The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1886-12-07
SECRETARY MANNING'S REPORT.

w ASHINGTON, DEC O.-Ino annual report or
Secretary Manning, transmitted to Congress to-
day, opens with discussion of the silver ques-
ton. in which he details the result of the spe-
clal mission to the governments Of France, Ger
many and Great Britain. The French govern
ment remained of the same mind as when it
had united with the government of the United
States in calling the international monetary
conference of 1881. The German government
deemed the cooperation of Great Britain in any
change a sine qua non. The government of
Great Britain, administered by the same party
and principal persons then as now, saw no rea-
son to depart from the position held by that
government at the international monetary con-
ferences of 1873 and 1881
The Secretary discusses what he terms the
British gold standard illusion. This illusion, he
says, consists in seeing the standard measure of
commodity prices throughout Great Britain, in
the gold exclusively coined by her minis, instead
of in the silver and gold Of the world. He traces
the history of this illusion. and claims that Eng.
lands exclusion of silver from miptage into I'M
limited legal money in 1916 did not at
once promote the disuse of that metal in inter
national transactions, not even those in which
her merchants and bankers were themselves
concerned; nor did it disturb the ratio of weight
at which the two metals were given and received
as of equal value; did it affect that range of
prices, the resultant of the worlds industries
and exchanges measured against the extant ag-
gregate of the two monetary metals, so long as
great minis were elsewhere open and ready to
coin both into money that was equally lawful
tender in fulfillment of every contract or pay
ment of debt created III the daily course of those
industries and exchanges; nor, until 1873, did
Great Britains pursuit of an illusorv standard
finally disclose its pregnant mischief, which
finally resulted in what the Secretary calls the
great money dislocation. Coming nearer home,
the Secretary says
The act of 1873 we are told "demonetized" the
standard silver dollar; the act Of 1878 are told
monezed it, and that told, is the whole of the
matter In fact those two acts so near identical
that common authorship might be suspected. The
fate is odd which apportons blessing and cursng in
versely TO BOTH The act of 1878 has been denounced
and praised for demouetzing silver which it did
do. Is retired silver coin from circulation. It
caused no coin to be sold as bullion. 1t withdrew the
full legaender quality from silver coined 1t did
limit monetizaon TO Treasury purchases for fractional
COIN The act of 1878 has been praised and de-
nounced for remonetzng silver which it did not do
1t did limit monetization to Treasury purchases for
non-fractional coin. The act of 1873 took a sure
way to keep all fractional silver coin at home
The act of 1878 took a way to keep all our non
fractional silver coin at home. The two acts are
also alike in missing the point of the monetary
difficulty and escaping detection of their true
character The act of 1878 is only singular in both
mstaking the tr lie object and also missing what it
aimed at. The method of tho two acts Is identical.
Expectation would only be possible at loss on the
silver coined under either act In both acts monet
cation is denied except Treasury purchases. The
door of the mint is shut to the public by both acts
Both acts innocent of share in causing the
etary dslocation although the act of 1878 helps to
In 1873 we had not escaped the paper-noney
plague, and resumption Of the of the two
metals and current redemption of paper did not be-
gin till the monetary disocation far advanced.
By the act of 1878 the monetary dslocation could
be neither caused nor cured. It's limited monetiza-
has ha1, zc.1r,
total amount demonetized by Germany since 1878.
1t does not counterfeit the monetary dslocaton The
monetary stock OF the four leading powers who all in
1878 had neither too much nor less than enough is
greater than then by the aid of the United
States-thus confuting the moneyfamine theories.
Still it does not redress the monetary disocation.
Under the head, ''Shall the United States
Give Free Coinage to Silver Now?" the Secretary
says:
The free silver coinage prescription for the mon
etary dislocaion satisfies but of the several nds
peusabe conditions which have set forth above in
full detail While it is an Indispensable condition of
silver shall be equally complete of gold yet it
given to silver in this actual moment of disoca.
tion the practical result would be to withdraw the
same from gold. That would be change without adj
vantage in any respect and in every respect with dis
advantage. In the first place, it would bring TO
the Asiatic silver basis This has been commended II;
quarters. There is, however. such public DO.
sire. The preponderance of public opinion
overwhelming in favor of the joint of both metals.
would deserve to survive tho deliberate or
the unforeseen and unprevented change to
silver basis But the proof is simple that the free
coinage of silver now would at once entail silver
basis. offered by the open mint to both metals free
coinage Of silver for slverowners into logaltender
dollars would stop the of mint for free coinage
of gold by gold-owners. It would stop the stimuli.
tapeous circulation of gold and silver dollars The
gold dollar would be at premium, and be exported.
Throughout the United States 1t would make the use
of silver in leealtender payments exclusive, apart
from the greenbacks, which would first be used, IL
would cease 20 signify by dollar anything else than
the debt of silver connot at all the monetary unit
once embodied in equivalent coins of the two metals
Thus the froe coinage of silver now or, what is the
thing the Asiatic silver basis would but shift
our lanenoss to the other foot 1t would neither
store nor tend TO restore the worldwide of the
two metals in rated equivalence which tho cure for
the monetary dislocation as their dsjoined has
been its cause But the change to the other foot