The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1891-02-22
THE SILVER SNUB.
The Adverse Report of the House
Coinage Committee.
THE WORLDS SURPLUS SILVER
The Treasury Notes Being Added to the Cur.
rency Exceeds the Contraction Caused
by Retirement of Bank Notes.

WASHINGTON, Feb. 21.-The adverse re-
port Of the majority of the House coinage
committee on the Senate free coinage bill
says, in part: "Under the present act,
S54 900 annually are being added to the
volume Of currency of the country in the
form of treasury notes for bullion pur-
chased. This largely exceeds the contrac-
ton in the way of the retirement of bank
notes, and in ten years would at the same
rate, gradually add to the volume of cur
rency above the amount of bank notes,
should they be all retired $3.50, 000,0 600.
The secretary of the treasury states that
the amount of surplus silver in the world
above the amount used in the arts and coin
age in all other countries than the United
States was, for 1888, 500, 100000. If this
es Innate is correct, under the present law
there is provision for using the worlds
surplus which is all that unlimited coinage
could accomplish. 1t is, however, thought
the demand of the present law does not call
for all the silver surplus, and it Is in
sufficient to keep down the silver
surplus, and that there are
now bearing the market 100000 ounces
which are sufficient to keep the price of
silver to Its present selling figures.
Whether these 5000, 900 ounces are likely
to remain threat to the market, or whether
they are used by designing persons as a
temporary means to depress the price, is a
matter upon which Intelligent persons who
have appeared before the committee differ
This can be determined by continuing
OF the present policy of buying no more
than the 4, 100000 ounces monthly provided
for by the existing law. If the presence of
lo,OO0, 700 ounces is continued only for the
purpose of effecting some change in legis-
latlon, 1T will soon be permitted to 60 its
Way. If, on the other hand, it is the actual
excess over the demand. it will be easy at
any future time for Congress to provide
for its absorption into the volume of cur
rency
Treasury notes issued under the present
law are legal tender. This is the highest
function that could be given silver under
free coinage. So that, under the existing
law, we have provision for the use of all
silver that would be brought to the mints
under free coinage assuming the worlds
surplus to be as already stated The
money issued has all the legal qualities and
purchasing power of coined money and, in
addition, is confined practically to the
American product, so the United States is
out of all danger, so strenuously insisted
upon by many persons, of flooding our
market with the silver of the world The
present law at the time of it's passage was
declared by many ardent supporters of free
coinage to be satisfactory. The conditions
are substan TALLY the same as then. If the
present law, when passed, promised, to ell
intents and purposes, the use of the Ameri
can product and authorized the issue of
money as good for all purposes as coined
silver, it is not now evident to the COM
mittee wherein it has failed in that promise,
nor wherein 1t is likely in the future to fail
to accomplish that desirable endr