The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-05-06
THE PRESIDENT AND MONETARY
REFORM.

The Journal, in a recent utterance, made
the point that the President had in
his inaugural address recommended the
appointment of monetary commission. In
order to make a point against the Presi-
dent writer in a local paper says:
THE President has not asked Congress for
any legislation on the money question; so
far as he has acted he has rather indicated
that he is satisfied with the present situa-
ton" 1t is true in a literal sense that the
President has not asked Congress for any
legislation on the money question. The
President never asks for legislation. He
sometimes recommends it and sometimes
urges it, but he never asks for it. In the
present case he pointed out the necessity
for revision of our monetary system and
took the unusual step of promising in adj
vance that if Congress would appoint
monetary commission he would approve the
measure and do all in his power to make
it effective In order that the President
may not be misrepresented on this subject
let us recall what he said about it in his
inaugural address. He devoted nearly
much space to the monetary question as he
did to the tariff question, though it was
not in continuous form. Collating what he
said it appears thus:
Our financial system needs some revision;
our money is all good now. but its value
must not further be threatened 1t should
all be put upon an enduring basis, not sub
ject to easy attack, nor Its stablllty 10
doubt or dispute. Our currency should
continue under the supervision of the gov
eminent. The several forms of our paper
money offer, in my Judgment a constant
embarrassment to the government in its
efforts to maintain safe balance III the
treasury. Therefore, i believe ii necessary
to devise q system which. without dimin-
ishing the circulating medium or offering
a premium for its contraction, will present
a remedy for those arrangements, which,
temporary in their nature, might Well in
the years of our prosperity have been dis
placed by wiser provisions. If,
deem it eXpedient to create a commission
to take under early consideration the re-
laws, and give them that exhaustive. care
full and diSpaSSionate examination that
their Importance demands, l shall cordially
concur in such acton. II Such power IS
vested in the President, il is my purpose
to appoint a commission of prominent,
Well-informed citizens of different parties
who will command public confidence both
on account of their ability and special fit
ness for the work. Business experience
and public training may thus be combined
and the patriotic zeal of the friends of the
country be so directed that such report
will be made as to receive the support of
all parties and our finances cease1sto be the
subject of mere partisan contention. The
experiment is, at all events worth a trial,
and, in my opinion IL can but prove benz
eficial TO the entire country. There
could be better time to put the govern
ment upon a sound financial and economic
basis than now. The people have only re-
Gently voted that this Should be done. and
nothing is more binding upon the agents of
their will than the obligation of immediate
action
Construed together these expressions have
the effect of a strong recommendation in
favor of revision of .our financial system
and for the appointment of a monetary
commission as a step in that direction. 1t
is a very unusual, perhaps an unprece-
denied thing, for the President to assure
Congress in advance that he will cordially
concur" in a specific act and do all in his
power to give it effect. Yet President Nc
Kinley did this, thereby showing the sin
cerity of his belief that this the right
thing to do and his desire to cooperate
with Congress in bringing it about 1t is
true that the President made allusion
to the money question in his special mes
age to Congress at the beginning of the
present session. No doubt the necessity
| of a law to provide revenues for the gov
eminent was uppermost in his mind, and
l everybody admits that is still the para