ident Cleveland pointed out that the
Treasury had redeemed more than $300,000,000 of its notes in gold,
and yet these notes were all still outstanding. Appeals to Congress to
remedy the situation proved absolutely fruitless, and the only choice
left to the President was to continue pumping operations or abandon the
gold standard, as the silver faction in Congress desired. By February
8, 1895, the stock of gold in the Treasury was down to $41,340,181. The
Administration met this sharp emergency by a contract with a New York
banking syndicate which agreed to deliver 3,500,000 ounces of standard
gold coin, at least one half to be obtained in Europe. The syndicate
was, moreover, to "exert all financial influence and make all legitimate
efforts to protect the Treasury of the United States against the
withdrawals of gold pending the complete performance of the contract."

The replenishing of the Treasury by this contract was, however, only
a temporary relief. By January 6, 1896, the gold reserve was down to
$61,251,710. The Treasury now offered $100,000,000 of the four per
cent bonds for sale and put forth special efforts to make subscription
popular. Blanks for bids were displayed in all post-offices, a circular
letter was sent to all national banks, the movement was featured in the
newspapers, and the result was that 4635 bids were received coming from
forty-seven States and Territories, and amounting to $526,970,000.
This great oversubscription powerfully upheld the public credit
and, thereafter, the position of the Treasury remained secure; but
altogether, $262,000,000 in bonds had been sold to maintain its
solvency.

Consideration of the management of American foreign relations during
this period does not enter into the scope of this book, but the fact
should be noted that the anxieties of public finance were aggravated by
the menace of war.* In the boundary dispute between British Guiana
and Venezuela, President Cleveland proposed arbitration, but this was
refused by the British Government. President Cleveland, whose foreign
policy was always vigorous and decisive, then sent a message to Congress
on December 17, 1895, describing the British position as an infringement
of the Monroe Doctrine and recommending that a commission should be
appointed by the United States to conduct an independent inquiry to
determine the boundary line in dispute. He significantly remarked that
"in making these recommendations I am fully aliv