New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1892-01-12
4 DEVOCPATTC EVASION

Everybody expects lodges when the Demo
cratic party comes to he front. If tricky evasion
ever becomes a substitute for craftsmanship, that
party will have some qualifications for power.
Hence no one is surprised that the " settle
mcnt' Of the silver question proposed by Demo
| cratic leaders IS q postponement OF the whole
business until after the Worlds Fair at Chicago,
on tho pcteIt that conference Of delegates
from commercial nations may be held there while
| tho Exhibition is IN progress and may -cyise
some mode of international accord.
| This scheme is pcomn. ended 10 Democratic
! partisans by one feature which will make it OBJ
jectionable 10 all who care moro for the welfare
of the country than for the success of party. 1t
will tend TO prevent any Success Of the inquiries
and negotiations which have been quietly con-
Quoted by the Administration for some time past,
| looking toward a partial but more speedy, CO.
operation Of foreign. Powers. If the United States
should formally invite those Powers 10 a great
conference on the main question more than
year hence they would lie not at all likely 10
hamper themselves by entering into any new ar
ransements adopting any modified policy at
an earlier date. BY voting 70 postpone, Congress
would make sure that no good could result from
the efforts Of the Administration and that would
please Democratic partSlnA. while il would leave
the whole question open until after the next
Presidential election. If the proposed conference
were really intended TO accomplish anything.
there is no reason why il should not be held
within two months. Waiting until the Worlds
Fair occurs is merely a shallow Bit of capuap.
A deeper objection to this scheme is that in
ternationa conferences on this question have
been held in 1878 and again in 1881. They
were not quite fmitleSs only because they seemed
to demonstrate cOncmSiycly that full intcrna-
tiOna agreement aS 70 coinage is impraccable so
long as the United States appears TO tend to-
ward free coinage. The conditions have changed
it is true but only 50 as to render the agreement
of England and the United Hatcs, of Germany
and France rather less pract able than it was
before. This country has pilel up over $780,
600, 900 ofSilvcr in Treasury vaults and has
developed 50 strong leaning toward unlimited
Coinage of silver that Eng land begins 10 count
upon great advantages to flow from the dis
organization Of currency in the United States
The silver mines of the world have been stimu-
lated by American purchases t. greater prOduc-
tion, 50 that the excess Of yearly output over
the worlds actual requirements is larger than
it was ten years ago.
The chance Of agreement between nations on
the main issue. 50 long as this country appears
almost ready to provide at its own mintS mar
kot for all the surplus silver Of the world and
TO take upon its own shoulders the tremendous
task Of controlling The bullion markets of all
nations, is about as remote any can be. No
statesman, not even any public man Of average
sense would think Of making the policy of the
Government for two Yeas or more depend on
such n chance, if it were not for purely partisan
objects. This is 50 Obvious that il may well be
doubted whether foreign Powers would consider
The invitation worthy OF notice. "lct Democracy
get power first and then it Will settle the silver
question as it may choose WAS he advice of
Senator Vest. Accordingly, the lIst duty If a
Democratic Administration, il one should be in
augirated, might not improbably he to receive
the polite regrets Of nations that have not time or
money TO waste in make-bccyc conferences ON
question which the party then il power here
would propose to settle for all the world accord
ing to It's own notion.
1t would be just as well that this question
should be fairly submitted TO the people Of all
tho States at a Presidential election as it was to
the people Of Ohio last November. SO much
noise has been made hy the advocates of free
coinage that legislators in this country are
strongly influenced, and representatives Of other
nations would be strongly influenced in the abb