The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1884-12-11
THE SILVER DOLLAR.

Mr.. Buckner's Reasons for Asking that Its
Coinage BE Stopped.
WASHINGTON. Dec l0.-At a meeting of the
House committee coinage, weights and
measures, to-day, Mr.. Buckner gave his reasons
for introducing the bill to stop the coinage of
silver. Chairman Bland was absent, being
detained at his home in Missouri, by the dan
gerous illness of his daughter. Mr.. Buckner
said:
''The introduction of the bill was not mat
ter of sudden impulse l talked with friends
during the first session of Congress about the
propriety of introducing it. They said some
thing ought to be done. The present admins
tration if not hostile, is careless about silver.
There seems to be no hope of its doing any,
thing. The new administration may take
more earnest interest 1t is evident the
time has come when this government ought to
act decisively, and the question to decide
is. whether we are to have bi-metalism or mono
netallism. Foreign countries have taken uPpS Ihe
question. Holland has large portion of silver
and has gone into the market for gold. Italy re-
quires her banks to keep two thirds of their re-
serve in gold. We are interested in silver as a
product. We are still more interested in having
bi metallisn. which was esta ablished bv our fore
fathers. This bill is the interest of b metalsm.
| have said that four ffths of the people of the
United States want bi-metall;sm, and the only
difference between us is as to the means to bring
it about, There are only few who are mono
metaists. By the time this bill might pass we
will have $500, 600, 900 in silver under
the terms OF the Bland bill. coin
ing $4,000 600 month. One object of
the Bland bill was to keep up the market
value of silver. In England a strong party of
able men has said that hi metallism must be es-
tablished among all commercial nations, or bad
results will follow. We ought to regard the
opinions of the mem who are with us this
question You have an economic phenomenon
in the fall and decline of all commodities with
out exception. Some say this is caused by
overproduct;on in our protective country, but it
are declining because of the new demands for
gold, its diminished production, and the in
creased use of this metal in the arts and manu-
factures, and have but little doubt that this re-
lance on gold measure of values is one
of the potent causes of the decline in the value
of American commodities and that it will con
tinue to be so long as gold is the sole standard
value of the great commercial countries of the
world We will have to go to mono metalli SIN
in silver and gola unless something is done to
bring Europe to realize the danger of relying on
one metal Ii England does nothing we may
have 10 rely ON free coinage and have silver
no-metal lh1B The men interested in silver
mines demand that we have free coinage of gold
alone, believe it is better to have free coinage"
"What will be the effect of the passage of
your billP asked q member of the committee.
Its immediate effect will cause some decline
in the relative price of silver This will only be
temporary, if we can succeed in urging the
nations of Europe to join with us in using both
metals IN trade England with its silver using