The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1877-12-12

to be made our creditors will either ex-
prcssly stipula,c for gold, or if they
agree to receive silver will only lend
silver or it, equivalent. In very
short time the benefit Of the change Will
have been exhausted, and thereafter we
shall have to pay as much ~ we receive.
But, what Is Of more Importance. We shall
cut our-clvc, of from the possibility of r.
licf in case 81 any financial ~tringcncy. va
shall alarm our foreign creditors. and we
shall seriously cmlarras- the development
OF our natural rcpnurcc- ot homo.
Rail against the tyranny Of gol as much
a. We will We cannot change Tive practice
Of commercial countries. Whatever we i'm
port from abroad, and Whatever we send
abroad to sell. will hc measured by gold,
and cur local Mv~ will hc poWcicss 10 pre-
went ~ And f. t'moe az financial distress
We l. %, Hlv gold money
fef't. M'r.t af 'l8tnvcr sacrifice
we may o0ort. Iha ., g't will I've. that if
our currency Is silver while that of our
wealthy ncighbors is gold. they are pro-
vented from hclpug u hOwsocycr much
th"y may desire to. We saw th. in 1873.
There was scarcity of grcvnhocks.
but no reservoir from whence to draw
them. The Government could not
print Thorn and give them away; nor could
II buy with them our wheat and pork. II
tried to buy its own bonds but the people
who needed money had no bonds to sell
Europe could only offer " gold for our
property. but our currency was scvcn per
cent. lclpw gold and no one could AFFORD
60 employ gold at such a difference. The re-
suit was that We had to drag on ns best We
could with our own limited resources, and we
see what We have come to. In 1851 ON the
contrary. we had quite as severe q
stngcncy as in 1874. hut Europe came
to the rescue. h"nnht our marketable
property, at the tempting prices at which
we offered it. and in three months the trou-
bic was over Silver will bc no better
than grecnbaclis in another such crisis,
and to adopt it as our currency is only to
pcrpctuate the evils under which We are now
lahoring.
! Again, as 1t has been over and over again
repeated. we are "a debtor country. and can
not pay our debts. We oven want To borrow
more money Of foreign capitalists. Is it
not plainly our true policy.to inspire conf
dcnce i'm their breasts. Any merchant who
requires large discounts finds il profitable tn
conduct himself in such Il way that mOneycd
men shall be- willing to lend to him without
question and II nation should do the same
II we expect to borrow from abroad. either
as nation, or as corporations or ~ indi-
viduals it Is folly 10 begin by creating dis
trust in the men Who alone have money t.
lend Yet, by rcadopting the silver dollar
| it is notorious that sc shall Brighten the
whole tribe OF European iinanciers into hut-
tonng up their brccchcs' pockets. and lend
ing to va. IL they do 1t ut all, on much less
favorable terms than they would il the!
saw rs disposed to adhere to what they re-
gard as the only sound standard Of values
We hardly expect that considerations OF
this Kind Will avail TO stay the frenzy that
seems 10 have seized upon Congress n re-
gard To silver The indications ar" that
the silver dollar will triumph and that ii
twelve months or less il Will have driver
our gold coin to seek q more cOngcmial elm"
But We desire to place ON record our sincere
conviction that the benefits expected from
the change will not be attained. and thai
when experience shall have made our people
visor they will painfully, and at great cost
undo the work they now are 50 eager to ac
cOmplish.