156 



CONGRESS, UNITED STATES. 



Amos Clark, Jr., Clinton L. Cobb. Coburn, Conger, 

 Creamer, Darrall, Davis, Dunnell, Durham, Eden, 

 Fort, Foster, Kobert S. Hale, Hersey, Hubbell, 

 Hurlbut, Hyde, Kendall, Lewis, Lofland, Luttrell, 

 Mitchell, Morey, Nunn, O'Brien, Phelps, Phillips, 

 James A. Platt, Jr., Potter, Eainey, Kansier, Kapier, 

 William E. Koberts, James C. Kobinson, Koss, John 

 G. Schumaker, Sheldon, Sloan, George L. Smith, 

 Snyder, Speer, Standiford, Stowell, Strait, Sypher, 

 Walls, and Charles G. Williams 54. 



So the bill was passed. 



The President, on his approval of the bill, 

 sent the following message to the Senate : 

 To the Senate of the United States : 



Senate bill No. 1044, " to provide for the resump- 

 tion of specie payments," is before me, and this day 

 receives my signature of approval. I venture upon 

 this unusual method of conveying the notice of ap- 

 proval to the House in which the measure originated 

 because of its great importance to the country at 

 large, and in order to suggest further legislation, 

 which seems to me essential to make this law ef- 

 fective. 



It is a subject of congratulation that a measure has 

 become law which fixes a date when specie resump- 

 tion shall commence, and implies an obligation on 

 the part of Congress, if in its power, to give such 

 legislation as may prove necessary to redeem this 

 promise. To this end I respectfully call your atten- 

 tion to a few suggestions. 



First. The necessity of an increased revenue to 

 carry out the obligation of adding to the sinking 

 fund annually one per cent, of the public debt, 

 amounting now to about $34,000,000 per annum, and 

 to carry out the promises of this measure to redeem, 

 under certain contingencies, eighty millions of the 

 present legal tenders, and without contingency the 

 fractional currency now in circulation. How to in- 

 crease the surplus revenue is for Congress to devise ; 

 but I will venture to suggest that the duty on tea 

 and coffee might be restored without permanently 

 enhancing the cost to the consumers, and that the 

 ten per cent, horizontal reduction of the tariff on 

 articles specified in the law of June 6, 1872, be re- 

 pealed. The supply of tea and coffee already on 

 hand in the United States would in all probability be 

 advanced in price by adopting this measure. But it 

 is known that the adoption of free entry to those ar- 

 ticles of necessity did not cheapen them, but merely 

 added to the profits of the countries producing them, 

 or of the middle-men in those countnes who have the 

 exclusive trade in them. 



Seccmd. The first section of the bill now under 

 consideration provides that the fractional currency 

 shall be redeemed in silver coin as rapidly as prac- 

 ticable. There is no provision preventingthe fluc- 

 tuation in value of the paper currency. With gold 

 at a premium of any thing over ten per cent, above 

 the currency in use, it is probable almost certain 

 that silver would be bought up for exportation as 

 fast as it was put out, or until change would become 

 so scarce as to make the premium on it equal to the 

 premium on gold, or sufficiently high to make it no 

 longer profitable to buy for export, thereby causing 

 a direct loss to the community at large and great 

 embarrassment to trade. As the present law com- 

 mands final resumption on the 1st day of January, 

 1879, and as the gold receipts at the Treasury are 

 larger than the gold payments, and the currency re- 

 ceipts smaller than the currency payments, thereby 

 making monthly sales of gold necessary to meet cur- 

 rent currency expenses, it occurs to me that these 

 difficulties might be remedied by authorizing the 

 Secretary of the Treasury to redeem legal-tender 

 notes, whenever presented, in sums of not less than 

 one hundred dollars and multiples thereof, at a pre- 

 mium for gold of ten per cent., less interest at the 

 rate of two and a half per cent, per annum from the 



1st day of January, 1875 ? to the date of putting this 

 law into operation, and diminishing this premium at 

 the same rate until final resumption, changing the 

 rate of premium demanded from time to time as the 

 interest amounts to one-fourth of one per cent. I 

 suggest this rate of interest because it would bring 

 currency at par with gold at the date fixed bylaw for 

 final resumption. I suggest ten per cent, as the de- 

 mand premium at the beginning, because I believe 

 this rate would insure the retention of silver in the 

 country for change. 



The provisions of the third section of the act will 

 prevent combinations being made to exhaust the 

 Treasury of coin. With such a law it is presumable 

 that no gold would be called for not required for 

 legitimate business purposes. When large amounts 

 of coin should be withdrawn from the Treasury, cor- 

 respondingly large amounts of currency would be 

 withdrawn from circulation, thus causing a sufficient 

 stringency in currency to stop the outward flow of 

 coin. 



The advantages of a currency of a fixed, known 

 value would also be reached. In my opinion, by.the 

 enactment of such law, business and industries 

 would revive, and the beginning of prosperity on a 

 firm basis would be reached. 



Other means of increasing the revenue than those 

 suggested should probably be devised, and also other 

 legislation. In fact, to carry out the first section of 

 the act, another mint becomes a necessity. With the 

 present facilities for coinage, it would take a period 

 probablv beyond that fixed by law for final specie 

 resumption to coin the silver necessary to transact 

 the business of the country. 



There are now smelting furnaces for extracting 

 the silver and gold from the ores brought from the 

 mountain Territories, in Chicago, St. Louis, and 

 Omaha three in the former city ; and as much of 

 the change required will be wanted in the Missis- 

 sippi Valley States, and as the metals to be coined 

 come from west of those States, and, as I understand, 

 the charges for transportation of bullion from either 

 of the cities named to the mint in Philadelphia or to 

 New York City amount to four dollars for each one 

 thousand dollars' worth, with an equal expense for 

 transportation back, it would seem a fair argument 

 intfavor of adopting one or more of those cities as 

 the place or places for the establishment of new 

 coining facilities. 



I have ventured upon this subject with great diffi- 

 dence, because it is so unusual to approve a measure 

 as I most heartily do this, even if no further legis- 

 lation is attainable at this time and to announce the 

 fact by message. But I do so, because I feel that it 

 is a subject or such vital importance to the whole 

 country, that it should receive the attention of and 

 be discussed by Congress and the people, through 

 the press and in every way, to the end that the best 

 and most satisfactory course may be reached of exe- 

 cuting what I deem most beneficial legislation on a 

 most vital question to the interests and prosperity of 

 the nation. U. S. GKANT. 



EXECUTIVE MANSION, January 14, 1875. 



In the House, on February 3d, the bill for 

 protecting all citizens in their civil rights was 

 considered : 



Mr. Kellogg, of Connecticut, said: "I move 

 to amend the bill reported from the Judiciary 

 Committee by striking out all of the first sec- 

 tion after the word 'amusement. 1 This amend- 

 ment in effect strikes out all in reference to pub- 

 lic schools." 



The Speaker: "The Clerk will read the 

 amendment.' 1 



The Clerk read as follows : 



