Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1885-01-27
The Silver Scare.

The Secretary of the Treasury, il seems,
apprehends trouble from the continued
coinage of silver. Within a very few
DAYS he mas received two warnings that
silver was becoming too plentiful. The
first was the sale Of silver certificates at
discount IN New York, and the other
was a letter from the United States sub
Treasurer of Boston. mentioned in our
dispatches yesterday, complaining that
the business men Of that city were suffer
ing serious inconvenience, and even en-
oarrassment, on account Of the general
use of silver certificates to pay govern
menJ Indebtedness.
The banks, doubtless, hesitate about
taking silver certificates on deposit,
because they are afraid that the
market value of the certificates
may drop below their face value
at any moment, and they do not want To
be caught with too large an amount of
them on hand. OF course, everybody
knows that silver dollar is worth only
about 81 cents. but as long as no question
is raised about Its value it continues to
pass freely at its face value. There must
coinage of $4,000, 900 a month is continued
when the question of its real value viii be
raised, and there will then be financial
trouble. Gold will be boarded and be-
come an article of m merchandise. 1t will,
Of course, in that case, disappear from
circulation.
The Treasury officials say, and doubt
less they are right, that gold will not dis
appear from circulation suddenly. There
will be unmistakable evidences that it is
being gradually withdrawn in time to
give the country time TO prepare for its
withdrawal.
But are not the two Instances of trouble
with silver certificates mentioned indica-
tons that there is already disposition to
hold on To gold!
If il were not for the fact that there is
a feeling that the government has the
power to prevent itself from being forced
upon silver basis and, consequently, TO
avert the dangers apprehended from such
| a position, it is not improbable that the
confidence in the ability of silver to MAIN
| tain its present place in the currency
would be much weaker than it is.
II Congress should repeal the cOmpul-
sorv silver coinage law, it is probable
| that confidence in silver would be at once
| strengthened. The probability, however,
| that this Congress will repeal the law is
rather remote. The present admlnistra-
/ ton having favored the silver policy, will
hardly urge "a contrary policy, in view of
the fact that it viii be out of power within
a very few weeks.
The incoming administration Will have
TO handle this silver question, and before
the next Congress assemblies it viii be
able to determine pretty clearly what it
ought to advise. The thing to be feared is
that financial trouble will be upon the
country before the next Congress meets.
The indications now seem to be, however,
that 1t will require something more than
mere argument TO get Congress to act.
The silver advocates have one fact in
| their favor which they do not hesitate to
ma ie the most of. They show that the
/ amount of gold in the country on Jan. /,
1885, was SI1,2I3, 573 larger than it was on
Jan. /, 1884. They neglect to state, how
/ ever, that the amount of silver increased
in the same time $22, 1O6,677.