The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1879-11-22
BIMETALLISM.

There has been quite furry among the
gold standard devotees in England on accoun,
of the desertion Of their ranks by Mr.. Henry
ii. Gibbs, for years one OF the leading advo
Gates of monometallism, or the exclusive gold
standard Mr.. Gibbs on account of his de
cided views on the subject, was chosen by the
| British government as one of the commission.
ers to meet those of the United States and 9th
or nations in the famous silver conference OF
Paris year ago; and it was mainly through
his determined opposition to silver that that
conference failed to come to any agreement.
He now issues pamphlet in which he annoua
ces that closer investigation and more careful
thought since the conference have convinced
him that he was in error and that he has com
plctcly changed his views on the subject. To
the principal objections to the double stand,
ard which he urged at Paris and by which the
conference was governed, Mr.. Gibbs now re-
Plies in substance as follows:
l. To the objection that 1t Is impossible to
regulate by legislation the value of any com.
modify, he replies that money is not com
modify, but a measure of commodities; that
the consent of the people or the authority of
the prince can give an eXchangeablc value
even to worthless paper,
2. 1t does not necessarily follow that the
cheaper OF the two metals would remain in,
while the dearcr would be exported from, the
country; because, if the commercial nations
should unite on II standard or ratio of values,
there would be no place for 1t to 90, being of
equal value in all countries.
= Suph n ~ 10 ipnppcai1lp Eropnn
Italy, Austria, and the United States, would AS
suredly make no difficulty. Germany is be
ginning to wavcr, and could doubtless be
made to see her advantage IN IL, and if Eng
land would set the negotiation on foot the con-
sent of all would speedily follow.
A. To the objection that there will always be
a preference for gold, he answers that half the
world has now preference for silver. In point
of fact, it is not cheaper to transport gold than
1t is to transmit silver, the freight and Insur-
ance being advalorem, and the same for either"
D. To the objection that any new discoveries
of silver would dangerously disturb prices, he
replies that the dangers resulting from an in
crease of silver would be no greater than the
danger to mono-metallic countries of an in.
crease IN the production of gold, and as this
risk is now incurred without serious appre-
henslon, the other might well be. what Is it
that has caused the fall IN the price of silvery
Decentralization almost wholly, and rcmone-
tization would surely raise it again to its for
mer level"
And so on. The truth is that there is no
greater folly in the world than the opposition
of England to silver. OF all nations, she Is
the one that ought most strcnuously to advo
cate the double standard. Two thirds of her
foreign trade is with silver countries, and the
depreciation of silver has almost ruined her
vast dependencies in India. The only reason
why England is not today thoroughly devoted
TO blmetalIsm is the fact that her great capt.
talists hold sush vast amounts of government
and other bonds, payable in gold, which bonds,
by the constant appreciation of gold, are as
steadily increasing in value, and though the
trade and commerce of the country may be
ruined, so predominant is the influence of these
money lords, that in their selfish greed they
have little concern how much the commerce
or industries OF the country suffer so long as
the rise In gold continues TO add to the pie
thora of their own Golfers.