From what has been shown with respect to the facts I am sure that Mr. Lawyer must be convinced that the principle at least of Government issues of legal tender paper money is unsound; for all the evidence, as we have seen for 100 years, from 1690 to 1790, is all on one side. Indeed not a single exception can be found anywhere. You will remember that everyone of the thirteen original states tried fiat legal tender paper money, and then when they all united under the Continental Congress, they tried it altogether; but the result was precisely the same. _First_: You will remember, came the issuance of the Bills of Credit, as they called them, or Greenbacks, as we call them, paper money. _Second_: And immediately all the gold and silver disappeared because driven from the channels of trade, with something cheaper with which the debtor could cancel his obligations. _Third_: Dishonesty, dishonor, fraud, disaster, ruin and repudiation followed each other in quick succession. _Fourth_: Then came the return to sound conditions when paper issues were discarded and the effort to make something out of nothing was abandoned. Mr. Lawyer, I want to ask you now whether you do not think we have made a case against you so far as the unwisdom and utter folly of Government issues of paper money is concerned. MR. LAWYER: I must admit that the facts are overwhelming. I had never taken the time nor trouble to investigate the subject, but had assumed that one of the functions of our Government was the issuance of money, even paper money, if you like. It seems from what has been shown here and last Wednesday night as well that this scheme of issuing paper money has been tried, not only by everyone of our thirteen Colonies and the Continental Congress, but by practically every country of the world at some time or other. It was tried in Austria, England, France, Germany, Italy, Russia and is now going on in nearly every one of the South American countries with the same experience, I am informed, that other countries have suffered. Now, so far as the facts have been disclosed, there is not a single instance in which the scheme has been tried that has not resulted in precisely the same way--complete failure and ultimate dishonor and repudiation if persisted in as a principle. Under the circumstances I must say, as every fair-minded man must, that the practice has been an absolute failure, and therefore it must be admitted that the principle must be unsound, for it seems to have worked nowhere, although tried under every conceivable condition. Of course I am compelled to give in on the unsoundness of the scheme. Now, you understand, that my admission as to the unsoundness and unwisdom of the practice does not carry with it my admission that the United States Government has no constitutional right or authority to issue paper money if it chooses to do so.