New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1878-02-07
A FLOOD OF CHEAP SILVER.
THE ANNoYANcEs OF MERCHANTS.


DEPRECATED SILVER.
IpY TELEGRAPH TO THr TRIBUNEl
WAsUIxGrON Feb 6.-Tbe Bank of France re-
sumed specie payments on the firstday OF January
last That IT, the option which before existed Oh
paving its deposters in gold. silver or bank ho'es
expired on that date and creditor oil the Dank
has since had the privilege of demanding COIN In
effect the bank resumed specie payments long before
the lst of January, and paid cOn-either gold OF SIT
yer-to all who preferred II to paper but II the de-
mand for coin had been large, the bank had right
10 tender its notes and its creditors wonld have
been obliged to receive them.
Since the Ist Of January the Bank of France has
also been making an effort to reduce its circulation
by calling in its lOOfranc $500 notes. the object
beng, as it is supposed, to escape the Government
tax of liz francs per 1000 which it now has to pay
upon the volume of its outstanding notes. This pro-
cess does not involve reduction of the circulating
medium of France because coin now in the BANK is
mt into circulation IN the place of every note called
in The bank held in specie. on the 1Sth OF jan
nary nearly 1900 600. 900. on which, OF course II
receives 10 interest If il can put some OF TINS INTO
circulation in the place of it's notes it will save the
tax on those notes.
In redeeminr its notes the bank has the right to
nav either in gold in silver. but silver Is az dis-
count of per cent in the markets OF the world, so
that except for domestic circulation III limited guam
titles there is no demand for it in France. III a
French merchant has balance to pay in England
Germany OF the United States he must ship gold OF
lose I l per cent of the nominal value of his silver.
Az the Bank of France now holds more than 800
600 600 Of full legaltender silver, of which the
vane outside of France land in France too, II 1t is
,lsed for other than domestic transacions is ii per
cent less than gold 10 very natural that the man.
ayers of that institutions, i'll reducing Their crcua-
tjop and having out part of their com, should pre-
fer TO dispose of the silver and keep the gold The
latter win always be worth par no matter what me
futurc monetary policy Of Europe ana America may
be- while the former would have 10 DE disposed oi
at heavy discount If the action OF our tonyress
should force France and her allies in the Lam Mon
etary Union TO abandon the double Standard ana
that is lust what the Bank OF France is now dong
n is substituting silver 5franc pieces for rs ioo-
franc 500 note of which ii proposes TO withdraw
from circulation $10O,0O0,Oo0
II would be natural to suppose that an operation
of this kind would be very popular with all the b.
metallists of France If they were in any respect
like the double-standard men of the United States
who support the Bland Bill. This is policy adopted
by the Bank of France which. if carried out, will
mt into circulation SlOO,Oo0,000 of 5-franc
pieces (' dollars Of the fathers9 make the
peoples money" plenty rc and rSo a alone t%U
have occasion TO use the 10O-franc 500 notes
which it Is proposed to withdraw; but this Is not
the in which the h-metallStS OF France look AT
H. The Chamber of Commerce of Bordeaux when
has been described as a partisan" OF the doupie
standard protests against tins issue OF silver on the
very ground that 1t Will make the mainlenance oi
tbe double standard in France more difficult II not
Impossible. The Chamber III recent letter 10 the
Governor If the bank asks:
whether, i the Bank of France succeeds In snosti-
tuting The % silver which Is not
called ny the public needs 1.-THE Chanher seems TO
lose sight nry OF me se blessings NOT a a nov ha. o
mat cause there WIN result excessive fall
in the OF the metal similar 10 that which has Dee
during recent wears by the decentralization Of
silver Germany. Is 1t not to be feared that LIS new
depreciation Of silver VIII augment the ulhcuiues
with ar, necessarily Involved in the maintenance OF our
b-n"tallic standards
In other words the intelligent merchants of
Bordeaux who are "partsans OF the double
standard protest against the issue of SlOO.OOO,OOO
of silver because they fear that in spite OF the fact
that the French mlnts closed to It's coinage ana
the supply cannot therefore be Increased from
that source the very fact that such an amount was
put into circulation woud destroy the equilibrium,
cause silver to depreciate and make bi-lnetallism
impossible.
But the wise men Of the American Congress pro-
pose 10 adopt tins very same policy, and promise the
people thai It win cause silver to appreciate. and
make doubc-standard money a reality IN tins coun-
try. II there il any truth i'll the old axiom that
like causes produce like effects, large Issue OF sill
yer in the United States would he followed in the
end ny the same ucpfecatl"n lDaJ - iedic" H"h
the same cause IN France. silver has remained sub
stantially az par in the domestic transactions OF
France for two reasons: first, because the
supply wvs cut of by closing the minis
to IIs coinage on private account aud secondly,
because tlcsuplas silver already III circulation went
into the Bank Of France thus relieving the market.
Silver can bee made to circulate at par with gold
the United States in the way and III 40
others-by allowing il TO be coined only for Govern
Inet account in very limited quantities, aud by pro-
yldlng u reservoir where any surplus Will be taken
n; par with gold. But if the owners OF silver bullion
are to control the amount TO be Tsued, ana no pro-
vision is 10 be made for taking The surplus oft the
market the reconciliation of silver Will. in the
cad, result in depreciation rather than apprec alton.
2. l.. W.