Wood River times. [volume] (Hailey, Idaho) 1882-1915, 1892-05-19
A BlNErALLIC STANDARD.
How an International Agreement Con.
ccrnipg 1t May b. Brought About.

How On International Agreement Con.
corning 1t May b. Brought About.
While claiming to be friend Of
American industries, the Engineering
and Mining Journal Of New York,
which is, unfortunately for the coun.
try, the foremost mining periodical in
the world, always advocates views
which We Of the West consider very
unfavorable, if not actually hostile, to
our interests.
For instance, it accepts and even
suggests the free traders views Of the
supposed benefits Of . free inter-
change of products between nations.
II also advocated, and still favors, the
FREQ admission of Mexican lead ores.
This is Of course . natural conse.
quence Of its free trade views. On
tho silver question it distinctly sgrees
with the gold.bug side.
With this perhaps unnecessary ex.
planat,on BY way of warning to our
readers, We quote the following 70.
cent addition to silver literature ~
possibly tending to show what may be
ate mpted to be done at the interna-
tional monetary conference:
1t has just been announced that
"Great Britain will accept our invita-.
ton to take part in an international
conference to discuss the silver ques.
ton with the veiw of examining
into what measures can be taken to in.
crease the use OF silver in the cur.
rency systems of the nations" but the
Chancellor Of the Exchequer adds,
"the government would not commit
itself in any way to any actual prin>
ciple."
While we have but little hope that
any practical advantage will come
from the conference, except in making
still clearer tho views of other nations
on this question, it is certain that the
only means BY which the value of
silver can be maintained At even its
present low figure Is by an
international agreement, fixing a
ratio between silver and gold, at
which each of the nations will accept
either metal Is offered. 1t is quite
certain tina. the old standard of l6 to
l OF 154 to / will not be accepted,
but. if We could induce European
nations to adopt for q period of, say,
20 years . ratio Of 20 to it would
still be . great advantage to u., for
without such agreement tho value OF
silver is certain to decline to q much
lower point. This, of course, would
involve loss on all cur silver coinage
of little over 20 per cent, and a
still heavier loss on coinage based on
the ratio of l5t to l, but this loss
would fall upon the government, that
is, on the whole people, and would be
merely nominal insofar as the token
value of silver coins exceeds the
actual cost to the government of the
metal contained in them.
For this country single handed to
endeavor to support the price of sill
yer at its present ratio with gold
would be pure folly and financial
madness. Every other country would
dump its silver on rs, A. Mr.. E. o.
I.eech, Director of the United States
Mint, has clearly demonstrated they
would do, regardless of an apparent
loss in SO doing. Once We were
loaded down and had riveted on the
chains Of our commercial bondage to
the gold-stsndard countries, We could
never get an international agreement
on any such advantageous basis.
Possibly even q ratio Of 40 to l would
not then be acceptable to those who
would naturally make our return to
the worlds standard, and to our com.
mercial independence, as difficult ~
possible.
The single silver standard, with
silver worth, perhaps, so cents in gold
per ounce, with corresponding trib-
ute to be paid Oh oil foreign transact
tons, and the chief loss coming on
the wage Garner and the debtor
classes of this country, would be the
inevitable results of free coinage here
without the cooperation Of foreign
nations.
A very different course should be
adopted to induce European countries
to join in bi,netallic standard agree.
ment. Let US rather notify them that
unless such an agreement is made we
intend to accumulate large quantities
of gold, and to stop buying silver.
and make them understand that this
country will never adopt free coinage
unless other countries join it.
Then England's enormous inter.