Morning journal and courier., 1885-02-25
COMMUNICATIONS.

AhC SAAVcF ~uODGAOAs
To the Editor Of the JOURNAL AND COURIER:
Some newspapers clanor to stop the coin
age of silver dollars What results will fol-
low if this clamor is heededs Evidently the
price of the silver dollar will go down to
seventy or seventy-five cents, possibly to six
ty cents, as measured by the price of gold
The gap between gold dollars and silver dol
lars, now somewhat large will be still far
ther increased. What is intended to be accom-
plished by still further discrediting silver
dollars? Simply this; in the first place to
add to the loss of English holders of India
Eonds and to those who do business with silver
using nations and make them clamor to the
English government to join the United States
ternational agreement by treaty to adopt free
coinage of both metals at an
agreed ratio to each other If that
scheme should fail then they intend
that this country shall go forward to a coin
age of gold alone The fall in price of silver
caused by ceasing to coin any more silver
dollars will then be made the pretext for
claiming that silver is unfit to be money in
large transactions. The first part of this
plan-the attempt to coerce the English
government by adding to the losses of partic
ular classes of English business men-may
be successful; and if it could be it would be
a fact greatly conducting to monetary peace,
money and commodities all over the world,
and would undoubtedly revive business here.
If it should not be successful the argument
for proceeding to gold alone would become
still more false and misleading than before.
For the fall in the price of silver due in part to
the lack of use of it in this country and
therefore of demand for it to the same ex-
tent, would be said to be due to the failure
of some mysterious value in it that no one
comprehends, but which effectually disposes
of it AZ money metal for large transactions,
But those who resist the clamor of the
press do SO because they have little
confidence in compelling one set of English
men, who now control tho English govern
ment, to act in particular manner by pinch
ing the fingers of another set of Englishmen
who have no control They have still less
disposition to undertake this exploit since
it necessarily involves the pinching of the
fingers of the great body of workingmen and
the debtor class of this country as well.
Then, again, those who approve this clamor
of the press fully believe that if this scheme
of coercing the action of England should fail
the same men who now clamor against the
coming of two millions a month of silver
dollars will then insist that the coinage of
silver dollars shan cease altogether.
They are opposed to this, and
while they would be glad to see
this international agreement consummated,
they insist, in of the failure of that ar
rangement, that gold and silver shall both be
coined, by the United States at least, on the
same terms the one as the other. The grounds
of their belief in this as good policy have
never been stated better than by Alexander
Hamilton; that the advantages of coming
both metals will be seen by comparing the
advantages of a full circulation of money with
those of scanty one. S.