Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1886-01-07

tltNef-mtn Wouiu not enhance the value
OF the silver dollar. The actions and
recommendations OF the President
and Secretary Of the Treasury on
the silver question was right.
lie Gray was not here to de-
fend any one, but economic laws were
always the same, lie was neither q
bondholder nor the son OF q bondholder;
but he was for paying bondholders IN
honest money. The true issue in ques-
ton was whether the true relation OF
gold and silver could be reached by the
continuance Of the present plan Of silver
coinage. lie asserted that this could
not be done. Silver coinage had served
useful purpose as q subsidy coin, but
no country desired basis Of silver coin
alone and If gold were supplanted by
silver we would have q silver basis. A
gold standard had kept us in easy rela-
tons with the rest Of the world. BIZ
mctallism could not be reached by any
one country alone. France had long ago
stopped her silver coinage, and should
we by continuing our present course
drive out Of the country several hun
bred millions Of gold coin? II We did
so we should have contraction indeed.
The act Of 1878 having failed to raise
the value of silver, persistence in our
present plan Of silver coinage would
bring us to silver standard. We
would be descending to basis Of an
s0-cent dollar, and thus the Govern
ment Of the United States would in fact
be scaling its own debt. This would
be public misfortune as evidencing
condition of public dishonesty, which,
to say the least, was equally repre-
hensible with individual dishonesty.
Many Of those who favored silver coin
age " ere not, in Mr.. Gray IS opinion, solid,
conservative businessmen, but those
Of speculative turn. He desired to see
silver in circulation concurrently with
gold but the failure of the best efforts
to get into that condition was sufficient
proof that our continued coinage would
be Of no avail in that direction. We
were all embarked on the same great
voysge-the debtor and creditor. One
fate awaited us all. We should there
fore honestly endeayor to adjust our
differences in order that the interests Of
our people may be honestly and fairly
advanced
Mr.. Gray was listened to with un-
usual attention. His voice was clear,
resonant, and we'll sustained, and at
the close Of bis remarks he received
the congratulations Of several of his
senatorial friends.
Mr.. Mcpherson followed on the same
subject. The United States Treasury,
he said, had become vast and COM
plicated machine. There were seven
different factors in our circulation in
the form Of various kinds Of notes.
If the coinage were now suspended sill
yer might be got TO the proper relation
with gold, and in the opinion of the
best authorities in the world we had
now got TO a point in silver coinage be-
yond which it was dangerous for us to
90. The need Of currency was need
created not by law, but by business.
Whenever the Treasury could no longer
maintain gold basis, then the public
would have to take care Of themselves.
Silver dollars had thus far remained at
par with gold because they had but
a limited use and were limited in
numbeI-within the limit OF public
needs. But the Gresham law sill held
good after three centuries Of observa-
Normandy, that bad money drives
out good money. All history taught
that with a currency Of huctuating
value as ours was tending to become
speculation was encouraged and none
tary ruin fastened. The loss would
always fall on the producers of our
country, a. the importers would pro
tect themselves.
Referring TO the effect Of silver in
India, Mr.. Mcpherson exclaimed
" God forbid that American labor
should ever come to a condition like
that Of the laborer Of India" The
blow aimed by the silyer-men at
bloated bondholders, Mr.. McPher-
son insisted, would strike with ten-fold
force on the head Of the laborer. The
Government had permitted its financial
agent, Jay Cooke, TO advertise that the
interest on bonds was payable in gold.
MIR. Mcpherson produced such adver-
tisements.l
Nj. Beck inquired how much the
purchasers Of the bonds had paid for
them.
MIR. Mcpherson replied that that
made no difference the Government
having held out such representa-
tons, could not now ignore them
could not play fast and loose with its
creditors.
A reference by Mr.. Mcpherson to an
understanding that the bonds we're to
be paid in gold, brought from Messrs.
Morgan, Harris, and Beck, simulta-
neOusly, an energetic insistance that
payment in CON-" and not gold"
was the understanding and agreement.
To show that business was already
becoming alarmed at our course with
regard to silver, Mr.. Mcpherson read
letter from the manager of the Liver
pool and London and Globe Insurance
Company stating that that company, in
view Of the great uncertainty with re-
gard TO coinage, had decided TO make
nc further loans except on specific
agreement Of their repayment in gold
coin.
On the conclusion OF Mr.. McPher-
sons remarks, Mr.. Brown gave notice
that tomorrow he would ask to be
heard on the resolution of Mr.. Beck.
Mr.. Hoar called attention to the
anomalous condition Of the business in
the Senate, there being several i'm
portant bills already reported from the
committees, which bills were being de-
lsyed by the silver debate, which would
have to be repeated when the Finance
Committee should come to report bill
dealing with coinage.
On motion Of Mr.. Edmunds the Sen
ate then took up the Utah bill, the
pending question being on Mr.. Hoar's |
motion 20 strike out the section that |
would disfrsnchise the women Of Utah. |
Mr.. Brown expressed himself as OPP
posed TO women's suffrage, and said
that If the question was up in his own
l. =.