ted, is of great importance in enlisting popular
interest in our national credit and in encouraging habits of thrift,
and such holding in the country is far more stable and less likely
to disturb the market than it would be in cities or by corporations,
where the bonds can be promptly sold in quantities.

"The three months' public notes required by the fourth section of
the refunding act, to be given to holders of the 5-20 bonds to be
redeemed, necessarily involve a loss to the government by the
payment of double interest during that time. The notice should
not be given until subscriptions are made or are reasonably certain
to be made. When they are made and the money is paid into the
treasury, whether it is kept there idle during the three months or
deposited with national banks under existing law, the government
not only pays interest on both classes of bonds during the ninety
days, but, if the sales are large, the hoarding of large sums may
disturb the market. Under existing law this is unavoidable; and,
to mitigate it, the secretary deemed it expedient during the last
summer to make calls in anticipation of subscriptions, but this,
though legal, might, in case of failure of subscriptions, embarrass
the government in paying called bonds. The long notice required
by law is not necessary in the interest of the holder of the bonds,
for, as the calls are made by public notice and the bonds are
indicated and specified by class, date, and number, in the order
of their numbers and issue, he, by ordinary diligence, can know
beforehand when his bonds in due course will probably be called,
and will not be taken by surprise.

"The secretary therefore recommends that the notice to be given
for called bonds be, at his discretion, not less than ten days nor
more than three months. In this way he will be able largely to
avoid the payment of double interest, as well as the temporary
contraction of the currency, and may fix the maturity of the call
at a time when the interest of the called bonds becomes due and
payable."

Soon after the passage of the act authorizing the coinage of the
standard silver dollar, and an attempt being made to procure the
requisite bullion for its coinage to some extent at the mints on
the Pacific coast, it was found that the producers and dealers
there would not sell silver to the government at the equivalent of
the London rate, but demanded in addition thereto an amount equal
to the cost of bri