Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1892-02-04

chased behind it as eecu-i,y for is ,sdem2-
tion, although the government is ftsdtoj y,
redeem ii in coin, either gold or Silver. b~s
entirely az the discretion of tho sec. 4tssy of
the treasury. IL is, OF course, rec.ivsbio
ct par for public lands, interna; rovesue
and for oil duties on imports. Wa hsv,
hitherto been uble to float all of tho divesss
and multtuGinous varieties Of our lsSsi s*a-
der paper now in circulation q, par Wit.
gold because our stock OF god lee be~i
large, and also because o1chsnSrs arising
from foreign trade have generally SON ia
our favor. We have, therefore, ksso st
home not merely the American proau.rS OF
gold, but have mado the gold of Olsen ma
tions tributary to our resources. Utlimit-
cd coinage Of silver would gre us emily
3ut grains OF pure silver in tao dollar,
while az its present price Of vi coats per
ounce we buy 80 grains for 81, and ut tho
redemption OF all l5gai tender pspsc, when
paid in silver, will be paid, rs it Car be
now with dollar containing only 571t
grains of pure silver, equal to 41Ss grains
of silver nine tenths fine, at prc.ent value
at "a cents.
Free coinage Is naked Vt position by
which TO throw the loss by tee o1is.iuv and
papable depreciation OF silver fl onl tie sill
yer corporations, FIRST upon tie eovora.ncat
aud then upon the whole public. The gov
ernrDeut Is TO isSuo its prouiissDry notes OF a
dollar for cyory 37lt grams Of pure sive:
brought to Its nints. ultimately these
nctes, being legal tender, will circulate and
get into the hands OF the people, whom tao
sovernmedt viii be poweriess TO shield from
bearing tho final and main pruns OF silver
depreciation.
The United States product OF silver in
1890 was e., 1JO 600 ounces and its coinage
value was SO, 4G4, G4J. The deposits and
purchases OF silver last year q eyre gated n
S4O Cos standard ounces OF the coinage
value of $50, $50, 1j4, Beyond the Ameri-
can product therefore, il will be seen that
there has been and will be u serious influx
OF foreign silver to be reckoned IN any IN
limited free coinage account. Tho idea that
we could malntalu such an annual increase
OF silver doilars on parity with god would
seem TO DE ouiy worthy of those WAC havo
iath in looking for O silver spoon at the emu
OF every rainbow.
No advocate Of unlimited coinage Of sill
yer will De likely to claim that our standard
silver dollar would have in any other coun-
try value exceeding that OF its weight az
silver bullion, and America would thus
have opened her mints, US the greatest goose
of tho age, to be plucked at will. Our ac-
ton on silver would have equal potency III
India TO that OF the pope's bull on tho
comet, and more. The idea that the
United States alone can by any legislative
necromancy lift the value of So, SIC, 0O0 900
OF silver throughout the world to u parity
with gold would be miracle too great to
lind acceptance until after the exit of the
18th century. While nearly all business
men to be met with, having a real daily use
for money, and no matter to what political
| party attached, undertand and protest
against unlimited silver coinage, how long
would the great mass of cur people, with
whom business men are in constant touch,
| be likely to be contented with OF humbuggs
| by it t.? With free and unlimited coinage OF
| both gold and silver, what owner of gold
bullion would take it to miut OF tho
United States, when gold coin is worth no
more than gold bullion, and receive back
coins for circulation in the same truckle- bed
with silver of % to 30 per cent less value !?
If anyone Went, he would go like the school
boy. "whistling aloud TO keep his courage
] up, and such visits would DO few and far
! between.
Oar European rivals in wealth and power
are eager to clutch the large possessions OF
gold we have so long firmly held, and which
they fondly hope are by some queer sui
Inc astute governments Of Europe, with
sound financial discretion, tolerate silver,
and good deal OF silver but only as sub
sidary coinage; and while they may admit
that American enterprise has accomplished
many Herculean tasks they have no faith in
our annual output OF $50, O00, 900 or $50,
OOO, OOU OF paper money on basis Of silver,
aad still less faith that America alone can
| by unlimited free coinage increase either
the value or the stability Of silver, but if
| attempted, they are persuaded that Brother
Jonathan will have put on the poisoned
shirt of Nessus and they looI upon the i'm
pending closure of our cerear in Hsrculean
enterprises with sublime compacency.
1t appears to me that unlimited coinage
OF silver by the United States alone is preg
nant with the exile OF gold and dire imam
clal calGmities AS the experience OF all tho
leading nations has demonstrated, gold is
the most potential monetary fundamentally
yet discovered by man. lp memorable
speech OF the senior senator from Nevads
Cur Jones' in 1874 its merits we're elo-
gently set forth as follows: 80 exact Il
measure s 1t OF human effort that when it
IS exclusively used as money it teaches tho
very habit of honesty. 1t neither deals in
nor tolerates false pretenscs. 1t cannot lie.
1t keeps its promises TO rich and poor
alike
Let me add that without gold to uphold
such money Gs we now have IN circulation,
American industries, comme.cJ and char
acter would ali be sure to suffer sad de-
cadence and the republic itself would drop
from the elevated rank it nov holds anon =
nations,
Tho silver measure of the last Congress,
as it appears to me, WAS Il very broad and
possibly very extrayagant concession to
the great corporations owning American
silver mines, and too Hearty approaching
the dangerous line of doing too much. Ez-
perienco may show some conservative Iloli-
hcatlons to be imperative. And yet some
OF the silver advocates are not satisfied, aal
insist upon something ovon more e&trava-
CANT than the original ac;. The silver cor
poratious decorated and to be decorated
with numerous foreign stockholders, hunger
for st.i! larger gains. One-halt sheer profit
in the production OF silver only whsts the
appetite for more. They want tee govern
ment to give them free coinage, which will
be about Ssh per cent above the market
value OF SILVER bullion, and also to bear tho
| cost of COinnua and tina raspouHllilisy of Ill