The copper country evening news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 18??-1907, 1898-01-03
For CURRENCY REFORM
,s+ract of Report of the None
tary Commission.
,rv RANKING SYSTEM PROPOSED.

/ xVhol0 Scheme IN D'~'
rLo ronort of the monetary commits
ION containing the plan Of currency
form , proposed by it, together with
se,I d;scnssion of the subject and a mass
- valuable statistics and other informa-
..on has been sent out by the executive
som,mittee of the Indianapolis conven-
.;or Following are the main points OF
the argument and the plan in detail;
The standard.
The most serious evil OF our present
s;tnatirn is the threatened degradation
Of our monetary standard.
The concurring habits of individual
mankind fix the standard by which to
nooasure the value of labor and property.
governments cannot try to change
This standard without making mischief.
The standard thus fixed is now gold.
This is fact of civilization.
Government, if it serves the people
well accepts this fact and records 1t in
law
As an immediate means toward this
ord we recommend that it shall be pro-
v;ded by law that all obligations OF the
limited States, existing and future, shall
he payable in gold except when other
wise expressly provided. BY the wise
and courageous action of its executive
officers the government has upheld that
standard by paying its obligations in
gold, but until such payment is required
nv law and the door thus closed to all
question as to the meaning OF the word
"coin" in the obligations of the govern
ment we shall not have an established
gold standard in the full sense OF those
words.
Demand Obligations OF tho Government.
st the present time the government
has no fund for the payment Of its de-
mand obligations except the general
balance in the treasury applicable alike
TO the payment of all dues. Our reve-
nues are uncertain in amount, and our
expenditures are large and growing and
liable to vary. 1t is therefore uncer-
tain whether we shall have at any par
ticular time all adequate fund for the
redemption of the demand obligations
without recourse to borrowing. Borrow
ing is an Intellectual resource, because
under the law as it stands the notes
which have been paid must be returned
to circulation, and 80 may be used over
and over to draw out the borrowed gold.
The issue of bonds, moreover, rests with
the executive department, and whether
twill be resorted to or not will depend
upon the personal views and discretion
Of the officials at the head of that de-
partment. More serious still Is the fact
that it is in the power of the executive
department. as the law now stands to
decide whether the government notes
shall be paid in gold or in silver. An
end shouldbe put to this anomalous and
hazardous situation by making specific
and adequate provision for the payment
of the demand obligations and directing
in the law that such payment shall DO
in gold at the demand of the holder.
J., A paper currency issued by the gov
ernment and circulating year after year
without redemption educates the people
in false notions concerning money. 1t
appears to those who do not look at 1t
critically to derive its value from the
government stamp" 1t ceases to be
regarded as a promise to pay money and
seems to possess the virtue of money in
and Of itself, and it is 80 easy to create
1t that when times grow hard the call
for more is perfectly natural. There can
be no doubt that the alteration Of judg-
ment on the money question by 80 many
OF our people In recent years has been
largely due to the miseducating infiu-
ences of the greenback currency.
Such a currency also lacks the i'm
portant quality Of automatic adaptable
ity to the varying demands Of business.
A paper currency created by legislation
Is liked in volume by the law of it's crea-
ton and can neither contract nor expand
In response to those varying conditions
which are bound to occur in the affairs
of men.
More important than this is the fact
that such currency puts upon the gov
eminent a burden In the maintenance
OF the credit of all the financial institu.
lions Of the country. If the government
should fail to redeem its notes, all bank
notes, bank deposits, insurance losses
and debts and dues of every kind not
specifically payable in gold would bt
payable in the deprecated paper or IN
silver. Every RAISING incident, there
lore, which raises an apprehension
however slight, of possibility, how
ever remote, that the government may
DC unable or unwilling to maintain golt
payment of its obligations sends q nerv
Gus tremor through the whole business
system of the country. Sovereign gov
eminent cannot be compelled to pay 1T
debts. 1t pays them only when it will
30 10 do, and the existence Of doubt II
the public mind as to the continuance
OF the will of our government to pay it
demand obligations in money satisfac
Tory to the holders thereof is seriou
urag on business enterprise.
The existence of large outstanding
debt payable on demand is also sourc
VI weakness to the government in 1t
International relations Modern warfar
Is so expensive that it IL almost AS mucl
matter OF money as men. A natiol