The Goodland republic. [volume] (Goodland, Kan.) 1891-1907, 1892-08-26
A FAIR STATEMENT.
The Government From 1890 to 1873
Coined Silver a. 1t Does Gold
and Times were Good.
FREE COINAGE MEANS RELIEF TO LABOR,
What Would Happen II Silver was
Placed In Its old POsitiOn.-.On
SParlty with Gold.

Several readers send q request for infor-
nation on the silver question. They ASK
what the "free and unlimited coinage Of
silver" means, and "Wherein 1t would bene
1t the masses Of our G5,0OO,OOO Of people;
how much 1t would increase the circulating
medium, and what effect It would have on
general trade; and would 1t not benefit the
mining states At the expense Of the OtherS"
They AK also what 10 the amount Of money
In circulation.
The free aud unlimited coinage Of silver
means that the United States mlnts shall
coin all the oliver bEOLght 10 them at NO
other charge than the cost OF coinage, which
IL the tribe, any owner Of the metal being
allowed to deposit 1t at the mint and have II
coined on his account or receive NJ once it,
value IN silver money already coined.
The mints do this now with gold, and
from 1870 to 1873 they did II likewise with
silver. In other words, the free coinage OF
both metals was the rule and practice from
the establishment Of the mint down to 1873
eighty three years-when silver was prac-
ticaiy demOnetiEed by being dropped from
the cainaAe. Five years later, in 1878, under
the Bland Allison act, the right Of coinage
Was partially restored, and limited amount
Of iyer--nOt less than S2,OOO,OO nor more
than "a, 900, 600 q mOnth-was authOrlZ u to
be coined on the account Of the government,
the government buying the metal at It's
| cOmmerClah price, about seVenty-thTee to
eighty cents for the dollars worth, and
thereby making twenty 70 twenty'SeNen
cents on every dollar coined
This practice prevailed Till 1890, when the
| existing sherman bullion act WAS passed +,
which stopped the coinage " silver dollars
entirely, aud at present gold IL the Onl y one
| Of the two metals allowed to be coined
The ratio Of silver to gold in this c"untry
| ia sixteen 10 One-siNteen ounces OF SILVER
being equAl IN value TO one ounce OF gold :,
but owing TO the increased demand foI golu
IN Europe consequent on the deInOnetlEa
ton Vt silver, the increasing consumption 0i
It In the arts, and the insufficient production
OF It in the world, that metal has become
valuable above the ratio, and at this time
gold IL worth $40 10 the dollar In silver
The practical eject Of this Is to Increase Al
funded debts 30 per cent, or, which IL th'
same thing, 10 reduce the prices Of all pro-
ducts and property 30 per cent, result
which falls upon all producing and debtol
classes and Interests,
IfEIlyer coinage were made free this pre-
MUM on funded Indebtedness would Ola
appear, silver would become the STANDARD
for measuring debts, since the debtor WOult
have restored to him the option Of paving II
ROld or silver, and the prices Of all product
would he pT0pOrtIOnately advanced. Iher'
would follow also an increase OF the supp,
of money in cirCulGti0n-for all the sllYe
that might he offered ut the minis would III
coined into money instead OF being used, q
now, IA a basis for bullion certificates. In
more good metal muney-gOld and liver
A country has the better for the people, 10
the inVarabIe effect Of an abundant suppl
N 10 stimulate enterprise, tacilitrte That IN
terchAnge Of products which we call tFnfnl
increase production and multiply comfort
among the people, whereas scarcity, q
money, Nv everyone knows, Is attended D
gtagnati m, inactivity and hard times.
The silver product Of our own mines !
1891 il estimated 1T 81, $50 900 ounces, worth
At IN coming value, SUI, 4Ol ,O61, but at y
commercial value only $J1 ,0aO,04O IN
difference, over l7,0O00OO, was u loss 10 IN
silver producing states. The passage OF
free silver coinage act would raise thel
! silver product from It's commercial to II
coming value, an increase OF about W pc
! cent, but the silver states would not he III
| only brncfciaries Of the measure, for
! would destroy the gold premium ~ ~ pt
cent on the 8,0OO, 00O,0O In funded indebl
\ P0ntfA ~ ont hlUl aUtl Hu''n'l
/ the people, and payable, first and last. l
] the products NJ their labor. II would &C
/ comphsh this by restoring to them the rl9l
taken away from them IN 1919 Of paving
the cheaper Of tn two metals, which Is u
I yer. Il2I grains 10 the dollar, instead oi D.
ing compelled, as they now are, to pay
gold, or in silver and paper valued by Il
. gold standard Of 81 40 tn the dollar.
II Is true silver Is still legal tender, an
q debtor may pay his obIig ltion' to al
D., amount in silver, silver certificates, greer
1 backs or bank notes; but all paper money
49, redeemable in silver, and silver Is measure
not by the anci mt original silver dollar,
It ought to he, but in gOld-for the govern
ment, under the Bland llison act, coin,
the silver which II bought for into ia
thereby forcing the people 10 pay IN labo
or the products Of their labor, $l.3O 4
every silver dollar they yet.
~ Free silver coinage, on perfect equal
"a with gold coinage, ~ II existed Tor q
q, eighty.three years prior to 1879, IL the on
d remedy for this injustice. II would indie
Il practically taFe of 80 per cent from
funded debts; but this would only be TAXI
on what was wTOngfuly put on, and maxi
debts PAYABLE at 100 cents TO the dollar,
new. Another effect Of II would be 10 a
p vance the price Of labor, products Al
property by measuring them In silver
stead Of dear gold.-Southern Alliance ia