The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1885-11-02
Mr.. WARMERS SILVER SCHEME.
The Author Points Out IT'S Favorable Points
and Answers the Arguments Of Directors.

CHICAGO, Nov 1.-After the regular monthly
banquet of the Chicago Commercial Club, last
night, the Warner bill was discussed Congress
man Warner, of Ohio, who had been invited to
be present. was absent but he sent full state
ment. or explanation, of his views, which was
read to the gathering by Mr.. Mccarthy, of Chi
cago. Mr.. Warner held that the silver issue at
this time presented two distinct phases. First.
the movement to practically demonetize silver
by excluding the product of silver mines from
the money supply in the future. and reduc-
ing existing coinage to the condition of
subsidiary money, and, second, the fact being
recognized that there has been a disturbance in
the relative value of gold and silver that neither
the European coinage ratio of 153 nor our ratio
of 16 to any longer represents the commercial
ratio between them the question arises, is it de-
srable to attempt to readjust the money use of
these two metals to their commercial! ratio9 And
if so, how can this best be done This. he said
was the phase of the question which b-metal-
ists especially, are called upon to consider. It
was with view to such an adjustment, the
writer says, that be submitted plan, some time
ago. to make the use of silver as money
conform, through paper representatives,
to the actual commercial ratio between
the two metals throughout the world,
and he announced at the outset that the main
object of his present paper was to reply to criti-
cisms on the proposed bill. and to explain more
fully some OF its provisions. He said that much
of the opposition to the Bland act, as shown by
| recent discussions through the press, manifestly
arose from the continuance of silver as money
under any conditions. and he asserted that the
absolute repeal of the Bland act would be the
last of silver. No one needed to be told that if
the mint demand for So, 000, 900 worth of silver
per month is shut off, silver would
fail. Repeal the Bland act, and put the
United States the side of gold standard
countries and England, to protect the rupee from
the fall that must otherwise ensue following the
example of the Latin Union after silver was de-
monetized In Germany, would close the mints of
Calcutta and Bombay. What then would be the
bullion value of the silver dollar, as measured
end would be such separation of the two metals
that we could never hope to see them again
united as equal money metals Could anybody
suppose for moment, he asked, that the
mass of metallic money could be reduced
from the two metals to one-from $500 600 900
of the two or thereabouts, to So, 600. 000 900 of
the one, wsehout destroying all equitable rela-
tons between man and man, labor and capital
property and debts2 It was hard to believe that
| Christian men could deliberately plot schemes
of speculation as vast and wicked as were in
volved in this movement
Three ways for the change to be made are ad
unlimited coinage on thespresent ratio; changing
the coinage ratio to conform more nearly to the
present commercial ratio and coin silver as free
ly as gold; and the suspension of coinage on the
present ratio, and the issuing of certificates
or stamped bullion at it's market price
at the time of deposit. Regarding the most pop
ular objections to the certificate plan, he denied,
in the first place. that the certificate plan would
be unconstitutional because the power of the
Constitution to make treasury certificates
ceivable and payable by the government had al
| ways been admitted. The New York Tribune
and other journals had vehemently denounced
the measure as an imitation scheme. A sufficient
| answer ought to be that imitation by metallic
money, on a ratio common to the world. is as
| impossible as imitation by gold alone. If silver
| is rated no higher here than in other parts of
| the world, it will no accumulate
| here than will gold. The New York Her
aids interviews with bankers throughout the
country correctly represent them. The writer
| said, in conclusion, the c lntry ought to be
| convinced that because one was a banker, it no
| more followed that he understood the science
| of money than that one who operated telegraph
| instrument understood the dYnamics of elec
| tricity, or that one who bought and sold wheat
| thereby came to understand the chemistry of
| agriculture. AS long as the issue was repeal
without compromise, the result of congressional
action on the bill wonld not be doubtful; but when
| the country was ready for such a readjustment
| of the metals as would keep them from parting
| company the writer believed that bi-metallists
generally would cooperate to gain that end.