The weekly Union times. [volume] (Union C.H., South Carolina) 1871-1894, 1879-08-22


employ labor, and in that way relieve tn,
pressure of the times"
'ls it your opinion that it would bav.
that cffcct?"
"No, not to any appreciaLle degree.
believe that business will revive more sure
~, perhaps somewhat more slowly, and reach
Il normal condition more certainly-that
prosperity will be restored in all parts of the
country upon moro substantial and health
ful and permanent basis if the. finances
should be let alone, (save one change in the
system which l c:uld suggest than by in
cessant tinkerinS, and the preparation of Fl.
nancial nostrumss sat each. session Of Con
grcss. Money is the most tinid and couser.
vative of all tho elements and instrumental.
itles OF business, and requires to be placed
upon hrm and certain basis, and then to
discharge Its proper functions. Those who
arc demanding more money, an imitation of
the currency by the unlimited free coinage
OF silver, the issue of more greenbacks and
such temporary makeshitts, will not accom-.
pllsh what they desire, until one and only
one, very Important change shall have been
made in our financial system. In the sill.
ver war both parties are fighting at shod-
ow, and l should be tempted to read the
Comedy of Errors to some of my political
friends, who have gone daft on The silver
question, if were not afraid of giving Of
fence"
"What is the change which you would
suggest ?".
| "Aboltsh hc national banks, and rcpeal
Me ten per cent. tar on the issues Of State
banhs and the financial problem will be
solved, in my Judgement"
'ln what way would that benefit the
country?"
"ln more ways than shall be able to
indicate at prescnt. One thing, think, is
clearly demohstrable, that the unlimited
free coinage Of silver will benefit no class
of people other than the bullion spectators.
They would make fifteen cents on the dol.
lar at the present value Of bullion on every
dollar coined, and men like you and would
have that fifteen cents to pay, and in an
operation OF two or three hundred millions
1t would amount to something. Silver bull
lion from all parts OF the world would food
the mnts. Every governments with sur
plus would unload on US, drive out gold,
derange bnsipess, and whore iszSg
IRheH coinadz - 3i {6cketsy
| Not at all, but into national banks 10 stie
| commercial centres. Aud how are we to
get it out? No easier than we can now
set money, and no more readily if there
were two thousand millions Of silver coined
in the next six months. Abolish the ma
tional banks, 50 that money can be more
properly distributed for the benefit of the
whole people, and then the loosening of the
tloodgates of silver coin would not do so
much damage. But turing in an increased
volume into the old currents would not ben
eft the people at large. You must first
eradicate the evils of the system, before
attempting to build it up to healthy, Wig,
orous growth, by administering stimulants.
"Who in Congress is responsible for the
agitation Of the silver question ?" =.
"The Western men, in great meassure.-
""eS are more largely in debt, 1 believe,
than We are, and the shrinkage Of values
and reduced price Of their products, Ga re.
suit which succeeds the feyorish, spccula-
tive character Of values after great war
such as ours, as inevitably as day follows
might've have felt il keenly at the South, J
has diminished their capacity to pay, and
they naturally clamor for something for
| iViici. lhCfc 10 SIcut iOICc III tuclr uppcalS,
but, in my humble opinion, they are not
pursuing the effective course to ovcrcoms
the difficulties which environ US. You see,
it is SO plausible to say, as most of the free
coinage men do say, chat silver has been
degraded, and ought to be restored to the
position it occupied before the war; 'that
it is the peoples money and they want it,
that it was the dollar of our daddies,' &C.,
&c. Now this all seems very fair and rea-
sonable and proper, but those who claim,
this for silver, forget, or overlook, the
changed condition in the commercial world
In the ten years intervening between the
years 1852 and 1862, the annual average
production of silver throughout the world
was estimated to be only from forty to forty.
five millions of dollars, and very little of this
from American mines. Whereas in 1875
the aggregate production throughout the
world is estimated TO have been seventy
five millions Of dollars. Silver has depre
ciated much more than degraded in value,
owuing.to the large additional supply pro
duced by the American mines in recent
years. The entire revenues of Indian are
now collected in silver, and l commend t.
the extreme silver men the experience OF
, the Indian Government Of late years b,
reason Of it, She lost in exchanges in on,
| Gig nnn non l~...s.f - 4