Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1891-03-12
Cleveland and HiIl on silver.

We are surprised that so many people
are surprised at Mr.. Cleveland's letter.
The ex-President stated his position on
silver six years ago aud there has never
been anything to indicate that he had
changed his mind, and nothing to oeca-
sion q change in his opinion has Oc-
Cured. Mr.. Clevhnd's letter has
precipitated a serious discussion OF the
silver coinage question which will 90
on from now till the Democratic con-
vention o year from next summer, and
will then be decided so far as the party
is concerned.
In the meanwhile it must be remem-
bered that Mr.. Cleveland has taken no
position adverse to silver coinage, or
practical bi-metallism. We have now
large and admirable bi-metallic cur
rency. We have. in round numbers,
$700,000, 900 of gold and $3.50, ,000,0 of
silver, and we are now coming an
amount equal to the ordinary out put
of all American mines. Mr. Clevland
opposes a change in this system which,
/ in the judgment of many Democrats,
West as well as East, would contract
the gold more than it would expand
the silver of our bi-metallic currency.
At the present price of silver, which
appears to be constantly falling in spite
of the Treasury's purchases, there is
considerable profit on coming 4124
grains of the metal into dollar. Mr..
Cleveland insists that this profit should
go to the nation, as it does now, and
not to the mine owners.
! The New York World has repubish-
ed some remarks about silver which
i Governor Hill made at the Jefferson
Club, in Brooklyn, September %, 1890.
In this speech Mr.. Hill severely con-
demned the act of July IA, 1890, increas-
ing the coinage of silver from s., 900, ,000
to $4,500,000 a month. He said: 1.-THE
recent legislation of Congress is merly a
temporary expedient. 1t will give
permanent satisfaction nowhere" and
he said that the lend which we al
desire to reach is the free coinage o
silver under a proper internationa
ratio.n
The agreement upon an international
/ ratio is a matter of the utmost impor
tance, as the Governor says, but thus ia
no progress has been made in this direc
ton. Denouncing the attempt of Con
= gress last summer to maintain the rati'
, of to without European concur
; rences, Governor Hill said:
t Congress thus, with blunderin;
, incompetence, actually prepares eithe
: ! a future conflict of mint ratios, sucl
as twice already swept the United
States clean ofits monetarylmetals, frs
of gold and then of silver, or else
casts away to foreign lands that larg
v profit incident to the recoirage which
t either here or in Europe, must preced
Q to make possible free bmetalic coinag
at one ratio on both sides of the AT
= lantic.
Z When Governor Hill speaks of
|. ';conflict of mint ratios, such as twic
: swept the United States clean of it
= monetary metals, first of gold and thel
: of silver" we understand him to refe
to the condition of the coinage befor
and after 1884. Soon after 1910 gol'
: began disappearing from this countr.
: and by 1920 it was all gone, in spite 0
the fact that Thomas Jefferson stoppe'
!, the coinage of the silver dollar in 1906
= That eminent Democrat, Thomas Ben
:. ton, attributed the disappearance @
gold to the selection of the ratio of l