The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1886-01-28
THE WAR OF THE METALS.
Senator Morrill, Taxes up tho Cudgel for
: Gold.

Senator Morrill, addressed the Senate
on the silver question. He began with
4 the remark that the elaborate speech of
the Senator from Kentucky Beck SEEM
ed to throw the burden of rejoinder on
the friends OF the Administration.
II do not mean," he continued, "to en-
croach upon the privileges, which so
many Democratic Senators appear eager
to enjoy. of coming to the rescue of the
President and the secretary of the treas
ury against the rather cruel attack made
upon the cardinal measure of the Ad-
ministration, as I know the fate of those
who venture to interfere with family
auarrels, but this measure, by which
silver might be maintained on par
with gold, so worthy of all acceptation, 1
fear will not have, after the hostile de.
monstration of the recognized leader of
his party in the Senate against it, that
unanimous support to which it may be
fairly entitled. In the first place, let me
say that there are no parties, so far as l
know, in the Senate or out of it, that
propose or that have and wish to demone.
tie silver. To charge otherwise is a
baseless assumption and unworthy of the
arena of fair debate. Everybody is
willing, yes, anxious, to keep as much of
silver in circulation as can be done and
keep it at the same time at par with our
gold coinage. Hostility to silver arises
from what seems to be fixed and pas.
sionate purpose on the part Of some of
its advocates to promote such an excess
of silver coinage as will drive gold coin
age out of the country, and leave our vast
trade and commerce based upon silver
only. In reaching this position of silver
monometallism it is impossible to be
blind to the disastrous contraction of the
circulating medium of the country that
would at once occur, for when the moment
arrives that gold commands premium
it will all be held as commodity for sale,
not for circulation, as small premium
as 5 per cent. being as productive of
universal boarding as 25 per cent, and
no possible advantage to our people
could be expected from following the
lame and feeble example of India or
Mexico in utilizing silver currency
only" Senator Morrill, insisted that
there was no war upon silver, but that in
substance and effect declaration of war
had been made on gold by the leader of
the Democratic party in the Senate.
From the pleasure which the Senator
from Kentucky had evinced in delivering
in the Senate his Antagonisms to the
President and the secretary of the treas
ury it seemed to Senator Morrill, that that
Senator had been for moment under
the delusion that he was still belaboring
with left.handed compliments some Re-
publican President and Secretary; but
be could look on with composure, conf.
dent as he was of "thc survival OF the
fittest."
"His (Morrill's) conviction that the
continued coinage of large amounts OF
silver would drive all gold out OF the
country was based on the past experience
of all civilized people atinferior money
never failed to expel superior, aud on the
fact that our own silver mines furnished
more than half the annual silver yield of
the world. Our yield for 1884 was
$4S, 100000, which, added to our imports,