The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1886-02-03

through their representatives, after a long
and bitter struggle, secured partial renlone-
tization. So long as il is deemed necessary
to have metallic basis for our currency,
both silver and gold are needed to keen that
basis steady. Destroy the use OF one and
You Immediately increase the value OF the
other. This is the vital point OF this contro-
versy. This and this only is the controlling
motive of the leaders in this movement as II
seems 20 me.
The public debts of the world amounting
to a vast sum Ito say nothing OF the corpor-
ate and other debts are owned by the
wealthy who reside in or about the comme--
cial centers of the world and from these cen
tiers comes all the clamOr for the disuse OF
silver as currency. Anything that increases
the value of the currency, increases the value
of their returns from their investments, and
while these men are not to be considered
more selfish than their fellowmen. yet we all
know something OF the dominating and
binding influence of selfish interest.
Bankers rs class, high railroad officials as
a class college professors as q class, import
ing and other large merchants Is a class,
large manufacturers as a class, all with one
accord unite in the demand for the use OF the
single standard of gold. and the disuse OF SD
YER and they haye been able by the persist
ency of their efforts to dominate not only
the Treasury officials. but the head OF the
Government itself. leading the present occu-
pant of that high and responsible position
in a state paper to indulge in absurd state
ments about endangering the ability 70 meet
the "gold obligations" of the Government,
as if there were any sucl.
We arc told that silver dollars will not cir
culate, and ever since the passage OF the law
directing the coinage OF silver dollars, every
Secretary of the Treasury, in obedience to
the dominating influence OF Wall street, has
done his utmost to hinder rather than help
the operation of the law. Yet, notwithstand-
ing this, and the further fact that the law it.
self puts silver at a disadvantage as COM
pared with gold-in spite of these combined
influences, silver dollars, in the ordinary
business of the country, outside OF the great
commercial centers at least, circulate more
freely than gold coin, dollar for dollar But
these wise men say silver has depre-
ciated " deny il. The facts are
against them Compared with the price of
commodities generally, silver has more than
held its own, while gold, owing to an in
creased demand growing out Of change to
monometalism in Germany and other
causes, has increased in value. This being
true as can be easily prOven-f it is desira-
bic TO bring the two coins to par with each
other why not reduce the weight of the gold
coin thereby maintaining present values,
rather than increasing all debt obligations,
public and private. But this would not Sc
cure the advantage sought. This Nation has
reached a point where it ought to take an
independent stand, not only of foreign cOun-
ties but of dominating classes at home.
The Constitution to the United States gives
the power to Congress alone Ito coin money
and 10 regulate the value thereof at the
same time inhibiting the States from making
anything but gold and silver legal tender.
a fair inference from this is. that it was the
intention of Its trainers to coniine the power
over the issue of tha currency of all kinds TO
the national authority so unwisely abdicated.
There is no doubt of its authority to issue
paper representing gold and silver in the
Treasury.
1t has also been decided that il may make
its obligations legal tender.
Let Congress enact that after the expira-
ton of the charters of the banks now exist
ing, no more charters for banks of issue shall
be granted. directing the Secretary of the
Treasury to supply the place of the bank
curTenCy,with legal tenders, notes and Treas
ury certificates in equal guam titles, based on
the gold and silver coin and gold and silver
bullion in the Treasury. Do away with the
folly of issuing gold certificates and silver
certificates, and issue instead coin certificates
for dollars. Why not? No bank-certainly
none outside New York if any there, issues
certificates reciting that the holder thereof
has deposited gold, silver or paper, as the
case may be, but simply that he has depOs-
tied so many dollars.
Why should the United States Treasury do
otherwise if il were not to keep up the dis
elimination between the two metals. Do
away with the sensele-s practice and the dis
tinction would at once disappear.
| believe that some such policy As this
would greatly benefit the business interests
Of the country generally, would do away
largely with the fluctuations in the money
market by bringing Steadiness to the cur
rtncy and tend to avoid the periodic panics
and business depresSiOns that have so sorely
afflicted us in the past. In this hastily writ
ten communication | have barely limited at
several points. | would like TO have elabor-
a;ed, did my time and your patience per-
nit Many other points have omitted en-
tirely for the same reason. But If what [
have written shall have any weight in avert
ING what conceive would be a great national
calamity l shall feel fully compensated.