The weekly democratic statesman. [volume] (Austin, Tex.) 1871-1883, 1881-04-28
THE MONETARY CONFERENCES.


The monetary conference now as
sembled in Paris, has for its object
an uniform international basis of
coinage. How far the conference
may go it is impossible to tell. The
conference of .l67S resolved that the
use of both gold and silver rs money
is desirable, but decided that each
nation should beleft TO fix the ratio
of silver to gold to suit itself. Thera-
ito in the states of the Latin union is
now 15,5 silver to ! gold, and coinage
is stopped for a period extending TO
January I, 1886. The ratio in the
United States is 16 silver to gold.
The proposition to be carried into
the conference is that uniform ra-
ito be established and maintained
until 1900, and longer if the parties
to the agreement consent. The
Philadelphia Times reviews the his
tory of bi-metalism in this coun-
try. and insists that nothing
definite is proven by it:
There has been no real trial of the
double standard. While there has
been free coinage of gold there has
been limited coinage of silver, and
more than that, the law giving the
standard dollar lis legal-tender
quality has been on the statute
book too short time for the ques-
ton of bi-metalism to have been
either demonstrated or disproved.
Silver actually circulates and there
is no unnatural imitation of prices
such as generally accompanies the
! circulation of currency cheaper
than the almost universally accepted
standard-gold. Nevertheless, there
has been some proof of the truth of
the old theories concerning two
unequal standards. Silver in
large quantities is stored in
the vaults of the Treasury, but has
largely come into circulation through
the issue of paper silver certificates,
and where these and the silver dol
lars have gone every other form of
currency has become comparatively
scarce, and nowhere more so than in
Philadelphia. 1t is as well as dem
onstrated that tho two metals can
not exist together as standards of
value except by the concurrence of
all the commercial countries of the
world. Even then it would be a.
double experiment. for there can be
no question of the statement that
silver f1uctuates more or less viO-
lently. and that no matter what ratio
between it and gold might be detem-
ined on it would soon cease to indi-
cate the real difference between them
There seems to be no other way out
of the difficulty except to regulate
the production in some way, and
that of course would be an impossi-
bility. But with Great Britain
standing out and refusing 10 have
anything to do with the proposed
arrangement, the conference seems
| to be a sort of useless performance.
Great Britain is certainly as much
| interested in the silver question as
any country of the world. Silver is
the money of India, and the almost
universal characterization of sill.
yer was a great embarrassment to
English merchants by reason of the
consequent disturbances in the rates
of axchange between the eastern
colony and the home country. OF
course her policy would be to en-
courage any proposed increased
value OF the silver coinage of the
world, IL would be a great benefit
to those CT the subjects of the Queen
who trade with India. But in her
relations with other commercial ma
Ltions, England would not be in the
same position. She would be the
one single standard country, and
would make the experiment of all
the others failure. .... -.