Any legislation which will keep coin and bullion at home
will, in my judgment, soon bring about practical resumption, and will
add the coin of the country to the circulating medium, thus securing
a healthy "inflation" of a sound currency, to the great advantage of
every legitimate business interest.
The act to provide for the resumption of specie payments authorizes
the Secretary of the Treasury to issue bonds of either of the
descriptions named in the act of Congress approved July 14, 1870,
entitled "An act to authorize the refunding of the national debt," for
not less than par in gold. With the present value of the 4-1/2 per cent
bonds in the markets of the world, they could be exchanged at par for
gold, thus strengthening the Treasury to meet final resumption and to
keep the excess of coin over demand, pending its permanent use as a
circulating medium, at home. All that would be further required would be
to reduce the volume of legal-tender notes in circulation. To accomplish
this I would suggest an act authorizing the Secretary of the Treasury to
issue 4 per cent bonds, with forty years to run before maturity, to be
exchanged for legal-tender notes whenever presented in sums of $50 or
any multiple thereof, the whole amount of such bonds, however, not to
exceed $150,000,000.
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