Year: 1878

On the 2Sth of February the Presi dent returned the Silver Bill with his objections to the House of Representa- tives. The Bill was immediately talk en up and passed both the House and the Senate the same afternoon by plus two-thirds majorities, so that to. day the new dollars weighing 41215 grains are ga legal tender at their nom. "inal value for all debts and dues, public and private, except where "otherwise expressly stipulated in the contract"

 It will be observed that the expres- sion nominal value" is used in the bill. The nominal value "of these new coins is of course one dollar each, while, as the President says in his veto message; "i it is well known that the market value of that number of grains of standard silver during the past year has been from 90 10 92 cents compared with standard gold dollars. '" Therefore the man who borrowed S10,- 900 in gold last week can liquidate that indebtedness today at 90 or 92 cents on dollar by rendering the new silver coin in payment. As we under. stand the Silver Bill this is just wha: the Government proposes to do and which in our estimation is nothing more nor less than partial repUdlation Such an act may aid the National credit abroad and increase public confidence at home, but we cannot believe It will. We were heartily in favor of the remOn itization of silver, but the value of a silver dollar should have been real and not nominal" The gold dollar is the unit standard of value with all the great nations and no act of our Con- gress can change that standard oi value. President Hayes further says that S5S3, ,440, ,350 of the bonded debt has been issued since Febrauary, 1873, when gold alone was the coin for which bonds were sold, and gold alone was the coin in which both parties 10 the contract understood the bonds were to be paid; $235,OOO,OO0 of those bonds have been old during my admin. istration for gold coin" The Presi dent then argues that the public cred itors have repeatedly been assured that the principal of these bonds and the interest thereon should not be pay able in coin of less value than that authorized by law at the time of the issue of the bonds, and that if it is now proposed for the purpose of talk ing advantage of the depreciation of silver in the payment of debts, to coin and make legal tender a silver dol lar of less commercial value than the dollar, whether of gold or paper, which is now lawful money of this country, such measure would be an act of bad faith as to all debts heretofore conrac'- ed.

 That the obligation of the public faith transcends all questions of profit or public advantage, that it is hls firm conviction that if the country is to be benefited by the silver coinage it can be done only by the issue of silver dollars of full value, which will de fraud no man, and that currency worth less than it purports to be will in the end defraud not only the creditors, but all who are engaged in legitimate business, and none more assuredly than those who are dependent on their daily labor for their daily bread.

 We believe the President speaks the plain, solid truth, and the correctness of his position will Tn the end be ap- preciated by the people He has eyin- ced considerable courage in vetoing the Silver Bill. His resistance of the terrible pressure entities him to some credit for strength. He has fortified the public credit by giving the strong est possible assurance that no measure calculated to undermine it will become law with his permission.