The advocate and Topeka tribune., 1892-09-21
PERKINS VERSUS PERKINS.

Perkins undertook the discussion OF
the question of free coinage of silver,
and here is what he says:
/ want to show you, as believe can,
what the differences are in this country to-
day, and why free coinage bill would not
be an advantage to a single man here.
want to suggest that in my judgment the
last congress has better bill than free
coinage bill would be, as conditions are. Let
me discuss that for a moment or two,
although / can scarcely do it in that length
of time. How much silver is produced in
the United Ststes2 Last year the product
was 58,3O0,0O0 ounces. Under the law Of the
last republican congress the secretary of the
treasury was ordered to buy each month as
!, offered, 100000 ounces Of pure silver, and
4S authorized to pay for that silver in legal
tender notes, good everywhere, and more
desirable for business and commercial pur-
poses than the silver itself If you will
make the computation, you will find that in
the period of twelve months the secretary is
ordered to buy 54,COO,0OO ounces Of silver,
paying for it ss have suggested. That con-
sumes every ounce OF silver mined in the
United States last year, less 100000
ounces. You must remember in this con-
ne0tion that from 100000 to 100000
ounces are consumed in the United States
each year in the manufacture of jewelry and
tableware, and in the arts and sciences. So
that when you add the silver used in manu-
featuring purposes to what the secretary is
ordered by the law of the last republican
congress to buy, you will see that it con-
sumes every ounce of silver mined in the
United States, and more, and it goes into |
circulation as have suggested.
Now, when Mr.. Perkins made these
statements he knew very we'll that
they were not true, because, as we
propose to show, he himself exposed |
the sophistry of this pretense in a
speech in the house of representatives
when this very bill that he is talking
about was under consideration. He
showed very clearly at that time that
the feature providing for theredemp-
tion of the silver certificates would
result in taking them all out of circu-
lation, and that there WoHld be no in
crease whatever. The practical
operation of the law, as shown by
Senator Plumb in the United States
senate, is even worse than Mr.. Per-
kins represented it in his speech in
the house. Instead of the silver bull
lion being used to redeem the certiG-
Gates, as he predicted, the secretary |
exercises the discretion which the law |
gives him and redeems them in gold,
so that the bullion now locked in the |
treasury vaults must remain there
until congress provides, by special
legislation, to get it out. But Mr..
Perkins continues:
To-day silver is worth about 80 cents an
ounce. Say it is worth 30 cents. The score |
tary buys it, and il is at once put in circula- |
ton, as l have explained, and subsequently, |
the silver is coined into money, and we get |
the benefit when the advance comes.
Mr.. Perkins did not think it worth |
while to tell his hearers that when |
silver was demonetized in 1873 it was
at a premium above gold Of 3 per
cent. Nor did he deem it important
to tell them, as he did the house Of
representatives, that its demonetizs-
ton was a crime, or that this is the