ELEAZER LORD, LATE PRESIDENT OF THE NEW YORK AND ERIE RAILROAD.

HON. E. G. SPAULDING, M. C.

PIERMONT, Jan. 29, 1862.

DEAR SIR-I beg to congratulate you on your lucid, forcible, and comprehensive opening of the debate on the legal tender Treasury note bill. It is unanswerable, and I trust will issue in an early triumph. I only wish the sum proposed was larger, so as to extinguish all hopes of national bonds being forced on the market and sacrificed. I think there will be a struggle in certain quarters to withdraw them from circulation and turn them into bonds on interest. The people would do that gradually without reducing the circulation too much, were there plenty more expected; and with a discretion for a larger sum the inimical parties could do no harm.

Should your speech be printed in pamphlet form, which I hope it will, please favor me with one or more.

Respectfully, &c.,

LETTER OF HON. E. S. PROSSER.

HON. E. G. SPAULDING, Washington, D. C.

ELEAZER LORD.

BUFFALO, Feb. 7, 1862.

DEAR SIR-I thank you for a printed copy of your speech on the finances of the country, received this morning; I had read it in the paper before with great interest and entire approval, but desire this copy for preservation. Whilst all loyal citizens must regret the necessity which compels the Government to suspend specie payments and make its own demand notes a lawful tender instead, I am quite unable, after very considerable thought, to suggest any other measure of relief, which I think would answer the purpose so promptly, or so well; hence, I hope the bill as reported by the committee will speedily become a law, and this is I think quite the general wish here. As the Spring approaches, anxiety increases for a vigorous prosecution of the war to a conclusion; for sometime or other, not very remote, necessity will compel at least a large decrease in our land and naval forces; $500,000,000 annually, can and will be paid cheerfully awhile, but I need not say to you that it cannot be very long; so it behooves the Government to act with all practicable energy to end the rebellion by any means in its power, in the very shortest time it can be done. I hope we shall come out of the conflict speedily and triumphantly; and that all the States may be again united under the present Constitution; still most of the slave states, except upon the border, seem almost hopelessly estranged, and will not, I fear, ever again, with their present people, yield obedience to the fundamental law of the land and the acts of Congress, unless they know the penalty for treason henceforth is to be rigidly enforced, and that the power of the Government is quite equal to capture the leaders of the rebellion by hundreds and thousands, and are determined to do it, and to execute them as fast as captured, unless they throw down their arms and disband, and return to loyalty. Can it be possible the Rebel leaders would long hold out against such a proclamation, after they saw that it was the intention of the Government to fulfil it to the letter, and they were virtually surrounded by a superior force.

LETTER OF GEO. B. BUTLER, OF THE HOUSE OF A. T. STEWART & CO., NEW YORK. NEW YORK, Jan. 30, 1862.

MY DEAR SIR-I send you the 4th of a series of articles written to show that the bills of the Government should be a legal tender. I belong to the creditor class, but my interest in the Government absorbs all others. In my view the war cannot be conducted except on this plan. I would pay the interest in gold and silver and lay heavy taxes. There should be $100,000,000 of demand notes of $1000, bearing 5 per cent. interest.

Yours, very truly,

GEO. B. BUTLER.

LETTER FROM T. W. OLCOTT, ESQ., MECHANICS' AND FARMERS' BANK.

HON. E. G. SPAULDING.

ALBANY, Jan. 31, 1862.

DEAR SIR-I have read your well constructed argument on national finances, and the issue of Treasury notes made a legal tender. I do not suppose that a loan can be made, and I regard this issue of Treasury notes the only adequate measure for sustaining the credit of the Treasury and the well being if not the very existence of the Government. Money must be had or the war cannot be successfully prosecuted.

This measure will secure means, no other will except at ruinous sacrifices. It is not a debatable question. The struggle is for life. The knife is at our throat. We must strike with the most available weapon, and leave theory for a more convenient season. Of course you will pass a tax law. The people will hail it, and it will inspire confidence in our public securities. I had hoped that you would authorize funding at 4 or 5 years in an 8 per cent. stock, and 20 years in a 6 or 61⁄2 per cent. stock. The short 8 per cent. stock would tempt to a large amount of funding, and when that short period expires, it is to be hoped that the Government can borrow at 5 per cent, We want to encourage funding so as to prevent a redundant currency, and to prepare the way for possible if not probable further issues. I have the honor to be, Your Obedient Servant,

THOMAS W. OLCOTT.

OFFICE OF THE COLUMBIAN INSURANCE COMPANY,

NEW YORK, Jan, 31, 1862.

HON. E. G. SPAULDING, Washington, D. C. DEAR SIR-I have read your able exposition of the condition of the national finances, and the bill which you reported to authorize the issue of $150,000,000 of demand notes, and I beg leave to express the opinion, that there is no other means by which the Government can escape the utter ruin of their credit, than the immediate passage of the bill, and a bill to raise an amount of revenue which shall render the prompt payment of interest on all their loans beyond contingency. Should the passage of this bill be delayed until the banks have paid their last installment to the Government, and the banks should refuse to receive the demand notes, and pay them out, they would of course depreciate to an extent sufficient to damage the credit of the Government essentially. If the experience of a life, not now short, is of any value, I say unhesitatingly, that this is the most critical period in our history within my knowledge. Those in power must take the responsibility and do the needful instantly, or the consequences may be, and I think will be terrific. As to paying in gold during the war, it is utterly and totally impracticable, and the idea of doing so should at once be discarded. After the present emergency is provided for, I trust

the bill for banking on the Government stock will be passed. The plan will be approved by nearly all the intelligent community when once adopted, and is now by a large majority of the men of wealth and influence, so far as I am informed. With apologies for trespassing upon your valuable time,

I am, your obedient servant,

THOMAS LORD.

POSTPONEMENT OF THE SPECIAL ORDER.

On Thursday, the 30th inst., MR. STEVENS moved to postpone the special order-the Treasury note bill-until to-morrow, for the purpose of going into the Committee of the Whole on the Army bill. The motion was agreed to. And on Friday, the 31st inst., he again moved to postpone the Treasury note bill until Monday, the 3rd of February, which was agreed to by the House.

On Monday, the 3rd of February, Mr. Vallandigham offered a modification of his substitute for the bill, for the purpose of having it printed for examination. This substitute will be found printed at length in the Congressional Globe, page 614.

MR. ROSCOE CONKLING-With the permission of the gentleman from Ohio, I desire to submit for the same purpose, the following, which I propose to offer, at the proper time, as a substitute for the whole bill. Congressional Globe, page 615.

MR. VALLANDIGHAM'S SPEECH.

MR. VALLANDIGHAM being entitled to the floor, addressed the Committee of the whole House for one hour, in favor of his substitute, and in opposition to the legal tender clause in the original bill. His speech will be found reported at length in the appendix to the Congressional Globe, pages 42, 43, 44 and 45.

He commenced by saying:

"It has been my habit, Mr. Chairman, to premeditate, whenever premeditation was possible, whatever I have had to say in this House; for no man has a right, in my judgment, to obtrude his immature thoughts and opinions upon a deliberative assembly.

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"I propose to-day to discuss the subjects involved in this bill to the best of my ability, and with becoming candor and freedom, and I may add earnestness too; for I have the profoundest conviction of their incalculable importance to the interests, present and future, of the United States, and of the people of this whole continent. Nor am I to be deterred from a faithful discharge of my duty by the consciousness that my voice may not be hearkened to here, or in the country, because of the continued, persistent, but most causeless and malignant assaults and misrepresentations, to which for months past, I have been subjected. Sir, I am not here to reply to them to-day. Neither am I to be driven from the line of duty by them. "Strike-but hear." Whatever a silenced or mendacious press,

outside of this House may choose to withhold, or to say, no man who is fit to be a member of this House, will allow his speech or his votes, or his public conduct here, to be controlled by his personal hates or prejudices. Sir, I recant nothing, and would expunge nothing from the record of the past, so far as I am concerned, But my path of duty now, as a Representative, is as clear as the sun at broad-noon. THE SHIP OF STATE IS UPON THE ROCKS. I was not the helmsman who drove her there; not had I part or lot in directing her course. But now, when the sole question is, how shall she be rescued? I will not any longer, or at least just now enquire who has done the mischief.

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I do not agree, Mr. Chairman, with the gentleman who has opened this debate, (Mr. Spaulding,) that this bill is a war measure. Certainly, sir, it has been forced upon us by the war, but if peace were restored to-morrow, these $100,000,000 would be just as essential to the "public credit as they are to-day."

Mr. Vallandigham continued his argument at great length. He insisted that the legal tender clause was unconstitutional, that it was a forced loan, and that it would be disastrous and unjust. He said no scheme of loan or taxation, or national bank, or currency, or other similar contrivance, could be devised, and put into operation in time to avert ruin and disaster. The Government has no money, no gold and silver coin, which is the only money in the world. He advocated Treasury notes, without any promise to pay money, and without the legal tender clause, which should pass as currency from hand to hand, between the Government and its creditors and debtors, and be supported by a nearly equal amount of taxes-such taxes to be received by the Government in these notes.

He urged that the experiment of forcing a paper currency upon the country, was a dangerous experiment, that it would lead to other enormous issues, gold and silver would be banished from circulation, an immense inflation would take place, "cheap in materials, easy of issue, worked by steam, signed by machinery, there would be no end to the legion of paper devils which shall pour forth from the loins of the Secretary." That inevitably there would follow bloated currency, high prices, extravagant speculation, enormous sudden fortunes, immense factitious wealth, and general insanity.

He objected to their being called "United States notes" instead of "Treasury notes," as they had always heretofore been called, and deprecated the idea that they were likely to be a permanent curreney, or at least until the Secretary's grand fiscal machine, "his magnificent National Paper Mill, founded upon the very stock provided for in this bill can be put into operation." He

insisted that these notes were not money, that they would not circulate as currency, would not be taken as legal tenders, and in discharge of judgments, and contracts, and state debts, or private debts, "though you should send them forth bearing ten times the image and superscription-the fair face and form of ABRAHAM LINCOLN, now president and CÆSAR of the American Republic." He urged the substitute presented by him as follows:

"The fundamental idea of this substitute is to support and float these $150,000,000, by nearly an equal amount of taxation and revenue, payable of course in these notes. The Government owe the people and the people owe the Government, each $150,000,000, and these notes are primarily to be used as a common medium of payment between them.

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I do not propose or pretend that these notes are to be convertible into gold and silver. They are not payable on demand; they are not payable to bearer, nor payable at all. They are not to be paid, but to circulate as currency receivable in Government dues, and finally to be funded in twenty year's stocks. They are not promises to pay, and are not therefore paper money. They do not represent gold and silver, of which the Government has none. * * The United States are to cease in part, for a time, to be a specie paying hard money Government, I deplore it profoundly. But imperious necessity demands it. There is no alternative, no matter what evils may follow.

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But I utterly deny, sir, the right of the Federal Government to provide a paper currency, intended primarily to circulate as money, and meet the demands of business and commercial transactions, and to the exclusion of all other paper. It is not the intent or object of the substitute to furnish such a currency for the country.

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Such, Mr. Chairman, is the substitute which I have submitted. It differs essentially from the bill. The one relies on force, the other upon credit; the one looks to the direct and despotic coercion of law and arms, and the other to the indirect and ordinary coercion of taxes.

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To my political friends let me now appeal for support, not only for this substitute, but of the taxation which must follow it, as essential to the maintainance of the good faith and credit of the Government."

At the conclusion of Mr. Vallandigham's speech, Mr. Hooper, of Mass., obtained the floor.

MR. HOOPER'S SPEECH.

MR. HOOPER-"The unusual exigencies of this country require that we should look for other and deeper sources of revenue than any to which we have heretofore been accustomed. We are contending for the maintainance of the Government, for the preservation of the Union, and for the enforcement of the laws, on which depend the existence, as well as the security of property.

To insure our success in this contest, great and unusual exertions have already been made. An enormous army, a powerful navy, with vast stores of artillery and ammunition, have been created. In providing for the sustenance, comfort, and equipment of the Army and Navy, the Government have been obliged to incur expenses far exceeding in magnitude