The Reissue Question

The majority of the Senate Financo üoramittoe has reported on tho subject of the puwer of the Secretar? of tho Treasnry to issue United States notes in lieu of the f 14,000,000 retired and canceled undor the act of April 21, 1866, that in its opinión he has no such power. The committeo in its report deals very .gontly with tho Secretary and Assistant Secretary. "The circumstanees under which thi issue of $5,000,000 was made," it says, "v?ere such as would cloarly have justifica its exercise, if, as was honestly and eonfidently elaimed by the officnr who made the issue, ho had the legal authority to make it." lt appeara to us that whilc the committee niight very properly havo expressed its opinión that the Assistant Beoretary acted aecording to what he considered his legal power and public duty, it would not havo hoau amiss to have criticised that ofncor for having exercised such a great power on what iras, even in its best light, questionable authority, and for the oxercisc of which the majority of the committee does not think he had any authority whatever. The committee very truly says that "such a power if given would be by clear and unambignons language, and should not bo inferred by subtlo reasoning, or depend upou the pressure of interested parties or changing views of public policy," and, furthaj, that "in all questious of construotion as to the extent of power conferroit by law iu raatterg which affect the public credit or publio sceurity, a re. sonable doubt as to the grant of power should be held to exclude it." This is in the nature of a reflection upon Secretary Boutwoll and Assistant Secretary llichardson, careful as the majority has been to divest its report of anything that would oft'end either of these officers, for there was a reatonablo doubt as to the power to issue any portio.i of the rotired notes, but such doubt was not allowed to stand in the way of tho Assistaut Secretary's action. Tho report!, both majority and minority, will soon be acted upon by the Senate, and we havo no donbt that the re port of the majority will bo sustained Secretivry Bouttrell and future Secreta rica will then understand that under the present laws Ihcy have not the power to issue United notes in excoss of tht $356,000,000 ontstantiing vfhen the act o July 4th, 1868, took effect, but that thc-y niay replace with new notes all mutilatec or defaoed notes, and within the limit o 356,000,000 jnay exchange or replace ncw notes for old ones. If this, with the national bank cireulation, does not fnrn ish sufficient currency for the -wants o the people, Congress is the body to which to look for relief, and not the Seerutarj of tho Treasury. - 7?rce I'rcts. Jones and Brown were talking late1; of a young clergyinan whose preachin;, they had heard that dsy. " What do yov think of hiiu?" askod Brown. "I think,' saíd Jones, "he did much better two years ago." "Why, he did not preacl then?" said Brown, "'True" said Jones " that is wbat I inean.'v