The Washington herald., 1914-03-04
HISTORY BUILDERS.
Gen. Buffers Joke Abeut Specie
3 Payments.
BY DR. e. ,. EDWARDS

= BY DR.. Z. J. EDWARDS.
r ATE In February, 1871, ! spent sew
IL eral hours with Gen.. BENJAMIN +.
Butler. He had stopped over In New
Yo.'. on his way to washington The
general was In the best Of humor. he
had been elected a member of The Con-
gress which was to serve In the first two
years Of Presidents Hayes administra-
ton he was going to enter that BODY.
he said. without any party obligations
to embarrass him. He had hatful OF
bricks which would be available for him
as weapons Of offensive warfare, for.
mataphoricaily speaking. he expected TO
hurl them one after another al the heads
Of would-be statesmen who were con-
cerned in all kinds of movements for
politica. and legislative reform.
Suddenly the general became serious,
and, after having produced a cigar so
that he might indulge In his favorite
pastime of dry smoke. he said to me:
There Is one thing that ] am going to
watch very closely. The government Is
going to make an effort to resume specie
payments on January I. 1879. 1 am curl
Gus to know how the government is going
TO do II. and where the gold and silver
are coming from. I am going TO advo-
cate payment OF government obligations
In paper. behind which stand the credit
and faith of the government and the
American people"
1 was reminded of this remark some
years later by a conversation which
had with the late Charles Levi Wood
bury. OF Boston, whose father. Levi
Woodbury., had ably administered the
Treasury Department under the Presi-
dency Of Martin Van Buren,
The bankers In Boston said Mr.
Woodbury., never knew whether Gen.
Butler was serious or whether he was
having a quiet little fun on his own ac-
count in the late fall OF 1878. They all
knew that Butler was a man of infinite
capacity. not only for appreciating humor.
but for indulging in something like prac-
teal Joking. He liked to get men on
string, so to speak. but he never did this
in an unkindly manner.
well. the general went around among
his friends in banking circles in Boston
in the late fall of 1878. Il remember one
occasion when he was accompanied by
William Z. Chandler. who was afterward
Secretary of the Navy in President
Arthur's administration. Butler and
Chandler were warm political friends.
The general would greet a bank president
with this question. spoken in a very seri-
Gus manner: How are you going to act
on the day of the resumption OF specie
enough on hand to meet the demands of
your depostors?''
In every instance the general was told
that the bankers were confident that
there would be no special demand for
gold. The fact that they could get gold
II they wanted IL was sufficient.
well the general would say. you
had better get all the specie you can SO
as to be ready to meet the demand.
III n
go trotting OF with his peculiar little
walk to ask the same question Of other
bankers.
.Only a few days before the lst of
January. in 1879, Gen. Butler said to a
banker friend of mine that he was ready
to give $4,000 to any one who would Sc
cure for him or his representatives the
first place in the line which would be
formed by the thousands who would
make demand at the Office of the sub
treasurer in Boston for the redemption of
government paper in gold. He said that
place would be worth $4,000. because the
subtreasurer would feel compelled to pay
out gold which could Immediately be sold
at a very handsome profit
You would lose your $4,000. general
was the reply. for there won't be any
demand. Furthermore, you don't need to
pay slO.ooo to get that place in the line,
because 1t can be secured without paying
a cent"
And II was Just as this banker pre-
dicted. On the morning Of the resump
ton Of specie payment he sent word to
the general, at his office in Pemberton
square. that the subtreasury was open
and that there wasn't any line and there
was only to be seen at first when the
door was open a scrubwoman washing
the floor. To this communication Gen.
Butler made no reply. but he undoubtedly
had had a great deal of fun out of the
matter