Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1886-12-08
SECY MANNING'S REPORT.
THE SILVER QUESTION DISCUSSED
AT LENGTH.

He Says Our First and Only Duty Is to
Repeal the Silver Bin-yiews on the
Reduction of Taxation-Proeeedingsi in
Congress Canadian OficiaIs Excited
Over the Presidents Message.
WASHINGTON CITY, Dec S-Secretary !
Manning's report Is document in which !
the views expressed, whether the reader |
agrees with him or not, must strike every one
as being put vigorously, and by a man who
thoroughly believes that he knows what he
is writing about, and is thoroughly con-
WINGED that he is right He takes up the
silver question first, ami after giving short
account of the negotiations between this gov
ernment and European governments, with
| the object of securing parity in value be-
| tween gold and silver coin, and also brief
history of the action of Great Britain in the
premises THAT of establishing for herself a
single gold Standard he says the essential
cond tions of monetary stability are the free
coinage of both gold and silver each at full
legal tender, open to the public and a rated
| equivalence of both metels fixed by states
powerful enough 10 make ard keep 1t pre-
vaent
| h1ltTTIlR lO lut uCtS VI 700 GIN 19i'i IL
says:
In fact, those two acts al so nearly lden-
teal that common authorship might be
suspected. The fate is odd which apportions
| blessing and cursing lnVerSely to both.
The act of 1878 has been denounced and
praised for demonetiZing silver, which it did
not do 1t retired no silver coin from clrcu-
lation 1t caused no. coin to be sold as bull
ion. 1t withdrew the full legal tender quail
| ;tx,rr rIlyar coined H. did limit mon
etizaton to treasury purchases for fractional
coin.
The act of 1873 has been praised and de
| nounced for remonetizing silver, which 1t did
not do 1t did limit monetization 10 treasury
purchases for non fractional coin.
The act of 1878 took a sure way 10 Keep
all fractional silver coin at home.
The act of 1878 took a sure way to keep all
our n-fractional silver coin at home.
The two acts are also alike IN missing the
4 points of the monetary difficulty and escap-
ing detection of their own true character.
The act of 1878 is only singular in both ms
taking the true object and also missing what
it aimed at
The meth ID of the two acts is identical
Expectation would tonly be possible at loss
e on the silver coined under elther act In
both acts lnonetization is denied except tc
!. treasury purchases.
= The door of the mint is shut TO the public
= by both acts.
= Both acts are innocent of share i'll caus
l. ing the monetary dislocation although tht
act of 1873 helps to prolong 1t.
The secretary then summarizes the legisla
ton of this country dividing the same int
four periods-17g to 1874; 1854 to 1862; Isl
to 1873: 1878 to date The act of 192 (Apri
-, y sent all our gold to Europe; that of ls5
' July :tll sent all our silver to Europe; thos
of 1929 Feb - and July L., 1862, an
March 3, 1866, sent both gold and silve
N abroad; and that of 1878 (the silver bill
y made it impossible to export the silver
oil He then opposes the United states takin
the initiative for international convention
and advises that Great Britain be allowed
ns do that hereafter He says the present syi
TEN in this country is dead weight in ii
ns m solution of the question and the least credit'
bic position we can occupy, and to stop Il
us purchase of silver and repeal the silver b:
;, is our first duty-cur only duty--as well 1
he our choice and interest The law should
ce repealed with the declaration in brief th'
es we stand ready-when Europe .is-to asr'
:, TO a fixed ratio between the two metals.
ut To stop the purchase of silver, the seer
tary saws. will cause a fall of the price in Il
st London market, but that this will mo
&C. speedily bring about its restriction TO
tie place in the money of the world. But
such fail will be so harassing to the perpetu
inpour of coin made full legal tender f
its face, vet not worth its face, which I
. treasury is expected TO employ like gold as
IN it were worth its face.
IN Passing to another branch of the subj,
Mr.. Manning says:
1t is direct consequence of the moneta
disocatIon that wheat of India, which The
fetched ) rupees per quaintai fourteen yea
n ago, and there fetches rupees per quaint
II to -dav, can be sold in London cost OF tral
III port apart) for as little as the gold price O
silver rupees OF India IN London to-day
fall of p per cent
This fall has caused, of course a cor
spending fall in the price of English a
Irish homegrown wheat in London.
The lowered price of wheat in London j
had to he met by lower price Of the Ann
lean wheat surplus sold IN London.
price of our surplus wheat determines
rs price of the whole wheat crop of the Unli
States.
So that the monetary dislocatIon has
H. ready cost cur farming population, W
number nearly one-half the total populat
of the United States, an almost mcomputa
sum. A loss of millions upon millions Of q
lars every year, a loss which they viii c.
tinue to suffer so long as congress delays
stop the silver purchase and by that act
cnnlpel an international redress OF the mo
tary dislocation.
), ITO stop the purchase of silver says
report, will arrest the growth Of that sta
ing shame in our finance, the treasury S
'e plus 1t will Put Us in the way of abolish
the same altogether, not by cheating
n creditors shaving our pensioners, or ci
u. pling our wage-earners, but by enabling
so-d treasury t. holi the silver dollar firmly
local parity with the gold dollar until
can unite with the leading powers i'll res
- ing and establishing their permanent eq'
alence
On the subject of revenue reform the
retary says the people are taxed sl25, 900
per year in excess OF what IS necessary,
he earnestly urges a reduction Of the "a
II and in this connection takes ground that
be vigorously contested by large porto
the people He says we should reduce L
~ ton Immediately 10 an annual revenue
ficing TO pay our annual expenditure
cludng tie sinking fund, and excluding
silver purchase Pay our unfauded del
ES SS46 6Sl ,0l6 with the present surplus,
the surplus which will accrue before
spel. whole reduction of taxation can he nia'
take effect, and while no more fundci
a can I've paid except at a premium curing
five years from now until 1891
. And he recommends the refeal Of the
of May 81, 1878 making compulsory tn
issue O greenbacks. He then ener
cally antagonizes the alleged power of
government to make anything except
L and silver legal tender, declares that
consensus of the best opinion, the histor,
q the country and the constitution is again
~ and that il the power ever existed II
government it should be abolished; a.
va any rate at this time-twenty years
the exigency that caused the issne O
greenhacks there Is no excuse for their
ther existence
His views of reduction of taxation are
all raw materials should be free of duty
that hundreds of articles W nch nov
nj duty should go on fac free
wa He quotes the pledge madA in the