ly provided that
the same may be paid in lawful money or in other currency than gold and
silver; but none of the said interest-bearing obligations not already
due shall be redeemed or paid before maturity unless at such time United
States notes shall be convertible into coin at the option of the holder,
or unless at such time bonds of the United States bearing a lower rate
of interest than the bonds to be redeemed can be sold at par in coin.
And the United States also solemnly pledges its faith to make provision
at the earliest practicable period for the redemption of the United
States notes in coin.

This act still remains as a continuing pledge of the faith of the United
States "to make provision at the earliest practicable period for the
redemption of the United States notes in coin."

A declaration contained in the act of June 30, 1864, created an
obligation that the total amount of United States notes issued or
to be issued should never exceed $400,000,000. The amount in actual
circulation was actually reduced to $356,000,000, at which point
Congress passed the act of February 4, 1868, suspending the further
reduction of the currency. The forty-four millions have ever been
regarded as a reserve, to be used only in case of emergency, such as
has occurred on several occasions, and must occur when from any cause
revenues suddenly fall below expenditures; and such a reserve is
necessary, because the fractional currency, amounting to fifty millions,
is redeemable in legal tender on call.

It may be said that such a return of fractional currency for redemption
is impossible; but let steps be taken for a return to a specie basis and
it will be found that silver will take the place of fractional currency
as rapidly as it can be supplied, when the premium on gold reaches a
sufficiently low point. With the amount of United States notes to be
issued permanently fixed within proper limits and the Treasury so
strengthened as to be able to redeem them in coin on demand it will then
be safe to inaugurate a system of free banking with such provisions as
to make compulsory redemption of the circulating notes of the banks in
coin, or in United States notes, themselves redeemable and made
equivalent to coin.

As a measure preparatory to free banking, and for placing the Government
in a condition to redeem its notes in coin "at the earliest practicable
period," the revenues of the country should be increased so