Q. “Then why haint paper money good enough for interest on them?”
A. “The contract says ‘gold,’ Mrs. Gaskins—it calls for gold.”
Q. “Well, haint paper money as good as gold—now, since the election?”
“I ’bject,” says Jim, and then he got up and argyed that my question was leadin, &c., and the court decided that he needent answer it.
“We rest,” says Jim.
Then I got up and stated our case. Says I:
“Mr. Court, we will prove that Jobe Gaskins sold hay and corn to Billot, the miller, to git the money, or a part of it, to pay this interest, and took Billot’s note; that when the time come to pay it Billot offered to pay it in paper money; that Jobe refused to take it, jist as the banker refused; that Jobe sued Billot before Squire Reed for the amount ‘in gold;’ that Mr. Patrick, who is now the lawyer a tryin to foreclose us for not payin gold, was the lawyer agin us when we was a tryin to git the gold to pay with. We will prove that the law made Jobe take paper money or nothin, and made him pay the costs for tryin to collect gold. We will prove that Jobe took some of that money the law made him accept for wheat, and more jist like it, to the banker, and offered to pay his interest; that the banker refused, and on this testimony we ask you to render judgment agin Mr. Vinting, the banker, for costs, and make him take this $63 in paper money that I now tender in open court as payment of the six months’ interest due.”
At that I handed the $63 to the clerk. He took it and gave me a receipt for the amount.
Then I put Jobe on the stand and proved that he had taken the same money the law made him take for his wheat to the banker and offered it to him; that the banker refused to take anything but gold; that he had tried to git the gold, but couldent find anybody that had any gold, and that he had done all he could to raise the gold and couldent.
I then proved by Squire Reed that Jim Patrick was Billot’s lawyer, and had argued and proved by Sam Moore and Lawyer Buchanan and others that paper money was money and was a legal tender for debts, and that Jobe was beat in his lawsuit agin Billot and had to pay the costs and take paper money.