The Newberry herald and news. (Newberry, S.C.) 1884-1903, 1891-02-26
THE FREE COINAGE CRAZE.
Farmers the Last Men in the World to
Want Cheap Money-An E::amlnauoh
of the Probable Results OF Reducing
the Value of the American
Dollar to Eighty Cents.
NO. III.

|
United States Senate for the free coin
age of silver, at present rates of silver
bullion, will have the effect of cutting
down the dollar as standard or mea-
sure of value about one-ffth, for silver
is now worth about eighty cents on the
dollar. This is exactly the same in
principle as cutting down the bushel
measure one-fifth, or the yardstlck
one-fifth, or the pound weight one-ftth.
We are told that this is in the interest
of the masses of the people, especially
the poor laboring classes.
Not to speak of the inherent dis
honesty of ouch measure, there is just
as much sense in this pretence as to
contend that it is to the interest OF
these laboring classes to get a short
ward of cloth instead Of full yard,
short bushel of corn instead of full
bushel, or short pound Of meat instead
of a full pound. The fact is they
will be paid for their labor in these
short measure dollars while the prices
for what they have to buy will go up
to correspond with the depreciation OF
the currency, so that these very labor
ing classes will be the chief sufferers by
the change. No class of people stands
in greater need of fixed and stable
currency as a standard of value than
the toiling masses, and none suffer so
grievously from an unstable and rapidly
fuctuating currency, such as silver has
been for years past. This is lesson
clearly taught by the history OF all
financial crises, and of all countries
where such currency exists, and our
farmers and laboring classes would do
well to heed the lesson if they would
avoid a like experience. They should
not lend a too willing ear, either to
ignoramuses and blatherskites on the
one side, or to shrewd, self-seeking
politicians on the other.
I may here mention another class
that would suffer very great hardship
from this change, that is the depositors
in the savings banks of the country.
These we may take it for granted are
| for the most part persons of limited
means, who have put their little saw
iups in these banks to serve them in
sickness and old age. These savings
amount, accordingto the report fthe
COMPTROLLER of the Currency to 81 43S,-
100000. The change would depreciate
the value Of these deposits at least 20
per cent or $685., 100000.
WHO WILL BE BENEFITED.
And who, pray, would be the parties
to profit by such a change? First. we
NAV count the silver millionaires of
the Rocky Mountains, the Stewarts
| and Jones of that peterborough,
Nevada; Wolcott and Teller, of Colora-
do; Stanford, of California, and others
like them. They expect by this mea-
sure to get a premium or bounty of 90
per cent and upwards on the market
value of their silver. Their demand
has Just about as much reason or COM
mon sense in it as would be the de-
mand of our Southern cotton planters
for the Government to guarantee them
ten cents pound for their cotton,
when the market price is eight cents,
or for the Western grain growers to
insist on the Government guaranteeing
them 20 per cent more than the market
value of their grain. And it would be
more reasonable for the Government to
grant such demand of the cotton
planters and grain growers, because it
would benefit so much larger and
more deserving class Of people.
Next to these silver barons to profit
by such a change would come the
spectators and gamblers in Wall street,
whose chief business is to watch the
ups and downs in the money market,
to bull it or bear it, according to their
interest, and to take advantage ofevery
change. Give them an unstable and
functuating currency and they are in
their glory. But with sound and
stable currency their field of operation
is at least greatly curtailed.
A third class to profit by this change
would bs those in control of powerful
monopolies, such as Jay Gould and the
Vanderbilts It seems well-established
fact that 'The little Wizard of Wall
street." as the Herald always calls Jay
| Gould, made millions out of the recent
financial strlngency, himself doing his
full share to bring it on. He foresaw the
crisis approaching from afar, and by
means of his enormous railroad mono
poly, was able to hoard millions of
dollars-S700, 900 a month, it is said, for
several months. This in itself added
greatly to the stringency. But what is
much worse, it enabled Gould to step
in at the opportune moment with
these millions and extend his Shiny
cutie fish tenacles over thousands of
miles more Of our railroad system. The
control of such men as Jay Gould over
our railroads can hardly be regarded
| otherwise than one OF our most serious
| donoers in the Immediate future. They
are thus enabled to tax the entire peo-
pie to any extent they may desire to
procure the money necessary to bribe
legislators andjudges, to produce finan-
cial crises, and to accomplish whatever
other nefarious purposes they may de-
sire. Thus, too, our railroads, instead
of being managed for the public welfare,
as thew should be, are too often man
aged rather for public oppression.
| / h1p