Year: 1879

really false, for the ipterest-bearing debt has
been reduced nearly 500, ,0O0, 600 and the year
ly interest t67, 100000. r.f


Exactly how our Greenback friends can say
that the reduction of the rate of interest un-
der the pretext Of economy us such fraud
on the people as TO merit the most severe con-
demnation,n Is past finding out The truth
is that the Intelligent commercial world, ex-
cent o,;lv the Greenbackers, has been full of
praise ana c'onder at the remarkable success
Of the Governn nut of the United States in
the reduction of ite debt and interest. No
Nation in the world, IN sneient or modern
times, has in so short a perioG SO greatly re.
duced the immense burden OF debt thsb
weighed upon us at the close OF the war as we
have; so that now the tax on whisky and to-
bacco will more than pay the entire interest
Of the public debt.


But they say that this Administration has
increased the interest bearing debt, and they
point to the monthly debt statement for
proof. | have already explained how this was
temporarily done In the process OF refuudlng
the debt. But on the debt statements hereafter
the ten-forty and fve-twenty bonds will as
appear or cease to bear interest; SO that our
Greenback friends will not hereafter be mis-
lead by the operation nor be able to mislead
others,


Again, they resolve as follows: "That VIC
| favor the unlimited coinage Of gold and sill
yer, 20 DO supplemented by full legal-tender
paper money sufficient to transact the bust
ness Uf the country" We have now unlimited
coinage Of gold and there is but little, If any,
| objection to an unlimited coinage OF silver at
| It's market value.


TO quote from Mr. Goschen: 1T was for
| the interest of commerce generally, both in
| India and Europe, that the whole OF our com
mercial transactions should be Sased upon an
| aggregate of silver and gold together, rather
| than that 1t should rest only upon go'd."
| This was the view taken by Hamilton ana


Jefferson. But to secure such basis She


coinage ratio must be the market ratio. Free
| - NaN ~ To


the single standard OF silver, What we OBJ
| ieCt to is the coinage of a silver dollar which
Is worth only eightySive cents, and which
thus will demOnetize gold aud leave us only
| silver as the basis Of our coinage. Silver coin
has been made the football of demagogues mn


til now many persons are led to believe that
| the Republican party Is opposed to the coin


age Ut silver, while IL was the Republican


party and tie Rosu 1ption Act itself that pro-


vided for the recoinage OF silver, introduced


It into current use In place Of the fractional


currency, and stands ready now to coin 1t


without limit at its market ratio to gold,


while the Greenback element wishes to coin
la silver dollar worth only on an average eighty


five cents, and with view to cheaper money,


to impair contracts and TO Danish gold. They


refuse to recognize the fact, acknowledged by


all the world beside, that by the law OF trade


silver has deprecated in comparative value


with gold, and that the silver dollar of twenty


years ago is now intrinsically worth fifteen


per cent. less compared with gold, than it was


then. We have tried the experiment Of coin


ing the silver dollar since 1t was authorized in


1878, and have coined f35 sol 600. Every ef-
fort has been made TO put IL in circulation
without forcing IL upon unwilling persons,
but the Treasury Department has only been
! able to issue $13,25g, g45, of which $6,51S,912


have been since returned to the Treasury.


The sensible course to be pursued with the


silver question is to treat 1t as practical one,


and to coin it without limit only when the
| commercial nations have agreed upon mar
ket ratio upon which they can all stand. 1t
J is now believed that this can be, brought
, about by commercial treaties. and negotia-
tion is now pending for that purpose. In the
: meantime silver coin should be limited In


amount to a sum that can be maintained at


par with gold coin irrespective of its value:


AS to supplementing the coinage by full legal
tender paper money sufficient to transact the
business of the country, this is all well
enough, except that the amount should be
limited to that amount which can be main
tait,ed at par in coin; otherwise you have pa
per money huctuating in value, variable as
, the shade aud recurrence OF all the evils
which we have suffered since the panic There


is but one way of testing the amount OF paper
money that is sufficient to transact the bust
ness of the country, and that is Dy lts con
vertibility into coin on the CHhahu oI the


holder,