Santa Fe daily New Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1885-1897, 1896-09-19


ures of the Bryan meeting at the Auditor
ium Saturday night was the presentation
by ex-Gov. Charles P. johnson of lette
from Col. George @. Gorham, of Washing
ton, d. c., who was secretary of tn
United States senate when the act demon
etizing silver passed the senate. Fo
leader in the Republican party, and thi
narration of the stealthy step leading vi
to the crime of 1873 is one of the mos
interesting documents in this hitherto
most interesting campaign. The follow
ing is the letter:
''To the Hon. Charles p. johnson, ST. Louis
Mo-:
"Dear Sir-In compliance with your re
quest present the following narrative o.
the steps which led to the demonetizatior
of silver in the United States in 1873, ani
the methods adopted to accomplish thai
result.
"The national debt at the close of the
civil war was about $2,5O0,0OO,O0O, the
principal being payable by law in any le.
gal tender money and the interest in coin
Certain great banking houses of Europe
following the example set by their pre-.
decessors in England, Immediately after
the fall of Napoleon, and setting an OK.
ample which Was followed by their class
IN Germany after the Franco russian
war-inaugurated scheme to greatly en-.
hance the value of this vast obligation by
making it payable in gold and then in.
creasing the value of gold. Thisinvolved
two legislative measures.
"First-Such changes IN the laws of the
United States as would provide for the
payment of the principal of the bonds in
coinlonly; and would forbid the payment
of any portion of it, prior to the resump-
tion Of specie payments, in legal tender
treasury notes, in which it was expressly
made payable by the law authorizing the
issue of the bonds, and in exchange for
which. when greatly deprecated, they
have all been issued.
"Seoond-The demonstration of silv or
in the United States, so that coin would
mean gold only, and the value of that
metal at the time be greatly enhanced.
sherman Does the British Bidding.
"The Hon. John Sherman, a senator
from Ohio, became the chief promoter of
this foreign scheme. It was, of course,
also supported by the American satellites
of the European houses referred to.
son the 18th of May, 1867, being then
on visit to Paris, and having just visit
ed London, he addressed letter to the
United States commissioner of interna-
tional conference on coinage, weights and
measures, then in session in the former
city. In that letter, which was published,
hes trongly urged the adoption of the gold
standard, and said of his own country:
AS coin is not now in general circula-
tion we can easily fix by law the size,
weight and measure of future issues
The conference adopted the gold stand
ard, and our commissioner reported that
this result was largely due to the letter of
Mr.. Sherman.
Senator Sherman next attempted to
easily fix by law in this country the new
monetary system so essential to the sue
cess of the scheme above described. To
that end, on February 8, 1868, he intro
duced in the senate bill (No. 217) to de-
monetize silver by disseminating the coin
age Of the silver dollar. He reported the
bill favorably from the finance commit
tee, but Senator E. D. Morgan, of New
York, vigorously antagonized it in q mi
nority report, in which, after showing the
advantages to the United States of con-
tinuing the double standard, be said:
"sWe have distinctively American
policy to work out-one sufficiently free
from the traditions of Europe to be suit
cd to our peculiar situation, and the
genius OF our enterprising countrymen.'
"From the stslwart blow BY the great
merchant-senator from New York the bill
never recovered. Mr.. Sherman never
again called it up. It no where appears
that either he or any other advocate Of
the gold standard ever denounced Senator
Morgan as an anarchist or q silver luna
to- II is an interesting fact that the
first attempt to demonetixe silver was
made BY the western senator and was &C.
feated by senator from New York.
1.-THE movement for a gold standard
was not renewed in any quarter until
nearly two years afterward, and more
than year-after the expiration of Soma
tor MOrgan's term of Office.
Congress Takes Action.
meanwhile, in obedience TO the con-
certed newspaper clamor, inspired by the
operators In bonds, congress passed the
act of March, 1869, TO strengthen the
public credit BY which, without any con-
sideration whatever, the principal Of the
bonds OF the government, then payable in
any lawful money, was made payable In
coin only. The advantage this gave to
the bond holders will be apparent whom
We consider that the major portion of
the bonds were By Law rsdesmable 10 any
lawful money q the pleasure Of the