The Cincinnati daily star. [volume] ([Cincinnati, Ohio]) 1875-1880, 1878-08-01

either case they must pay for the coin.
The Treasury does not make them a
present of it; and they may not desire to
buy it in advance. This tsunt is there
fore as idle and foolish as the former.
The same class of objectors sneer at the
arrangement commonly called "coin GER
tifcates;" and affirm that it is only by
such certificates that silver coin circu-
lates in any large amounts. Wepresume
this is true. And it is. just as true of
gold as it is of silver. Gold certificates
have long been in common use among
merchants handling heavy amounts,
and silver certificates are now employed
in precisely the same manner. Why,
then, sneer at the silver coin certificate
and applaud the gold certificate? Their
functions are precisely the same.
In fact, these coin certificates are be-
coming a species of currency in CONNER
cial transactions; and currency of the
safest and most acceptable kind, as it is
based upon full equivalent of coin. A
man may make his depoSite in the Uni
ted States Treasury of $1,000 or $4,000
of gold, and receives therefor a certifi
cate of such deposite, and payable to the
holder on the presentation of such certifi
cate. 1t may pass from hand to hand in
gold payments, each holder knowing that
the Government has the coin for its pay
ment, dollar for dollar, ready in the
Treasury vaults The same is now true
Of silver. There can be no safer nor
more convenient circula,.on invented
Then why carp and sneer at "silver GER
tifcates'' as something unique and incon-
venient, when gold certificates serve ex-
actly the same purpose?
Not only are those anti-silver sages
mistaken in their facts as to current his
tory, but they were equally unfortunate
i'll the department Of prophecy. Before
the passage of the reconciliation act,
they were agonized with auguries of evil,
if silver should be restored to its former
position in our monetary system. Their
particular terror and lamentation con-
sisted i'll the certain departure of all our
gold from the country to make way for
the "inferior currency" of silver. The
oracle of the gold bugs, Cernushi, in his
celebrated letter of November, 1877,
said "All theynew silver of Nevada and
the old silver of Germany would be
brought to the American Mint for coin
age, and all the gold would be exported
from America to Europe"
All these calamities were to occur
should the Silver Bill pass Well, the
Silver Bill was passed, and not one OF
them occurred. The prediction utterly
failed. The new Nevada silver took its
usual course to markets. There was NJ
cold silver of Germany" to spare fol
American coinage. Gold did not flow
from America to Europe On the con
trary, the balance of trade in our favo
has been bringing about $l60, 100000 o
gold annually from Europe to America
until we have now a greater accumula
tion of gold in the country than eve
was had before in all our history.
1t thus appearing that these men, whc
set themselves up as the oracles of financ'
and assumed to both dictate to and de
ride the West, were false prophets as wei
as unfaithful historians, it would be nj
more than sensible modesty on thei
part to refrain from further taunts ant
sneers concerning matters as to whicl
their zeal has so vastly outrun thei
knowledge.