The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1876-03-13
From The Railway World.l
colo and SILVER.

Colo and Sasver.. =
,r,ore Ia positive dear,h 0. financial items
for n weekly budget. The new phase OF the
Wsu.S,rcet stock market has been fuzzy ex.
r,s;ne d. and the currency question has settled
down to the stale coalition Of az oitep-
repeated story. Neither In Congress nor 10
the Treasury Departments there any move.
ment designed TO facilitate the operation oi
the practicable law now la FORCE, nor 10
substitute any other measure catu'a,eo W
bring the country nearer 10 a specie oas y.
Secretary Bristow seems TO DC Wa'..ps ,ol
Sycnrress. and Congress appears 90 be WahiDg
Gar an onoor,upity TO destroy that which u
Il has already created. People are sick ana
fired Of the subject, and strong desife ior
ines talk and more action is dtffusIDg itseli.
Moan time the depreciation In silver 10 ex.
...,;nc attention.. and various apeculattors are
y,cen 20 the public IN reeaTd 10 lis effects
,,non the trade currents Of the world. The
Enrlisb papers already anticipate diminished
exports of merchandise to Lpda, aud an In
creased harort Of the products OF that ceun-
try. and in San Francisco the silver accumu;
iafson causes no little anxiety. This trouble
viii In due time regulate itself, we Imagine,
with the general revival In trade. The de-
1ponetiz,tion Of silver in Germany, ana tne
immense product Of our ooDanza mtnss'
hsYe combined TO cause snt IN the arucis.
coming, as they have, at time Wnen ,raoe
has stagna,ed throughout the ciVinzeo
world, " bile one Of the very causes Oh the
extraordinary silver supply-F'I., Tue
- change Of standard In Gesmany-nas con,
tributed to make more actVe aemaou
for gold. II Is not clear, AoWeVer, tnat tue
+ depreciation in the one OF tnese precious
metals measured by the gold standard, is
The absorbing capacity OF the East ior
silyer is almost incredible, and Wnen
more active business calls for an increased
import of eastern products it Is not 'm-
nroh,ble tina, the glut will be less ap-
naren, II England gets low prices ior lis
exrorts. 1t will, in the same coin, psy a
Iower price for it's imports, anu this VIII
set,le q n,estion which seems TO be scarcely
worthy OF an economical essay. we ho'd
itto be susce p,rbie OF proof that since the
discoveries of gold in California ana AUS
traIja there has been, in fact, greater
denreeiat,op in gold than in silver-the
oniv difference being that in comparing
silver with gold we have an easy standard
of measure, while the depreciation IN gola
is opiy to be traced in the higher scale OF
prices for nearly everything which gold
will buy.
This question presents one aspect, how.
ever. which illustrates the utter absurdity OF
the proposition which some Of our modern
economists are fond of stating-Vlz., tnat
the value Of gold Is determined by the cost
of its production. This assertion has been
made repeatedly, and with profound gravity,
as If its adoption as the standard Oh Value Dy
the minority OF enlightened nations hao no
influence of importance upon II. suppose
now that Germany, France, England, ana
the United S ates should resolve TO oemont' >
tize gold and adopt the silver standard, "nst
would be the effect? ltwould not be long, we
presume, before it would be discovered tnat
gold had largely deprecated In value, Wnile
silver had corre-pondingly increased. Inc
fact that gold and silver are used as money
by the entire world gives to these metals q
large portion Of their value. Just at this
time silver is thrown out of one Of its mar
kets, and its product has largely increased
hence temporary excess, which will
gradually work off TO those countries
where white metal. is preferred to yellow as
the representative of money. Gold is much
the most convenient for use in the settle
uent of balances; hence it is preferred by
nations of advanced Intelligence, but there
is no absolute certainty that it Will forever
he preferred TO silver. Much will depend
unon future developments in gold. mining,
although the question may net arise Tor many
centuries. The fact that since lS45 several
of the richest nations in the world have
abandoned silver as standard, and adop'eo
gold in It's place, will account for the depre'
citation 10 silver and the comparatively sus'
tanned price of gold IS to relative value bette
than more complicated and ingenious theo-
ries which are constantly propounded. The
increased product of silver has neither been
so large, nor has 1t continued so long during
the last half century as that of gold, and but
for the decentralization Of silver gold would
probably have deprecated in its value As
compared with silver. Nearly every dollar
produced by the gold mines Of California
and Australia since the discovery IN 1S4e
has been required Tor use as money
in place of the silver which it hst
supplanted, aud under such conditions il
should be matter Of surprise that silver
has been so we'll maintained in compare
tive value. This could not have been pcs
sible except for the insatiate trade-appetit'
of the East, W hich has absorbed it almost a
fast as European nations have given up ir
use, except for change. Our California ant
Nevada friends need not feel particular
anxious on the subject as it presents itsel
to our minds. When trade reviyes, an
when the German supply has been absorbed
John Chinaman will take all that the iamou