Los Angeles daily herald., 1886-01-27
SILVER COINAGE.
Pr0-siivcr Arguments Presented
to Bankers.

TO Hankerb.
The following is extracted from the
proceedings of the Bankers Convention
held in Chicago last falls
Mr.. James b. Colgate, The bullion
dealer OF New York, now asked to be
heard. At the invitation of Mr.. Gage.
he assembled the platform and created a
sensation by u position in favor of the |
Unlimited coinage Of silver. He Judged
from the tone of tho papers that had
been read, and from the remarks which
had been made, that the bankers were
assembled here to bury silver. He wanted
to recite its obituary before silver was
buried out of sight. All the papers
presented were against silver, and all
the speakers talked as though the
use OF silver was national calamity.
They had heard long dissertation
against silver by gentleman from
Canada, who spoke of the awful conse-
quences in case we injured our credit
abroad. We allowed the English and
the Germans to como here as our school
masters, and to this he was opposed.
We had time to think for ourselves in
this country, and needed no lesson from
foreigners to teach us how to conduct
our financial affairs. In the course OF
fifty years more, when this country
would contain a population of 100, OO0,-
600 souls, we would not be dictated to
by little nations like the United King.
dom, which contained only 10000, 900
all told, and which had endeavored to
collect tax upon every pound of tea
that should be brought to this country.
There had been quite enough of this talk
| about
KEEPING UP OUR CREDIT ABROAD.
As a fret proposition. he would simply
| say that silver was the normal currency
OF the world, and silver was used by
every man, woman and child. Silver
was q necessity in the world of com.
merce. All the little transactions of the
world were made in silver, and 1t was
tho many little transactions which made
the great volume of trade md created
tho demand for higher expire ssed
value, which was gold, and that was
why the bankers demanded gold stand.
ard. And gold was to be found all over
the civilized world as the highest OK.
| lressed standard of value, but in every
| civilized part of the world where gold
was used there was also found silver in
use as medium Of trade; and where.
ever an attempt was made to minify
the value of silver. blow was struck
at commerce and trade. Why were
the $50, 500 and $1,000 bills
wanted? Because there were 81 and 81
bills in circulation. II there were no
small bills there would be no necessity
for the larger denominations of curren-
ey. Silver was an absolute necessity
and gold an absolute luxury. Laugh.
ter. Silver was necessary to pay the
wages of the world. More goods were
purchased with silver in Great Britain
than there were with gold and Bank of
England notes combined. What was
the value of a silver dollar!
A volce-Eighty cents.
You say silver doesn't circulate, con-
tinued the speaker. Does gold circu-
late, Did anybody ever see $50 gold
| pieces in general circulation, Why ask
Congress to suspend the coinage of sill
vert 1t would be wiser and far better
to ask Congress to suspend the National
Bank note and the greenback circula.
tion. These were nothing but promises
to pay.
FOUNDED UPON DEBT.
They represent nothing. What was
promise to pay worth when the govern.
ment was in straitcned circumstances.
1t was well enough to allude to the
guarantee upon the back of the green.
backs, but the promise to pay was Just
as strong on the old Continental curren.
cy as it is on the greenback. There were
speakers who would substitute silver
with n currency founded apon paper.
That n follon,t In nf
between this country and q foreign ma
ton that currency would drop 20 per
cent. in one day, When even the New
which he had the honor of be.
passed resolution to that effect and
generally did not succeed in doing it.
Ii this Convention wanted to kill a
measure he supposed it could do so by
the passage of resolution. Ii was said
that the purchasing power of "buz.
zard' dollar was not Us good rs that of
gold; that IL was worth only SO cents;
that silver had no value. He desired
to say to the gentleman who had said
that the buzzard dollar was worth only
SO cents that he would give him
chance, If he was so minded, to make q
lttl0 uAOucJ. liz WOuiO guarantee MIN
90 cents in gold for every buzzard dol
lar, up to half million, which he would
deliver to the Bank of England, the
offer to hold good for sixty days. What
made the value of the silver dollarf The
law. 1t was the law which fixed the
standard value of gold. Silver was the
basis of gold, and the nation could not
get along without silver.
A voice - VIII you agree to ray
pinety-nine cents on the doilar for
100000 in silver dollars within the
next sixty days!
The speaker-Yes, sir.
A voice-Will you do that every sixty |
days for the next ten year,!
The speaker did not say that l |
would. That is a different proposition. |
IN REGARD To THE PANIC
Which it was said would take place in |
case that gold was withdrawn, it was a |
fallacy. The amount Of silver eircula.
ton in the United States per capita was
only 50. He knew that dishonest