Year: 1867

The Independent, in reply to our recent crti-
cism, says:


1T il certainly part Of the duty Of Government to
ATTEMPT regulate the prices OF gold currency, or
anything else. All that the people ask Of the Govern
mont Is 20 keep hands or and let prccs regulate them
selves by the natural oNgoncics of commerce II the
Secretary chooses however to exercise the tremendous
power which Congress has trustcd 10 his hands for the
purpose OF controlling prices arbitrarily the people have
a right 20 demand OF him certain limitations To his ca
prices that they may be enabled to calculate what de
gree risks la their commercial undertaking.
The Treasury for example, has kept gold at about l0
for months past. and importers have calculated
that they would be required 10 pay that premium in pay
ing their duties The Secretary therefore tacitly
bound to let gold 20 above that point lie might, II
he saw t send up with ease, by refusing 10 SELL
and by converting his surplus into gold, even
though he should at the time destroy hundred
millions Of legal tender As grecnbacks are not made
redecmable In gold, the amount OF them In circulation
can have influence upon its price its price must be
regulated like that OF all other commodities, by the cost
Of It's production and the amount on sale There has
never any evidence before the public OF there being
redundancy OF currency and. until there shall be- 1t Is
the hight of folly to destroy H. deficiency Of currency
Is attended with dircfu consequences; but surpusnge
has never yet In the history OF civilization, been produc
tive Of harm 10 will De much safer To run the risk or
having more currency than need than to incur tho
~
evidently thinks that the public Is like young spend
thrift who is not to be trusted with too much pocket
money he H. therefore, bent upon destroying our paper
money to the full extent OF his ability aud OF locking up
In his strong box all the gold he can lay his hands upon


We copy the above as an unconscious eN-
posure of the radical, inevitable vclousncss of
any sort of inedccmablc currency, and de-
monstration that we might have Resumption
if we would. We do not see that it at all dis
mites the correctness of our position already
taken. What the Secretary of the Treas
ury is lin our judgmenD bound in honor
and Justice to do is to resume at the
earliest moment, and meantime TO Keep
N, premium on gold as low as possible
Ue has no right TO let that premium 20 (or
sta0 above any point if he has power to put it
below it, If he does less than this, he comes
short of his duty.


We have SO often refused to be driven
into a discussion of the supposed redundancy
of currency" that il is too late to begin now.
Experience is the only safe guide in the prem
ises. and we can tell how much currency the
country needs only after we shall have re-
tnrned to specie payments. Then, if there he
too much currency, the excess will he pre-
sented for redemption, and the Treasury must
fund it, if there is not, we shall soon know
il. But we firmly believe that Mr.. McCulloch,
resting on his Hundred Millions OF Coin, might
redeem Tomorrow if he would. Our Cotton
crop is just coming in; we have Grain, Meat
and Cheese to sell; and our mines are
yielding about One Hundred Millions of Dol
lars per anu9m, "Ihc way to prepare lVr