Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1878-12-18
The Dollar of Our Daddies,

Mr.. Willard answers my query just as
| expeoled-just as any honest and intelli-
gent public man would answer it, and
therefore inst as no politician of the ordi-
nary stripe could be made to answer it.
1t is plain to see why Mr.. Willard is not
now, as he ought to be, using his states
manlike abilities to the honor of Vermont
and the good of the nation at Washing
ton. He is too "cold-blooded,"-h will
not lie for his party.
/ did not mean to convey the idea that
the cases Of the greenback and the silver
dollar were exactly alike, but that the
credit and honor of the nation were behind
each of them, to sustain their value. The
greenback has been greatly deprecated;
the silver dollar may, by evil legislation,
be somewhat deprecated; that is, to the
extent of its deficient value as bullion.
But as yet il is not deprecated cent. No
one has ever lost anything by it. You
cannot buy the silver dollars for gold at
even the one-eighth discount that still at
taches to greenbacks. Every politician
and every political editor knows this, Cor
ought ;o,) and yet they have kept up this
howl of dishonesty and fraud until nearly
all the citizens of New England believe
that some great wrong has been done,
while the innocent clergymen have been
beguled into diatribes in behalf of what
is mere vulgar, dishonest party cry-ne
Sutor ultra crepidam. A minister rarely
handles political question without
making an ass of himself
Please allow me to state the plain, indis-
putable facts about this silver dollar qres-
lion. For years, indeed for nearly the
whole time up to 1878, our silver dollar
(of the same weight rs the present dolla)
was worth more. us bullion, than the gold
dollar, and for that reason could never be
kept in circulation, because it was bought
up for melting as fast as it was issued.
Nothing was said, all that time, about the
dishonesty of gold dollars. probably be-
cause the politicians could make no party
capital out of such cry.
A few years ago bill was passed
through congress so quietly that many
members declare they knew nothing about
it, demonetizing the silver dollar. Last
winter the subject was brought up, and
restored the silver dollar to its
position rs lawful money, without change
of weight. Then arose the cry of dishon-
rsty, although the silver dollars were not
forced upon any one, and were declared
10 be receivable for all debts due the gov
which issued them, and thus
placed above greenbacks in current value.
Now the writer of this is not in favor of
money made of two different metals, at
least with no provision to keep them equal
In purchasing value. He doubts if there
is any real difference on this point among
intelligent people. He supposes and be-
Iieyes that we shall all agree, in case the
present depression in the price of silver
bullion continues, that our silver dollar
shall be made thicker, or that the produc-
tiou of it shall be limited to an amount
that can be kept at par, either under the
present law Or some other, like the one
recently proposed by Mr.. Hewitt of New
York. But he does protest against this
senselcss cry OF dishonesty, this false
charge against our government of "petty
larceny" He thinks if it were not gen
orally held to be the duty of editors to tell
any lie that would heI lip the party they
support, our government would not have
been held up to the world rs swinGling its
people by debasing its money, when it is
not the fact. The decline in the value of
silver is recent and unprecedented. Its
continuance and amount is uncertain.
Meanwhile the people, large number of
Them at least, and perhaps majority, de-
manded the restoration of the silver dollar,
some trick in its demonetiza-
ton. Congress yielded to the demand,
and restored the silver dollar unchanged.
Silver then was at eight per cent discount
compared with gold, and nobody knew
whether it would 60 up or down. Ii was
no time to fix Il new ratio between the two
metals. Since then silver has further de-
elned, but nobody can yet say that it has
reached Il point where it will stay. If the
weight of the dollar should now be made
to correspond with the present market
plice Of silver, in six months dollar may
become worth a dollar and ten cents as
bullion. Who then will start the cry about
the "petty larceny" gold dollarsP Any
dirty politician would do it quick enough,
if he thought he could make capital"
that way. But meantime the value of the
silver dollar as money is preserved on u
par with gold under the provisions of the
law under which it was coined. 1t is an
honest dollar, and | think we can trust
congress to keep it SO, either by increasing
its weight if necessary, or by making it
interchangeable ut the treasury for the
gold dollar
Yours for the truth, eren in politics,
LAYMAN.