The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1877-10-25
PAYING BONDS IN SILVER.


WASHINGTON, October lS.-The Con-
gressional Monetary Commissioners re-
port presented to-day in the Senate,
makes volume of 200 pages. In the
elaborate discussion of the question, it
says;
1.-THE legal right of the United States
to pay their bonds in gold or silver at
their option is so clear that no serious de-
nial of it is made. The claim that they
should be paid only in gold is based on
vague and shadowy grounds. There isno
dispute about the facts of the case or the
law. A contract has been entered into
between the Government and its credit
ors involving contingencies which may
favor either party,and both parties must
abide the issue, whateverit may be. The
attempt to frighten the Government from
exercising its undoubted right to pay its
bonds in the cheaper metal by proclaim
ing that if it does so its honor will be tar
nished and its credit impaired, is un
worthy of consideration. The Eunctual
fulfilment to the letter of all obligations
is the surest and best support OF the cred
it of any country. Its honor can, rest
permanently in peace and war only on
the patriotism ofits people, which IS sure
to be weakened if their substance is tax
ed to pay premiums for the applause OF
its creditors We are largely the debtors
of Europe. The aggregate of our indeNt-
edness, public and corporate, held there
is estimated to exceed So 600 100000 and
the annual interest must be fully SlOO,'
100000. 1t is not tribute in the odlous
sense of contribution exacted by a SOW
ereign or imposed by Cohqueror, but in
its present financial effects it does not
differ from either. So far as 1t is true,as
it doubtless is to some extent, that our IN
debtedness to Europe is paid from the
sale of commodities elsewhere, the Uni.
ted States as a debtor country are inter
ested against such diminution OF the
worlds measure ofvalues as would result
from demonetizing silver. The investi-
cation shows that the product OF the Big
Bonanza thus far has not exceeded So2-
100000 during four years. of which 40
per cent. was gold, leaving for the aver
age annual product Of silver from tLl5
ore. bed fraction over S7OOOOOO. la
king all the mines of the Comstock Lode
together during sixteen years OF unprece
dented activity there have been found |
some twelve or thirteen bodies which |
have yielded altogether about S24O OOO,-
GOO, an annual average of Sl5,OOOO OO0, OF
which $7,S75, 900 was silver. During the
six years ended December 81, 1876, the |
average annual silver product of Nevada |
was $40, 900 900, and for the year 1876 by |
itself only S2S,O00,00O. The silver prod
uct of the United State during the same
period was SI55 800 900: thus making an
annual average of $26 900 600; the prod
uctf for 1876 by itself was $30 100000. 1t is
one of the common estimates that In 1913
the bullion value of the worlds stock of
plate, coin and bars was So SOO,OOO,O 900 in
gold, and S4,000000 900 in silver; but of
coin and bars alone 81, 800 100000 in gold
and S2,2OO,00OO00 in silver. The total
production of gold and silver in the five
(?) years ending with 1856 was S95O,OOO,-
900, being an addition of only II per cent
to the total stock inclusive Of plate, or of
2S per cent. to the stock in coins and bars.
The tCtal production of gold alone in the
same years was S750,000,0O0, which was
an addition of 25 per cent. to the entire
stock ofgold, including plate, land the still
greater addition of 623 per cent. to the
stock of gold in coin and bars. In the
twenty eight years ending with 1875 the
aggregate production of gold and silver
was $4, ,5S2,O0O,O OO0,which was an addition
of67 per cent. to the stock in lS4S of coin,
bars and plate, and of 1856 per cent. to the
stock of coin and bars. But in the same
.wenty.eight years the production ofgo.d
alone was $3,2l5,O 100000, an addition to
he gold stock in lS4Sin coin, bars and
oate of 115 per cent, and to the stock
n coin and bars of 26S per cent. On any
estimate the two facts are illustrated that
annual supplies affect stocks of the prec.
GUS metals slowly, and the stock ofeith-
Or one of the metals is more exposed to
eccentric enlargement than is the aggre'
gate stock Of the two.