.... The third scheme of robbery was that of contracting the currency by destroying the greenbacks. In pursuance of this plan the act of April 12, 1866, was passed whereby it was provided that a regular and systematic cremation of greenbacks should take place.

Let it be remembered that upon this government money the greenback, the people did not pay interest. It was backed by the government, which made it safe and reliable, and issued in sums convenient for small as well as large business transactions. The money monger, with $1,000 in greenbacks, had found it necessary to employ that money in order to derive any profit from it. This added to his care, which apparently was the very thing he sought to avoid; investments in commerce and manufacturing required his personal supervision; investments in houses and land incurred taxation, risks, and often loss; but investment in bonds seemed quite suited to his esthetical tastes, for they returned a rich golden harvest, without any of the annoyances of taxation, insurance or even the care of looking after his investments.

..... The money commission, created August 15, 1876, consisting of three United States Senators, three members of the House, and three secretaries, made a report March 2, 1877, in which appear these words:

That the disasters of the Dark Ages were caused by decreasing money and falling prices, and that the recovery therefrom and the comparative prosperity which followed the discovery of America were due to an increasing supply of the precious metal and rising prices, will not seem surprising or unreasonable when the noble functions of money are considered. Money is the great instrument of association, the very fiber of social organism, the vitalizing force of industry, the protoplasm of civilization and as essential to its existence as oxygen is to animal life. Without money civilization could not have had a beginning, and with a diminishing supply it must languish and unless relieved finally perish

Falling prices and misery and destitution are inseparable companions. It is universally conceded that falling prices result from the contraction of the money volume. U.S. Monetary Commission, Vol. 1, p. 50.

Again p. 51, “The highest moral, intellectual and material development of nations is promoted by the use of money, unchanging in its value.”

Here we have the conclusion of nine prominent statesmen, who, after an exhaustive examination, emphatically declare that the “true and only cause” of the calamities that have befallen the people is “the shrinkage in the volume of money.” To whom, then, shall we charge these calamities that have come upon us like a flood? Is it the extravagance of the people? Is it because too many of the necessaries of life have been produced? Because the farmer has been too industrious and prudent, or the manufacturer employed too many laborers in the production of his commodities? Is it because millions of children are employed in the mines and factories of the country, denied every blessing and privilege of childhood? Is it because the dram shop is sucking away the sustenance of thousands of families, and bringing desolation into their homes? Is it because women are selling their souls to keep their bodies from starving, or because a band of train robbers are infesting the country and sending terror into the hearts of the people? No, it is none of these circumstances that have brought such disaster upon our country, but it is a selfish and criminal legislation that has overwhelmed us with these alarming conditions.[emphasis mind D.C]

When the fiend of civil war was desolating the land, when the great heart of the nation throbbed in agony, and the people were bowed in mourning, then a band of men, with murderous purposes, went, not into the battlefield, but into the very sanctuary of our country, the holy place of government, and there, under the guise of patriot and benefactor, pillaged the soldier, and plotted the most diabolical scheme of robbery that ever blackened a historic page. Who were these men?

https://exploringrealhistory.blogspot.com/2019/07/part-2-seven-financial-conspiracies.html