nr1tory, he proposed that as
stsnatS should be issued In sufficient
quantity 10 cover The ealITr national
debt OF 400. 900, 900 francs, predicting
that permanent prosperity would be
thus insured to the nation. Meantime.
Che frs; Issue Of GSS!s lPtS hn.i rJl rt-E
KEEP; al par ARD were steadily deprecia;-
Ing. The uoni..' ,llra NscS"r opposed
the second lss Ie us he hal tho rrSt, but
in vain. end. r-siSnluc hlI 9lrt as min
lister OF tinIIre, he Ia't Trance forever.
Then the iihlA l>g"&:S hal Il Rll their
own way except Tor i few uO,lblN rrC-
t-sts. Ta!lAyrarl, n Que. cla'lc Il u'cr.I-
orable spt"Sh, In which l." sall, :r',r-
| ring to the laws which mace the accept
! ance OF paper money compulsory upon
all citizens: You can, indeed, arrange
II so that the people shall he forced To
take a thousand francs in rapc: for a
thousand francs in specie; but You a
never arrange Il SO Ihat n man shall
be obliged to give a lhIuH,n1 francs In
specie for Il thousand francs in paper.
In that fact ~ imbeldrd the entire
question, and on account OF that fact the
whole system falls"
Exactly IN the same way the whole
system Of currency projected by our
w free s!lver party would fall. Con-
gress can, indeed. obligc all the Amer
lean people 10 take n thousand dollars in
silver coined Mt i6 to |. for a thousand
dollars due for d"bt or for goods pUr-
chased. but Congress can ncveT arrange
It 50 that an American citizen shall he
obliged 10 give II thousand dollars In
gold. worth 100 cents apiece, for u thou
sand dollars In silver worth only - GEMS
apiece. and on account OF that fact the
whole scheme would fall. because we
should simply drive all our gold out o;
the country. and the silver dollars lef,
to us could no more be made TO circulate
at par with gold than the French assIs-
mats We're made 10 DO so a hundred years
ago. They would deprrCiatc IN tho
hands Of the people. Just us the ass!gna;s
did, and the rise In prices would be the
index Of their appreciation. The more
they fell relatively to gold the higher
prices would rise. and the more OF these
dcbased dollars Il would take 10 buy Il
given amoun; Of goods In the market.
To briefly finish the story " the as
sISnnis. one issue Of them followed
another until, on December II, 1872. It
was officially stated that 3,i00. 900 ,0OO
francs had been put forth. OF which
GOO, 600. 600 had Ocua burned. leaving
in circulation $500, goo. 900 francs. Then
'''''N'" wv N'l''''hII'H Va NhS 'h'A-
ed estates " the ariStuCraCy. valued
in 1898 al 5000. O0O. 900 francs. and upon
these more issues Of paper money were
based. BY the end Of 1894 seven thou
sand million francs In aSsignats were
IN circulation. and at the end Of July,
1875. 1900. O00. 900 francs In paper mo-
ncy were aiioat In francs. There was
no lack OF per capita circulation and
no scarcity OF currency. II had he
hind It. too. Just about as much value
intrlnSically tabout 50 per cent OF the
face raluel. ms MIR. Bryan proposes Ia
| nmi hnhInL Tho nN,.nr Anlinr ~ IL.