hey passed this bill, it arises from
the fact that they did not give the rein to their imagination, as
the honorable Senator from Ohio seems to have done to his, and take
it for granted that the Secretary of the Treasury had a purpose to
accomplish, and that he would not hesitate to take any means in
his power to accomplish it, improperly against the manifest will
of Congress, against the interests of the country, and against his
own interests as Secretary of the Treasury."

I replied:

"I appeal to the Senator whether that is a fair statement of my
argument?"

Mr. Fessenden: "That is the way precisely that I understand it."

I said:

"That is precisely as no gentleman could have understood me. I
never said that the secretary improperly would do so and so by any
means. It is one of the honorable Senator's modes of stating
propositions."

Mr. Fessenden: "I certainly did not mean to say that the honorable
Senator supposed he designed to do so, but such seems to be the
result of his argument--that the Secretary of the Treasury having
the power, as he says, there is danger that he might abuse it in
that precise way; else his argument amounts to nothing at all as
against the bill. I certainly acquit my friend of any sort of
desire or intention to throw any imputation on the Secretary of
the Treasury. That he did not mean to do. . . ."

I said:

"I do not think it wise to confer on the Secretary of the Treasury
the power to meet the indebtedness not accruing for a year, or two,
or three years. I do not think it is necessary, in our present
financial condition, to authorize him to go into market now and
sell bonds at current market rates with a view to pay debts that
do not mature for a year or two. I have no doubt before the five-
twenty loans are due we shall retire every dollar of them at four
or five per cent. interest. No one who heeds the rapid developments
of new sources of wealth in this country, the enormous yield of
gold now, the renewal of industry in the south, the enormous yield
of cotton, the growing wealth of this country, and all the favorable
prospects that are before us, doubts the ability of this government
before this debt matures to reduce it to four or five per cent.
interest. . . .

"The Secretary of the Treasury may sell bonds at any rate to meet
debts as they accrue, but that is not the purpose of this bill."

Mr. Fessenden: "That is all the purpose there is in it."

I said: