Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1885-03-02
THESILVERMEN ANSWER.
FIGURES SHOWING SHVER,5
PLACE IN THE CURRENCY.

Its Proportion in England and France
Compared with This Countrywide
silver Men Charge Mr.. Cleveland
with contradiction - IahpOssibIe for
the Banks to Withdraw God from
/ Circulation.
WAsHINGTON, March 1.-The friends
OF silver in the House of Representatives,
/ while at first inclined to make a formal
reply to the letter of President-elect
1 Cleveland since it has been given to the
/ public, decided at conferences held this
evening TO reply openly to the parts of
the letter with which they do not agree.
/ They say they did not invite the contro-
/ vegsy, but, on the contrary. were anxious
| to avoid it. They also say it was not until
| 1t had become known that determined
/ effort was being made to induce the Presl-
/ dent-elect to commit himself and his ad-
ministratiOn in advance to the gold side
/ OF the currency question that they de-
! clded merely to ask him not to commit
I himself till his Cabinet was formed and
! both sides of the question could be con-
sidered. They proposed at frs to send a
delegation TO present their views
| TO him, but after communicating
with him, at his suggestion they sent
paper signed by nearly one hundred
members of the present Congress and
members elect TO the next Congress. No
reply was necessary, they assert, and
none was expected. They further say
that while regretting the step the Presi-
dent-elect has taken in advance of his in
auguratiOn and OF the formation of his
Cabinet, they do not propose to have q
controversy unless it is forced upon them.
They believe, however. in the indepen-
dence Of the legislative branch of the
government, and assert that they will at
all times maintain it. They furnish the
following as statement OF their views:
In the letter distinction is made be-
| tween silver coinage and silver bullion.
" hlle II Is true that silver bullion, which is
excluded from coinage, and cOnzeuuently
from monetary use, is worth less I'm the ratio
Of is to y than IS per cent. of the gold dollars
silver coins which are admitted to monetary
use the same as gold are equal in value 10 the
gold coin. The silver dollar will exchange
for as much As the gold dollar. 1t will even
buy the gold with which the gold dollar may
be made. France, with population Of 3d.
UOO,OOO and a territory not as large
95o as ooo Texas, has in circulation .o $500 500
OOOin gold, while we have but $500. .00O0 coo
of full tender silver to our $500 GOO OO0 of gold
Altogether Of l,309,00j,000 of silver coins IA
ratio of ljl5 to Il are held in circulation in
Europe side by side with $1,000, O00, 600 Of gold.
OF paper and silver together, including the
silver certificates, we have less tnan $3.50 co.,,
tUU, Wulcu SHOWS lndJ IN LulS country tnere Is
more gold than paper, and nearly three times
as much gold as silver.
With this proportion in our currency, and
with gold and silver equally fun tender for
everything, 1t Is difficult to understand why
the Secretary of the Treasury might not, ifhe
chose to do so, pay out more silver and less
gold. of course, if, while receiving into the
Treasury Of the United States. notes.
silver and silver certificates, gold or
gold certificates, he pays out only gold.
| his stock OF gold would diminish. IT, on the
| other hand, he should pay out more silver and
| paper and less gold, the character OF the re
| serve in the Treasury would change. IN
other words. this Is q matter entirely under
control OF the Secretary of the Treasury.
/ There would be no need of legal tender il
/ the one who receives the money be permitted
| to choose the kind he VIII have. That silver
and silver certificates dispiace gold Is true,
/ but only as treasury or bank notes dlsplaCe
| Il. The withdrawal OF Sl00,00o,O0O of bank
notes or the issuance of $lO0.0000G0 has the
| same effect on gold as 50 much in silver
been proposed to withdraw national bank
notes as means of preventing the expulsion
Of gOldy To the proposition that there now
| exists, or ever has existed under our cOnsti-
tuition, obligations specifically PAYABLE in
gold, the silver men feel it their solemn duty
to enter their most emphatic dissent at the
very outset OF the discussion of the question.
No such obligations exist, or ever did exist.
Webster said, Gold ard silver at the rates
liked by Congress constitute the legal stand
ard of value IN this cOuntry. and neither Con-
any other standard or to displace this"
The act to strengthen the public credit. ap-
proved March Is. 1869, solemnly pledged
the United states to the payment of bonus in
coin. The refundlng act OF July Il, 1870 pro-
vided for the payment Of all refunding bonds
in coin of the thea present standard of value,
which II the same as the present value. The
resumption act of Jan. II, l-75, provided that
from and after the first day of January,
1873, the Secretary Of the Treasury should
redeem 'in coin" the outstanding
legal tender notes. By the acts of Feb. 2s.
1875, providing for the resumption Of coinage
of the standard dOllir, silver dollars were
made q legal tender "for all debts and dues,
public and private, unless otherwise specially
stipulated in the contract" and there is not
a public obligation outstanding and never
was cont aiming 4 stipulation for the payment
Oi gold. In January, 1873. Congress adopted
the following concurrent resolution offered 10y
Stanley Matthews, then Senator, now on the
Supreme bench:
THAT all bonds Of the United States issued
or authorized 10 be issued under said acts of
Congress hereinbefore rtcited are payable.
principal and interest, at the option of the
Government of the United states in silver dol
lars of the coinage Of the United States. con-
tanning 4l215 grains each Of standard silver.
and that to restore to its coinage such silver
coins as legal tender in payment of said bonds
principal and interest, is not in violation Of
the public faith nor in derOgatIOn OF the rights
of the public creditors"
The opini ms of the Secretary of the Treas-
ury frOm 1878 down are referred to as
authority The opinions of the Secretary
are valuable when supported by facts and
sound reason. but ought not to control unless
they are. 1t cannot be forgotten. however. that
these same Secretaries have teadily pretIct-
ed what has not taken Tlace. he frends
of silver concur IN the opinion that II Is most
fesira bic ito maintain and continue in use
the mass of our gold coin as well as the mass
OF silver already coined" They agree. too.
that NJ Is OF "momentOus Importance to pre-
vent coin Of the two metals from parting com
pany:" but the two metals have already part
Ell company under the influence of silver
decentralization in other countries and the
hostility of the Treasure and banks to silver
in this. But that the continued
coinage of silver at the rate OF s-S.009,00O a
year will drive gold out Of circulation In the
near future, or force it to a premium, does
not to them seem TO be sustained by facts
sound reasoning. The total volume of cur
rency in the United States outside of gold is
less than S75O.OO0,c0O. 1t is believed TO be a
principle of economic science perfectly well
settled that if volume Of S75l,0O0,000 is not
sufficient in itself 10 maintain prices
in this country at the level of inter
national prices. then gold will come here
and sfav here in sufficient amount to make
with the volume already in circulation, what
Will constitute our distributive share OF the
worlds money as determined by our inter
national trade. That $15t,OOO,OO0 Is not
sufficient volume to maintain prices at the
worlds level of prices is Evidenced by the
fact that 500 100000 of gold, a considerable
part OF VIII ch at least is in circulation either
in the form of coin or certificates, now stays
here. and It will 90 away only when prices
become lower elsewhere than they are here.
II Is believed therefore, that no such crisis
a. has been fOreboded can Overtake US under
existing conditions. 1t IS not believed to be
in the power OF all the banks in this country.
even il they were so disposed, to take gold
out of circulation and b. ld il for any length
of time at a premium. They must first lock
up the worlds money and arrest the worlds
commerce Nor can paper, or silver, or silver
certificates now in circulation side by side
with gold, eXpel gold. cold cen be expelled
only by forcing into circulation, in addition
to the $3.50 900, either silver or paper equal
to the entire volume of gold now IN circula-
tiOn. In that manner, under Mr.. Greshams
law. gold might be expelled, and probably
would be. 1t is doubtless
true, too. that if the population and wea th in
this country were at a stand. then the con-
tinued coinage Of silver in sufficient volume
would in time eXpel gold from circulation.
But as long as the population and wealth go
on increasing, then the conditions OF the prob
lem a re changed. In tacJ In Oruer 10 pre-
serve a stable ratio between the money vol
ume and population and wealth, an annual
increase of not less than $4,000, 900 OF currency
of some kind Is now required. In other
words, the increase Of population and wealth
calls for an additiCn to our circulation OF at
least $40, ,0OO,0a0 year. II, ghile these con-
ditions continue. silver is coined at the rate Of
only S2S, 100000 year, there is left still con-
siderable void to be filed with gold This is
the reason why gold has increased in the
country steadily since the act of 1879 was
passed ana w6y oo5 god durn mas inc increased
wear, and IS now increasing at the rate of
nearly 100000 a month. Notwithstanding
the depression Of business IN the country, and
as matter of fact there is to-day more gold
IN the country than there ever was before IN
its whole history.
Another iaet IS that the $4,000, 900 of gold in
the Treasury was put there in exchange f r
silver certificates. The immediate effect of
stopping the coinage of silver must necessa-
rllv be to lower the price of silver bullion
and gradually to appreciate the value of gold
ha Of