The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1892-05-02
A SILLY THREAT.

The resolutions of the Colorado Repub-
licans describe the fight made by the
representatives of Colorado in congress
for free silver Is representing not only the
sentiment OF the Republican party in
Colorado, but also of the whole Rocky
mountain mining regions.
Senator Teller in recent speech gave
notice that If the Republican party stands
for the gold standard, the four silver pro-
ducing states-Colorado, Nevada. Idaho
and Montana-wilI no longer act with that
party.
Senator Sanders, of Montana, rose i'm
mediately and objected to Mr.. Teller's as
sumption so far as Montana was con-
cerned. Mr.. Teller's threat will not bull
doze the Republican party into voting at.
Minneapolis for monetary imitation and
national disaster that would accrue from
the free coinage of silver. The loss Of
thirteen votes from these silver producing
states is better than the advocacy Of
financial policy that would mean CONNER
ciai disaster to every state in this Union.
No political party can afford to plant
itself upon a platform that stands for
financial fraud. Free coinage Of
silver means the announcement to
the world that the United States
are willing to pay $L29 per ounce
for silver that is quoted today in the mar
kets of the world at s6@S7 cents an ounce.
The first effect of this, of course, would be
the disappearance of gold, which would
mean temporary contraction and deadly
blow to all enterprise and business. Free
silver would make us forced buyers Of
silver at an exaggerated value. which is
just as clearly swindle on the American
people as 1t would be to make rs the forced
buyers of the worlds potatoes at an ex-
aggerated value. Gold would go to
premium just as surely as gold went to q
premium in 1862, when we made our first
war issues of greenbacks.
The silver dollar. as compared with gold,
would be looked upon as a metallic green
back. When the government issued the
greenback in 1862 the Pacific coast was
prompt to protect itself from deprecated
paper issues by making all money con.
tracts payable in gold. Does any man of
business sense suppose that if there was
free coinage Of silver tomorrow that any
Stree silver" advocate would lend money
payable in anything but goldf If he
would not how transparent is the motive
Of these Stree silver" men; they want to
initiate the currency with cheap silver, but
they do not want to be "silver dollared"
any more than they wanted to be green.
backed" in 1862.
The pretense that the free coinage of
silver would raise the price of silver to
$L29 an ounce is completely disproved
by our experience. The Sherman act Of
July. 1890, doubled the government pur-
chase of silver. Last year, 1891, the pro-
duct of silver from our own mines was
50, $4,000 fine ounces, of the commercial
value of $57, $50, 04O or of the coming value
in silver dollars of ,565. This is an
increase of 3,S30,000 ounces over the prior
year. The amount of silver bought by the
government during the year was 81 1893, 9l2
fne ounces, costing $50, zoe, 1873. The aver
age cost Of the silver bought during the
year was $09s9 per fine ounce. The
average cost of the total amount bought
under the act of July IA, 1890, has
been sl.02 per fine ounce. The price of
silver at the beginning of the calendar
year 1891 was $1.05s per fine ounce. and at
the close, December 81, it was s0.955 Der
fine ounce. The average price for the cali
endar year was $3.50 per fine ounce. At
the date of the passage of the act of July
IA. 1890, the price of silver was $1.07H per
fine ounce; at the date the law went into
effect it had advanced to S1.13. The high
est point touched was August 10, 1880,
$l.21 per fine ounce. The lowest point
touched was in March, 1892, $0.s5X per
fine ounce. Today silver is worth about
s7@s71S.
In the face of these metallic facts the
threat of Colorado is but a free silver fly
on the great wheel of the Republican party.
Free silver coinage is a fraud, because its
advocates expect that with free coinage
the silver standard would take the place
of the gold standard, and existing indebt-
edness, which can now only be discharged
by currency on parity with gold, would
be discharged in deprecated currency.
In bther words. that the creditor class
would be robbed for the benefit of the
debtor class.
The result of free coinage of silver would
be to cause silver dollars and legal tender
silver currency to part company with
gold, just as greenbacks and gold parted
company in 1862.
Colorado stands politically for financial
stupidity or financial rascality Just as
clearly as Mississippi did more than fifty
years ago when she sold the people of
Holland 5000 600 worth of her bonds and
then repudiated her debt, and to this day
refuses to pay it The people of Missis-
sippi were some of them fools and some of
them knaves in enacting this swindle. and
the people of the silver producing states in
urging free silver are convicted of a lack of
common sense. or a lack Of moral sense.
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RETALIATION ON CANADA.