New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1884-04-15
Insults or INFLATION and DEPRECTA
TON
TO the Edifor me rrtbune.

To the razor Of me TFtbNne.
SIR: Apropos of what you and your CORE
spOndents have been lately writing about the produce
markets, permit TO point out what is think, the
OF the trouble and which seems to have 81
capcd attention hitherto No law orpolitical economy Is
better established than thai when mnunity NEEDLES
with the currency, and unscttes the measure and
standard value invites dsa to ts business inter
IL apparent that confidence must be Immediately
impaired future contracts avoided Men OF business
bring their affairs into the closest possible compass and
capital refuses to DC tempted into any new enterprise.
! stagnation follows This is what we to-day the
result Of the Silver bill But its effects tho great law
OF supply and demand BY the steady in
hation Of the circulating medium to the extent of two
millions per month spectators have been enabled TO
carry loads OF grain and petroleum for the past
year. far above their relative values BY doing not
only have they shut themselves out Of the foreign
markets but they have made those markets look to other
sources Of supply. Hence the wheat Of India and the
| petroleum of Russia taking the place OF the
American articles When channels OF trade are well
established il is difficult for the old to recover their
lost ground. Nothing to-day Is more menacing to the
prosperity this country than the fact that we have lost
control OF the wheat markets of Europe
Sacnation Mt the Stock Exchange results from this
same Interference with the laws OF trade by steady
imitation money has become so abnormaly cheap that
securities are carried WITHOUT reference to values.
Every one familiar with the street knows that legitimate
trading AT an end The cques hold their bits OF paper
M their own valuations, and until they Set tIed anu
drop their cards no ono else will take hand IN tne
game This IS very detrimental 20 the genera aa
Of the country, because capitalists ~ noie any Io
appreciate the situation Thoroughly anu tley WIi lvso
their money unemployed until The lheHl taDle m
takes Mace Her ce stagnaiiOn and distress among the
mills and factories, and hard times everywhere ~
This wretched silver business a'o ADDS 10 the timldly
of capitalists by making them fear the effect uDon the
bank reserves of finally reaching silver basis
%aenrc 6e baniny reserve Of gold will he seriously
reduced loans consequently called In and discounts re
/ trust have made myself clear When legislated
steady imitation ana depreciation OF the currency ny
this silver bill. violated the laws OF morals ana 81
& 'iG, t And onr rooe have vet TO learn Ly
bitter experience in;smuch they won't learn IRON
hl>torytha these laws ae - certain IN the'r &cton In
Nelc-I 0rh. March 81 1851 ABRAHAM MILLS
The thought clearly expressed by Mr. Mills is not
new to readers of The ThBCNE but none the less
deserves constant repetition if perchance it may
thereby wear its way into the heads of some So
called statesmen The TRIBUNE has many times
urged that the initiation of currency produced by
the Silver act and by the act authorizing the Issue
of gold certificates also. has been primo cause OF
the excessive and mschieyOus speculation OF the
past few years; that this speculation. by hXIng
artificial prices upon products in utter disregard
of natural conditions of supply and demand. had
brought upon us loss of foreign markets for our
products decrease Of exports congestion IN all the
principal home markets, accumulation OF al uilSolu
surplus and unnatural depression of prices, and
thus bya law which cannot be long evaded. en-
barrassment of productive industries But Mr.
Mills conceives that the same cause has operated TO
produce stagnatiOn IN the Stock Exchange, and puts
the reasons for that belief very forcbly.
Too much money aud too much wheat stand
to each other N the relation of cause aud effect. Ii
| Western farmers could the facts rs they are,
they would be inclined TO scalp about half their
members of Congress who have voted often for in
1aton in various forms-and to bchead the rest. But
it still appears to II great many Western people that
! times would somehow be a great deal better they
| could only have more money" Until prolonged
and sad experience has taught them better, we
must even make the best Of things.
Eastern people are in some measure responsible
for the tenacity of this popular error. When com
batting innation and struggling hard to maintain
the honor of the Nation and the prosperity of the
country Eastern people often carelessly urged that
| initiation could do no harm if the money were
coin" y; that it might we'll enough be blessing TO
| have more money If only 1t good money, and
the like There was an error here, as painful eX
perience is teaching us. That we can have too much
silver is evident; that too much paper based
upon" silver or even upon gold, is surely harm
! full as too much paper based upon the faith and
resources of the Nation" we are slowly learning.
Ultimately we may be able to rise to oOmpre-
hensIon of the fact that too much gold is also mis-
chievous. But that particular form of evil we are
taking care to put far from at present.