The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1897-12-10

relieve our financial laws from ambiguity and
doubt The brief review of what was accom-
/ plished from the close of the war to 1898 makes
unreasonable and groundleSS any distruSt either
of our financial ability or soundnesS. while the
/ situation from 1898 to 1897 must admOniSh con-
gress of the immediate necessity of so legislat-
| ing as to make the return of the conditions
| then prevailing impossible.
There are many plans proposed as remedy
for the evil Before we can find the true
remedy we must apprehend the real evil 1t is
not that our currency of every kind is not good,
for every dollar Of it Is good; good because the
governments pledge is out to keep it so, and
that pledge will not be broken. However, the
guaranty OF our purpose to keep the pledge
will be best shown by advancing toward its
fulfllment The evil of the present system is
found in the great cost Of the government of
maintaining the parity of our different forms
of money, that is. keeping all of them at par
with gold We surely cannot be longer heed
less OF the burden this imposes upon the peo-
pie, ev under fairly prosperous conditions
while the past four years have demonstrated
that it is not only an expensive charge upon the
government. but dangerous menace to the
national credit.
II is manifest that we must devise some plan
to protect the government against bond issues
for repeated redemptions We must either
curtail the opportunity for speculation, made
easy by the multiplied redemptions of our de-
mand obligations, or increase the gold reserve
for their redemption. We have 9y0.0J0O00 OF
currency which the government by solemn en-
actment has undertaken to keep at par with
god. Nobody is Obliged TO redeem in gold but
the government The banks are not required
to redeem in gold The government is obliged
TO keep equal with gold all its outstanding cur
rency and coin obligations while its receipts
are not required to be paid in gold. They are
paid in every kind of money but gold. and the
only means by which the government can with
certainty get gold is by borrowing. 1t can get
it in no other way when it most n eedS it The
government without any fixed revenue is
pledged to maintain gold redemption, which it
has steadily and faithfully done and which
under the authority now given it will continue
to do.
RedemptiOn of Government Notes.
The law which requires the governm ent after
having redeemed its notes to pay them out
again as current funds demands constant re-
plenishr1ent of the gold reserve. This is espe-
clally so in times of business panic and when
the revenues are insufficient TO meet the ex-
penSeS of the government At such times the
government has no other way to supply its de-
felt and maintain redemption but through the
increase of its bonded debt Thus in the adj
ministration of my predecessor, 262. 3l5.
400 of ~ per cent bonds were ISSUED and sold
and the proceeds used to pay the expenses Of
the government in excess of the revenues and
sustain the gold reserve. While it is true tina:
the greater part of the proceeds OF these bonds
were used to supply def .ient revenues, a con-
siderable portion was required to maintain the
gold reserve
With our revenues equal to our expenses.
there would be no deficit requiring the issu-
ance of bonds But if the gold reserve falls
below sI01 UO9. o o how viii Il b. repleniShed ex-
cept by selling more bon 5: Is there any other
way practicable under existing law? The Sc
riouS question then is. shall we continue the
policy that has been pursued in the past: that
is when the gold reserve reaches the point of
danger. issue more bonds an! supply the needed
gold or shall provide 9th r means TO pre-
vent these recurring drains uDOn the gold re-
serve: II no further legislation Is nad. ana the
policy of selling bonds is 10 BE- continu d. then
congress should give the secretary of the treas
ury authority to sell bonds at long or short Pc
RODS bearing a less rate OF interest
than is now authorized by law 1 ear
neStiy recommend as soon as the receipts
of the government are quite sufficient to pay
all the expenses of the government. that when
any Of the United States notes are presented
for redemption in gold and are redeemed in
gold, such notes shall be kept and set apart
and only paid out in exchange for gold. This
is az Obvious duty. II the holder OF the United
States note prefers the gold ami gets it from
the government he should not receive back