New-York tribune., 1890-01-26
AN ARGUMENT FOR SILVER.
SENATOR STEWART, OF NEVADA, TELLS
WHY WE NEED UNLIMITED
SILVER COINAGE.
PRODUCTIVE INDUSTRIES, HE SAYS, ARE
SHRINKING UNDER THE BLIGHTING GRASP
OF CONTRACTION AND MORE MONEY
is NEEDED TO SECURE THEIR
RELEASE
COPYRIGHT: 1900 Bg The Nelc. vorl 7rfDunc.

people are accustomed 10 the uSc> OF SlINcl %
money not exceeding 200, 100000 have ever use /
gold for that purpose. If gold enough couu &c
obtained, how long would 1t require TO introduce
it as medium Of exchange among the 'houS"nu
millions who have never used il? The money OF
the world consists Of gold, silver ana paper !"
nearly equal proportions. An ofhciaI ol Vhe
Treasury Denortnont reports tnat the aggregate
amount of money of the principal nations oil 'he
world ts S11Aes.5OO OO0 consisting OF S5,'ll,-
600 600 of gold. s, ,sS1 100000 Of silver and
e. DAG 600 900 of paper. These amounts would
be sucbtlv increased If authentic accounts could
be obtained from every part of the world, but
,bev ara sufficiently accurate for the purposes OF
this argument.
Does any one suppose that enough gold could
he obtained to supply the place of both silver and
poperp If so, where will the enormous sum Of
nearly Ss. 900, ,O0O, 900 be found? If no addition
is TO be made, can less than $4,000, 100000 Of
cold furnish q safe basis for $4,000, 100000 Of
credit money, consisting of silver and paper?
II silver were actually demonetized. that It's
value would depead upon its redemption in
cold. would the financial system of the world be
satisfactory? What would be the effect of an
effort of any strong nation to redeem its paper
and silver in gold? Might not $1,000, 600. 600
of credit money, based upon less than $4,000 O00,
600 Of standard money, be called imitation?
Would not the finances of the world he like the
State banking system of this country il 1857,
when a demand for $50 in gold in Chicago broke
nearly every bank in the United States. If gold
is the only basis, and ii is already insufficient
for the redemption of the silver and paper In
circulation. how could the increasing demand for
money on account of the growth of population
and business be supplied? With such vast
rre,V bc SfS of
standard money, how could universal bankruptcy
he avoided?
TO CUT OFF SILVER MEANS TO CUT OFF GOi-D
ALSO.
Has the stock Of gold increased in tie last
fifteen years? According 10 the best computa-
lions the consumption in the arts, wear and loss
have about absorbed the production of the mines.
The principal accumulatons of gold in ancient
times came from placer mines or surface washlngs
in Asia. Africa and Southern EuKope; in modern
times from the pacers of California and Australia.
During the last forty years diigcnt search has
teen made in every accessible part Of tie world
for new placers without success. Jne supply Of
gold outside Of the great fields is obtained by
cleaning in abandoned pacers, hy working the
few gold-ven mines that have been discovered,
and from silver mines in combination with silver.
It is estimated that fully one-half of the supply,
independent of the great placcrS which are al
ready exhausted, comes from the silver mines
The characterization Of silver would cut OF that
supply by stopping silver mining single gold
standard for the world would mean the worst
gold famine that has occurred, and tie shrink
sge of values would continue without limit.
The suggestion that limited quantities of silver
may be used but not all that is produced, is made
in ignorance Of the functions of money. If silver
al md eflv j.
credit money why use silver at all? Why not
use copper or nickel or paper if neither is stand
ard money and each is simply credit money. de
pending for its value upon tie promise - pay IN
gold? Unless silver bullion can be exchanged for
coin at the mints at fixed ratio between tie two
metals equally with gold, silver Is not money
metal If the standard money Of tie world Is -
be increased at all by silver silver must he treated
as a money metal equally with gold. II the guam
tty of either gold or silver. which may De used
as money, is limited By legislation the metal 5,
limited is demoneLzcd and reduced 10 a cominodity
WHY Is EITHER TO BE CALLED TIE = BITTER
METAL"'
The unlimited use Of silver would not inHdte
the worlds money. because all the silver now pro.
duced is either coined or absorbed in the arts.
The amount of gold and silver coin in the world
is less than Ss 600 OOO 900, and is an insufficient
supply of money. This is shown by the fact that
81 O0O. 900 900 Of paper is in actual circulation
in addition TO the coin Of both metals. No nation
Of modern times has been able to obtain enough
OF either metal or of the two combined 10 supply
the demand for money Every civilized country
supplements its gold and silver with paper money.
There is no reasonable prospect that any country
ever will in the future reach metallic basis.
dollar for dollar, even by the use Of both gold
-..rf.f fl Had
to resort to paper money 70 make up the deficient
supply of metallic money there IS 10 danger OF tie
acquisition Of too much SILVER.
Why is silver not good as gold? The ma
jority of mankind seem to prefer it. Four times
as many people use it as use gold. When Cali
fornia and Australia were furnishing large sup
Lies Of gold the prominent inanclcrs oi Europe,
under the lead of Cheyalier, Of France argued
that silver was the better metal, ana advocated
the decentralization of gold. on the ground that
It's continued use would drive silver. the DctlcI
money out OF the country. The argument IS 10"
reversed. 1t is now said that gold IS the pe''eI
metal, and II silver in unlimited quanltlcs IS
used gold will De Withdrawn. Both The philoso-
piers Of thirty years ago and the gold standard
cOntractonists OF the present day assume tha' inc
substitution OF the cheaper money for the dcaIef
would be disastrous. Neither SET Of philosophers
has condcscendcd TO give IA reason for inns as
sumption. No reason was given by CheNaleT
and his followers why silver was TIE better
money. None has been given by the modern con-
tractionists why gold has now become the better
money.
THE WITHDRAWAL ARGUMENT. CUTS BOTH
WAYS
II is curious 10 trace the same style OF reason
ing now used against silver that was adopted more
than thirty years ago against gold At that
time the arguments Of Chevalier and De Parieu
were so ably rcfuted by Mr. Charles Moran in his
remarkable book on money that am constrained
to quote a few passages from his unanswerable
argument. lie writes:
Mr. Chevalier says that the exchange Of sill
ver at premium for gold al par is disastrous
Exchange fo1 France How SO ? Does a country
ever export what is necdful 10 the wcll-being Of
it's own inhabitants? The fact that product
or a precious metal is exported in exchange for
something else is proof positive that both parties