The Indianapolis sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis, Ind.) 1880-1904, 1885-04-01
THE SILVER QUESTION.
A Mastery and Entertaining Discussion
by Hon. a. a. Reeve.

| Of compulsory coinage of the "busSard sill.
| yer dollar" made by an able lawyer aud
| prominent writer on political subjects and
he IL an ardent Democrat too, published IN
. leading metropolitan journal, contained
In an open letter addressed 10 the cashier OF
a national bank who is well known In Oman.
ciai circles
II has seemed strange 10 me that In the
various reviews aud opinions on this subject
| by public men, In aud out OF Office, no Que
| OF them ever touches upon a prominent
point, too plain 10 be overlooked and that
IL, The discrimination between the obliga.
,iens OF Government made IN the laws
throughout the entire national legislation
on financial affairs, II has seemed 10 DO an
impoasihilliy for Congress 10 formulate q
bill for al asl relating 10 finance In any fe'
hpeot IA NJ does not discriminate against one
or more obligations of government aud la
favor of another on Others. From the first
set by Republican Congress up 10
the last one the same conditions obtain, aud
those Legislators aud their friends, called
Democrats and acting with that party organ.
igati0n who favor patefnal government and
GLASS laws Intended 90 fsvor Que Industry by
n tax upon all Othefh, have fallen intl The
lead the blind"
II 10 oDa Of the forces belonging 10 matter
that thing Ina a inlae position 0an make no
true and natural movements until n IL placed
In a true position, Tho movements may be
natural, but they will he distorted 80 men
In a false position can take no Atep wlthont
plunging into more fatalities, and, having
taken faife step, they must oontlnpe % so
wrong until they get bsoS 10 oorf.3t poai'
ton
In relation 10 this silver question, our doy.
eminent ID ia q false pgatlOn aud must get
into true one before II eau take any action
that Will be right. Every wrong move
neoeaaitAtee more wrong ones, for each
creates new evils that must be met
aud hey lncreafe Ia disastrous proportion.
More than one'hAli OF the legislation Slate
and Nhiional-conaiata la making patches 10
cover up Old sores made by preceding legla'
lation Each patch makes new sores which
the succeeding Legislature makes more
patches for, The statutory enRotmenta be-
come 80 numerous and complicated that no
court or lawyer can keep up with or reconcile
them, or, hnally understand what the Law
really II
The carly history OF legislation In relation
90 The huancea, beginning with the war OF
1901 difoloses the first lalse atop neoesaitat
ing others; and they have followed each
other IN succession down TO this time, while
there has never heen an eilDrt made 90 Get
into n true position. Thii compulsory coin.
aye Of the "bugg ara silver dollar Is only one
al tho patches originally Intended 90 olyor
sore made by previous patches on another
sore, and most OF the Republican politicians
with some DemocTala-in opposition 90
the husiness brains Of the country advocate
The retention Of the pAton, although new
sores arc breaking out oil around
| IL, and there h a certainty ot iadolcnt and
ihouiRble uicere II IL IL continued.
When Congresa wanted money for the war
p 80 81 "a mt RlFnta n fAa
world for n loau on It's Government credit
10 went into the markets at home at lirst aud
! then into the general market, on obligations
issued under laws that Disseminated In favor
OF one and against others. It 'gnored the
fact that gold dominated and All over the
world dictated the units OF value-or the
standard nil other measures must cOme 10.
| IL was blind 10 the fact that this bad o)me
10 be 90 by common consent OF mankind, aud
nothing short OF common consent could
change IL.
First they made treasury note redeem.
able In gold. Then they made bond free
from taxation, with interest aud principal
| payable IN gold, for coin meant gold, as
every other coin would be measured by gold
In fixing the actual curTent value. Then
they made another treasury note
not redeemable Mt all, and declared
IL to be legal tender, except for interest on
! the bonds and tariff duties. Then they
made national bank note, and made IL 70.
dsemable In these irredeemable treasury
notes. Finally, they made a gold do lar the
unit OF value, fixed the standard between
| gold and silver Cor recognized one), ADD
these made silver dollar worth - 10 per
| cent. less than the gold dollar by its own
standard, anu declared that loyal tender.
List because this eighty-fve cent dollar
would not circulate for one hundred cents,
and because the gold dominated-as 1t al
| ways has and always will and must, by force
of natural law, while it is used as money
/ they seek 10 force il into circu aIien by
means OF compulsory coinage, silver certf-
Gates and unlriendly legislation toward the
| banks. In other words having created an
lndolent ulcer on the financial corpus il
seeks TO cure 1t by creating more incident
ulcers. Or, having taken and maintained q
false position 1t proposes to continue plung-
| ing into more falsities rather than assume q
| true position.
| Experience, as dear school as 1t is, seems
| 10 teach these advocates nothing. They have
/ not learned and will not learn in any other
school, and they seem to be an exception to
| the class who alone learn in that one,
! They have before them the results OF the
| first and subsequent determinations. Be-
tween gold and tneir legal tender notes. toe
former went TO $50 premium and the latter
TO % discount. Their bonds, with gold, went
into the market rs commodities, and univer.
/ sal gambling ensued on Government obliga.
| tions OF every class, and Government itself
| Was compelled TO 90 down into the monied
| centers like Wall street, and take hand
| with the gamblers she had made aud fur
nished with the capital to beat her. and &C.
| tually gambled on her own obligations, pat.
| ting up pots OF millions and not unfre-
| quently playing for lack potts." 1t was
| powerless TO protect itself Once in q great
| while it would make a small scoop by over
sizing the pile of the other fellows but not
| often; and most of the time they had 1t
| their own way and the people paid expenses.
| Congress led along on this line, in one
/ w0y and another, until at the end of the
4 war OF four years il hsd expended immense
sums and created National debt OF about
| three billions of dollars. Since that time,
| in ahnnt frarfu. foura il has recaivad from