Ottumwa weekly courier. (Ottumwa, Wapello County, Iowa) 1872-1899, 1878-01-09
rHey WANT An Nonearp olLAR


rhEY WANT An NonGor DOLLAR.
We believe in every instance where
an Iowa journal has heretofore advo-
Gated retaining gold as the legal stan-
dard Of money-making it the only
legal tender, they have now all yield
ed that point and by inference place
themselves upon the double standard
ground. At least we no longer find
them making single argument for
gold alone as the basis of money.
This is a point gained of immense
value. 1t leaves, indeed, the sub
stance of the whole controversy, so
far as Iowa Journalism is concerned,
settled.
One of the Rothschilds, in the
worlds monetary convention held in
Paris in 1869, said:
"The simultaneous employment of
the two precious metals is salts
factory, and gives rise to no COM
plant. Whether gold or silper domt-
mates for the time being, 1t is a1,cays
true that the too metals concur toqeth-
er an forming the none tary circulation
Of The arorld, and it is the general mass
OF the TWO METALS CONFINED ,chich
SERVES as the measure of the pdlue of
things. THE DESTRUCTION OF SILVER
WOULD AMOUNT TO A vERITABLE DE-
sTRUcTIoN OF VALUES WITHOUT ANY
CONVERSATION"
Ben Butler, in very recent speech
in Boston, said:
"Men cannot do business on a fall
ing market, and they are afraid to try.
The attempt to resume ON gold alone
is causing the perpetual shrinkage in
the value of property, and conse-
quently is enhancing the weight OF
debts. Restoration Of silver % legal
tender will stop the shrinkage and
start prices upward. This would re.
store confidence in future values, and
cause enterprising men to again EN-.
bark in business" Saws Butler
Thereafter it would be known to al
mankind, values would 60 upward
and upward till they near the valu,
OF the labor and material put ints
them. When that comes there viii
come business. No man will build {
ship II he thinks that q month after i
Is made its value will be lessened II
per cent"
That is, these gentlemen settle thu
simple truism that taking away one
half or one-third, as the case may be
of the basis money, viz: silver, we re.
duce by so much the purchasing medi'
UNI ofthe country, and just in that ratio
would decrease the value Of every
mans property; in just such ratio
would it reduce the amount in dollars
that farmers products, the manufac'
turers' goods, the labor of the me.
chanic, or Of any other man would
bring in market, srhile at the same
time there soould not be one title O,
shrinkage in the number Of dollars
represented in the indebtedness ofthe
nation, the state, the county or of the
city and of the individual as we'll,
All this is so plain and presents q
case 30 repugnant that, as we have
said, at this time we understand all
the former gold journals of Iowa to
have abandoned the discussion upon
the question Is to whether there
should be . single or double standard
| We repeat then that the substance
of the difference at the opening Of
the discussion some few weeks ago
has dropped out by the gold Journal
apparently being forced to yield
They have not done SO gracefully
however, for now the gist of theil
whole argument is, give us an homes
silver dollar, and not one worth only
81 cents. Well, our opponents ough
not to be deprived of having one lit
tie corner of the battlefield, from
which they may keep up kind o.
skirmish fire rs show of pluck. Ii
comparison with the main question
this latter Is mere bagatelle. Will,
we admit, however, the minor i'm
, portance Of this last issue, we ar,
| just as sanguine that the position W,
T have assumed upon it is correct, a
was that taken by US on the other.
Three hundred and seventy-one ant
} fourth grains of pure silver ha
: been always the amount contained il
a silver dollar since the governmen
q made such coin. 1t was never chang
3 cd in weight save in the amount Q
: alloy used and this was always tn
unit of money in this nation down t
e 1873. The grains of pure gold in tn
: gold dollar has been changed, AM
this shows conclusively the fact tina
silver was the select metal of the ma
ton, the regulating standard, regula
ting gold itself. 1t is now worth on
ly 81 or 80 cents, because it is debase,
in this country, as is iron, made
an article of commerce.
The real genuine difference thel
between ourselves and the fellow
who cries aloud 80 Unfortunately 70
an honest dollar of silver and no
one Of 81 cents, is that he woul,
make the standard of value betwee
gold and silver what it now is, Will
we would not; that is he would max
it what it is when gold is the fostered
petted, only legal money, go made sur
reptitiously, and silver is the despised
dishonored article of commerce
and so cheapened, as we firmly be
!, lieve, by over riding the plain and I'M
questionably fair construction of tn
Federal Constitution. Why, is Their
man so simple as not to know tbs
Q fixing the comparative value be
= tween gold and silver for coinag,
Y while the former is the only legal ter
Il and the other is mere bullion, woul
J.. Inecessitate an immediate revision {