228 _ Wisconsin State Agricultural Society. 
h 
ures may be a surprise to others, as well as myself. “ The annual 
issue of fractional notes being about $36,000,000 on a circulation of 
from forty to forty-five millions, shows the average life of the notes 
to be, say, 15 months. The estimates of the treasury officers hav¬ 
ing charge of the business, show the necessarry expense of main¬ 
taining this currency, during the last fiscal year, to have been 
$1,410,716. This does not include the expense attending the hand¬ 
ling of the fractional notes at the different sub-treasuries and de¬ 
positories, all of which receive them for redempfion, and which, if 
added to the expense incurred at the department, would show the 
total cost of maintaining the fractional currency, equal to about 
fifty per cent, on the annual issue, and corresponding with the in¬ 
terest on the amount of bonds which may have to be sold to pro¬ 
cure, say thirty-six million dollars (gold value) in silver-bullion for 
coinage, and which would give silver coins of the nominal value of 
forty-five million dollars, a gain which would pay the expenses of 
the mint for a long time. Notwithstanding the expense incurred, 
and the care which has been exercised by the government to reno¬ 
vate and keep the fractional currency in good condition, it is well 
known that a large percentage of the notes in circulation, particu¬ 
larly in localities not convenient to banks, are deteriorated to an 
extent rendering them quite unfit for use. It has also been coun¬ 
terfeited to a much greater extent than coin, and the detection of 
the spurious notes is much more difficult than counterfeit coins. 
The loss to the public from this source must ultimately be very con¬ 
siderable. The “ wastage ” as the small percentage of these notes^ 
worn out or destroyed while in circulation, may be properly term¬ 
ed, falls mostly upon a class of people least able to bear it. It is 
no satisfaction to a man who suffers the loss of one-tenth of his 
day’s wages, by receiving a twenty-five cent note which no one will 
accept, to be told that it reduces to that extent, the expenses of the 
issue of such money by the government.”—(Report of superin¬ 
tendent of mint, 1875.) 
One more consideration and I have done; it is upon the hardship 
which it is urged, resumption will inflict in certain directions. 
Every change in the value of money does some injury to society, 
and in acceptance of this axiom it must be admitted that to resume 
specie payments will work adversely to the interests of the debtor 
class to just the extent that currency will be appreciated. But in 
