St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1891-09-25
FREE COINAGE AND DEMOC-
RACY,

1t is favorite trick of newspaper
men, as well as Of preachers, to put up
men of straw whom they may pummel
without trouble because they have no
friends. To read the Republican press,
which has the hard task of defending
the present impossible currency act,
one would think that the advocates of
the free coinage of silver were a body
of fools and brigands conspiring to
undermine the prosperity of the Union.
And yet among them are included
many men of the widest eXper-
fence in affairs and the profoundest
knowledge of political science. To
attribute to them participation in
a project whose end is repu-
diation is the raving of disputant who,
afraid to meet the real issue, inyents
one out of his Imagination for a futile
discussion. If the free coinage of silver
on the present ratio would not result in
the circulation of it and gold at parity
no one but a lunatlc of the PETER pat
tern would support it. The Democrats
who favor this measure believe that
such would be the effect were our minis
ers of the white metal as they are open
to the owners of the yellow. Their
theories is that the gold standard main
tanned alone is inducing an appreciation
ill the value of this recognized coin
which has lowered the price Of every
other commodity to increase the
wealth of moneyed class. They
hold that our present currency is unset
entific and inadequate for the purposes
of business. but that if along side of it
the available supply of silver were al
lowed to flow without hindrance or OBJ
StructiOn, our money would be stable
in value and satisfactorily in volume.
Everybody who reflects on this question
has to admit two things. One is that
currency too great in volume for the
needs of trade and made of a commod-
ity which fluctuates in value in the gen
eral direction of depreciation is a bad
thing for the country. The other is
that an inflated and deprecated cur
rency is not bit worse or more danger
Gus than one which is unduly con-
tracted or which is ever approaching
in its intrinsic worth. Many sincere
thinkers feel that adherence to a
gold standard promises currency
of this second kind, but that if silver
were restored to its former place in our
system both of these dangers could be
avoided. The answers to their position
are many, and are daily marshaIed in
the press of both parties; but their re-
ply to them all is the very effective one
of the worlds experience. Gold and
silver have circulated side by side in
spite of all logic to the contrary, and, in
their view, will again if the opportunity
is afforded them. 1t is not the present
purpose OF the GLOBE to indorse or con-
denim their motion. 1t simply under
takes to present it. The free coinage
wing of the Democracy is in favor of
free silver only on the assumption that
free silver means a currency automati-
cally shaping itself in volume in ac-
cordance with the needs of trade, and
maintaining itself uniform in value with
with every other recognized specie of
money which may be in circulation. If
the free coinage of silver is not honest ly
calculated to accomplish this, every one
may be sure that the wisdom of the
Democracy will not admit its indorse-
ment into the party's platform in the
coming campaign.