Year: 1868

emphatic declarations Of the law, declar-
ing that these notes shall he legal tender
in payment of every conceivable species of
Indebtedness against the United States.
And whether the fast be agreeable it is
one that can not be overcome by argument
or ingenuity.


But it is argued that Secret ary Chase
and perhaps one or two assistant Secre-
taries or chief clerks of the treasury, gave
it out in letters and speeches that these
bonds would be paid in coin, and that the
bonds were sold upon such an understand
ing. 1t is to be noticed that in giving
these opinions by the secretary and the
assistant secretaries. or hief clerks, that it
was predicated entirely upon the practice
OF the government heretofore, and not
upon any construction of the law author
izing the issue of the bonds or creating
legal-tender notes. Iu none Of these
opinions is there any reference made to
these statutes, and what was said seemed
to have been said in ignorance or indiffer.
ence toward them, and the opinions were
predicated entirely upon what had been
the practice of the. ..governmen Heretofore.
These several acts creating the legal
tenders were public laws, Of which every
man in the country was bound to take
notice ut his peril. Livery man in the
country purchasing a bond is presumed
to know the character Of the law creating
the bond or the existence of any other
law affecting the bond either as to time,
manner, or mode of its payment.


In matters of such immense magnitude
the nation can only be bound by the law.
Its rights must be defined by the law, and
by the law only. I can not be bound by
the opinion Of public officers given either
in ignorance or in violation Of the law.


The government of the United States,
which has the power to borrow money
and create new loan, has put the terms
of that loan into the law, and they cannot
be varied by the opinion or the action Of
any public officer.


1t would be a monstrous doctrine that
the rights Of the nation and of future
generations, in matters of such immense
Importance, could be varied or changed
by the illegal or unwarranted declaration
of public officer, who has no power to
say or do anything, except that which is
conferred upon him by law. Nor can it
be said that the good faith of the nation
can be affected by it's refusal to comply
with the representations Of public officer
when those representations are made in
direct conflict with public statute of
which he and everybody else is bound TO
take notice. Even in matters of private
right and Of the smallest Importance men
are presumed to know the law, and their
rights are determined accordingly, and no
man is bound by the act of his agent
when that agent is working outside Of the
authority or the presumed authority con-
ferred upon him. Every man buying a
bond of the government must know that
the liability Of the government could not
be fixed or changed by declaration of
the secretary of the treasury, but that the
liability of the government must be deter
mined absolutely y and only by the law
creating the bond or making regulations
for its payment.


The good faith of the nation in matter
Of this kind can only be measured by the
promise given by the lawmaking power,
which promise must be in the form of a
law. The constitution declares that con-
gress shall have power to borrow money.
from which it must be inferred that con-
gress and congress only can prescribe the
terms, limits and conditions of the loan.
The attempt, there ore, to erect stand
ard of good faith for the nation, not only
outside of the law, but in violation of. its
express provisions, does the nation great
injustice by contributing to place it in
false position before the people Of ether
countries.


That is all have to say on that ques-
ton. If you prove that the government
is bound to pay the bonds in coin. you do
it in the face of four direct and plain
statutes as unequivocal as any statutes
that ever were written.


There is the statute, plain. direct, even
pathological upon this subject. declaring
in not less than six or seven places that
these notes shall be received in payment,
and as legal-tender, in discharge of
every claim and demand of whatsoever
kind against the United States except in
terest upon notes and upon bonds, and
then going on to say, as | remarked be-
fore tautologically, that those notes shall
be received as lawful money and as legal
tender in payment of all debts, public or
private, in the United States, except the
interest on notes or bonds as aforesaid
And yet, in the face of language so plain,
language that cannot be misunderstood,
it is argued from day to day in this senate
that the government is bound to pay the
52O's in coin.


Now, MIR. President, this question is
important or unimportant as congress
specie payments it is unimportant; as long
as we iail to return to specie payment it is
important. AS l took occasion to say
some weeks ago in the senate, the irst
duty of congress and the FIRST great thing
to do, in my opinion, is to take some
direct step toward the return to specie
payments.


l will say further, it is in the existing
legal-tender notes that the government
has right to pay those $50 bonds
There was limit of S400, 0,0OO,O 900 fixed
by law to the issue of those notes. be-
lieve that to pass that limit would be Il
violation of public faith; but that the
government has right to pay the 5-20
bonds out Of the existing legal tender
notes is as clear in my opinion, is any
right that is defined by any statute of the
United States.


Democrats have been waiting with some
degree of anxiety to see or hear radical
rejoicings over the eelection of United States
Senators in Georgia. Georgia is ''recon-
Georgia is 'loyal." Georgia
has adopted the 18th amendment to the



Why is it that the legislature Of that
State has chosen men who are not 'engag-
ed in the interests of God and humanity
to represent the State in the United States
Senate? Why has the legislature of Geor
gia netitioned Congress- to remove nolitieal