The age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1897-1902, 1899-11-06

It's the difference consisting in funds class
ed as unavailable. Aside from the issue of
the SO per cent. bonds the most important
event affecting the public debt was the fall
ing due on January of the last of the
bonds issued for the construction of Pacific
railroads. OF these s1S,s7o.oO0 were present.
ed and paid. leaving $4,000 of the loan out
standing, all past due and bearing no In
terest.
There were in circulation June 3d. 1898,
$2S6 ,572 s2s in United States notes, sos 6e5 $50
in treasury notes, 1890 $50 ,0SO in silver GER
tiheates, 1928, 129,7 O3 in national bank notes.
On June 80, 1899. the amounts were United
States note, SlO,547 ,S49; treasury notes. 3d.
COS 1872; silver certificates 4O S9S 343; national
bank notes, 2s7 ,sS2, 594. The paper in circula-
ton was thus increased during the year
by s4S, $685. 1885, As a result of these changes
the treasury holdings of government paper
fell between the two dates, in United States
notes from 1874 ,6d7 to $1527S, 667; in treas
ury notes from 1854, 700 to $912, AS, and in
silver certificates from $7,S97, 424 to 81 161.
BY the continuance of the process of re-
firing treasury notes of 1890 redeemed In
standard silver dollars the amount of the
notes outstanding was reduced during the
year from $1O1 $50 to $9s. 51S $50.
1.-The highest amount outstanding at the
close of any month was s153 ,453 629 in No
vember, 1893 As the silver dollars paid out
for these notes either remained in circula-
ton or became the basis for the issue of
silver certificates the process involves no
contraction of the currency, but only a
change of form. The reduction of the total
of the paper held by the treasury from $44-
5O27S1 to 2O407S16 was caused by the pay
ment of government obligations to public
creditors and by the receipt of revenues In
growing measures in gold coin. The treas
ury was thus brought to the minimum of
paper currency required for its daily BUSH
ness.
As the volume of government paper is
restricted, the United States notes by stat
ute and the treasury notes and silver GER
tiicates by the silver against which they
are issued, the treasury was obliged to de-
cline requests for notes or certificates ex-
cept for redemption or exchange in kind
Every effort was put forth to meet the
demands of business, and these transact
tions reached very liberal proportions.
I'm consequence there was a notable in
crease in paper of denominations of $40
and under.
The gold coin in circulation all In these
denominations, steadily increased from
$47S III, 49O on September 80, 1885, to $685. 361,-
1856 on the same date in 1899. In the small
notes there was a shrinkage of 11,522,157
from 1896 to 1897, but in the next year there
was an increase of $41, 657,037."
These statistics make plain a tendency
to an increase in the use of coin of all
kinds. On October l. $780, the estimated
amount of gold in circulation was 1918 per.
cent. of all the currency, and the gold in
the treasury 60.44 per cent. of the
United States notes and treasury notes
outstanding
These resources, the treasurer suggests,
would make 1t easy to establish a perma-
nent and adequate gold reserve. He points
out that while the reserve of 500, 600
several times has been trenched upon under
pressure of necessity, the trust funds set
apart for a specific object, as the gold
pledged for gold certificate ties and the stand
ard dollars for silver certificates, have al
ways been kept intact. A fund of $15OOOO,-
900 was devoted by law to the purpose with
a provision that the notes once redeemed
in gold should not be paid out again, except
for gold, would be self-sustaining and
would prove perpetual guarantee of safe
ty. -