A National Currency |
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argument bank notes Bank of England banks suspended become bills of credit borrow caused Chase circulating medium coin money Congress Constitution intended Convention create and regulate credit issued denied duty emit bills eral government ernment essential established evils exclusive national currency exercise expressly granted fiscal agent framers furnished gold and silver gold or silver Harvard College Independent Treasury legal tender legal-tender notes letter medium of exchange ment metallic currency metallic money money and regulate narrow school national bank natural law necessity North American Review object opinions paper currency paper money payment of debts perform pet banks political engine power to coin power to create precious metals prevent prohibited prosperity proves purpose reason regu regulate the value rency restriction safe Sharswood silver a legal sort of money sovereign power stitution supply suspensions tender in payment tion tional bank uniform value throughout United
Popular passages
Page 41 - States would doubtless in that event have also interdicted their issue as a currency in any other form. The Constitution, however, contains no such prohibition; and since the States have exercised for nearly half a century the power to regulate the business of banking, it is not to be expected that it will be abandoned.
Page 67 - The power to make anything but gold and silver a tender in payment of debts is withdrawn from the States on the same principle with that of issuing a paper currency.
Page 40 - The foregoing views, it seems to me, do but fairly carry out the provisions of the Federal Constitution in relation to the currency, as far as relates to the public revenue. At the time that instrument was framed there were but three or four banks in the United States, and had the extension of the banking system and the evils growing out of it been foreseen they would probably have been specially guarded against. The same policy which led to the prohibition of bills of credit by the States would...
Page 47 - ... peculiarly the duty of the National Government to secure to the people a sound circulating medium. This duty has been, under existing circumstances, satisfactorily performed, in part at least, by authorizing the issue of United States notes, receivable for all government dues except customs, and made a legal tender for all debts, public and private, except interest on public debt.
Page 23 - Hence, in providing a circulating medium, they conferred upon Congress the power to coin money and regulate the value thereof, at the same time prohibiting the States from making anything but gold and silver a tender in payment of debts.
Page 50 - A Union victory on a battle-field or at the polls depresses the price of gold ; a Rebel victory in the South or at a Northern election sends it up. Jefferson Davis, the Southern armies, Generals Longstreet and Lee, and the Northern Democrats, are the bulls of the gold market; Lincoln, Chase, Grant, Sherman, and Meade, our brave troops, and the loyal and patriotic men of the North, are the bears.
Page 40 - ... regard a national bank as necessary for this purpose, and they are disinclined to every measure that does not tend sooner or later to the establishment of such an institution. On the other hand, a majority of the people are believed to be irreconcilably opposed to that measure; they consider such a concentration of power dangerous to their liberties, and many of them regard it as a violation of the Constitution.
Page 10 - An attempt to show that such a currency is needed by the country and always has been needed, that it is both the duty and the right of the government to...