The Maryville times. (Maryville, Tenn.) 1884-1944, 1898-03-19
PAY IN GOLD COIN.
Extract from an Address Delivered
by Ex-Gov. boutwell,.


by Ex-Gov. boutwell,.
Ex-Gov. Boutwell,, who is now so
years old, in an address few days ago,
spoke in part as follows concerning
gold, silver and bonds:
"As early as 1869, in my first annual re-
port to congress, I recommended what be-
came substantially the act Of July, 1870,
for the reissue of bonds, under which act
all the bonds issued have been passed or
issued.
"In that act II was provided that the
bonds of the United States should be pay
able in coin of the then present weight and
fineness.
1.-THE question whether they should be
paid In silver or in gold was not the sub
ject Of consideration In 1869 and 1870 the
silver in a silver dollar-f one could have
been found, which in fact was then i'm
possible-outvalued the gold which was
in a gold dollar.
Therefore, there was no reason for dis
tinguishing that they should be paid In
silver, but as matter of fact they were
made payable in coin,' and technically ard
legally, perhaps, 1t must be admitted that
they who oppose the payment of these
bonds In gold have some foundation on
which to stand and therefore we may as
well admit the. fact.
Now 1t happens that In these 80 years
silver has been depreciating until upon
the present value silver dollar Is worth
only 43 cents In gold. What is our an
swer to this?
II think 1t must be that we mean to
be an honest people; that this catastrophe
unon silver has come without any agency
upon our part, whatever they may say.
The real culprit-the man who Is respon-
sble for all this apparens and real disor-
der in the commercial worlds a man who
lived In the city of Pittsburgh, Charles
Burleigh, who invented tie power drill by
which mountains have been penetrated,
the bowels of the earth have been laid
open and silver extracted in vast guam
titles such as could not have been COM
manded IL we had had at our service the
men who built the pyramids of Egypt or
the Coliseum Of Rome
Now, are the American people to take
advantage OF this contract, or are they to
say, to be sure the word coin is used
in the bond, but we would do what we
would have done by US. We have taken
your gold, we will pay gold. And l know In
MISUNDERSTANDING Massachusetts of ours
that in the peril of the war; when the
light of day was like tho darkness OF night,
Massachusetts, paid the interest on her
bonds in gold, and the gold that went out
CT the treasury sold in the markets of the
world for $50 and 100 and $50 per cent.
premium, and no man whose face l have
seen or of whose observations have heard
ever complained that an act of superlative
honesty in one critical time would not
tend to plant a similar honesty in the
other.
Now let US go to the country and say:
No matter what is in these bonds 1t is
coin, but we will pay In gold coin. 1t
shall not rest upon this great country
with close to 1OO0O0,OOO population, with
resources such as no other country has
ever seen, resources of which no half
craZed enthusiast ever dreamed-that this
country of ours with centuries of future
shall carry down to coming ages the faint
that in those days of prosperity she sought
to shirk from the performance of an hon
est duty"