The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1892-07-06
WILL IT BE A yETOY
What Reason Could tina President Civ
for On0Y

what Reason Could thu President Give
for One2
To THE INDEPENDENT: A bill for tho un-
limited coinage OF silver has passed the
United States senate and will unquostion-
ably soon pass the house. and then 20 to the
president for his--veto, M now seems more
than possible. What reason can the presi-
dent give for vetoing this bill? There are
but two that can be assigned by him for
such an act with any seeming force.
First-That IL will prevent results in the
international monetary conference which 10
in process Of being called BY this admins
~tration.
second-T That IL will disturb the present
financial arrangement Or condition OF the
country.
In respect to the frst. This conferences
will have no power to guarantee that one
single nation participating will abide by
its findings or decisions. The absnrdity OF
any real benefit accruing to silver I, ON the
concern it's existence. OF all the leading
civilized nations Of tho earth, most of which
have tardily consented to DO represented,
not one has taken an active part in
shown an earnest desire for its sx;;
istence. except the United States. And
they have only consented to be represented
by the opportunities OF the United
States, q nation which produces more
than double the amount OF silver Of that Of
any other nation, and they viewing it az the
effort of this country to increase the value
of one of it's chief products, and being NJ
ready jealous of the growing prosperity and
commercial Importance of this nation. Such
a nation as England would willingly forego
any advantages the restoration OF, silver to
its place as money might be to her indus
trial GLASSES. in order to prevent the VASTLY
greater financial and commercial advan-
tages that euch a restoration would bring to
this country, and would. by her opposition,
prevent the desi. ed result of harmonious
action in the interests of silver. as was the
case in the two preceding international
conferences in silver's interest which we're
held Immediately subsequent to the de-
basement of silver from its place as money,
and at a time when the desirability of its
restoration was more apparent to these
nations, on account of the monetary dis
turbances following the demonetlzinR acts
Of 1879.
This 'monetary conference effort has
always been the most deadly weapon used
against the welfare Of our people, for whom
ever there has been almost successful effort
on the part of the people to secure from
congress such action as would largely in.
CREASE the volume of sound money by the
restoration Of silver and opening our mints
to its coinage, then comes the cry of q sure
and immediate monetary conference" In
the inter sts of silver and generally oriRi-
mating at the head of some of the depart
ments OF the government, seemingly inlu-
enced or controlled by the gold monomet-
alists of New York and London. And this
conference zeal 10 continued as long as
there is danger of the passage of a free
coinage bill, and when that danger 10 over
the conference boom ends with it.
The most that could possibly be expected
from such a conference after it had taken
action, and that action the most favorable
for silver, would be to recommend the re-
stricted coinage of silver, at a much less
comparative ratio with gold than has ex-
listed from the foundation Of our govern
ment down to its decentralization in 1873.
Should l venture a prediction On the pres
ent conference. it would be, if a meeting is
held, prior to the fall elections in this coun-
try. it will meet and after some preliminary
business adjourn until after our fall cleo
tions then meet again fail to agree, and ad-
journ ''sine die"
Is there imminent danger that such a law
will disturb the present financial condition
of the country against the welfare OF the
people2 If 40, in what way? Is it from an
enormou influx of silver?
100000 ounces in its distributing markets.
is either in coin or plate. The silver Of
Asia il forever lost to Us. Europe has
about 81, 100, 0OO.0 600 in silver coin. in (which
the silver bullion is worth $1.30 per ounce.
This coin 10 mostly in circulation in tho
hands of the people, to whom all the silver
in it ia worth that amount per ounce. The
balance is in the banks. held s security
for paper circulation. And here let me say
that if we had every dollar of the silver
lars, in addition to the gold. silver and pa
per money already here, this nation would
then have $40 per capita'' less than
France. a nation whose people are more
prosperous than those of any other nation on
earth, and who, with her $500. 600, 1000 in
coined silver has drawn from England and
Germany, with their gold basis, over
500, 100000 in gold, moe than she has re-
turned to them in the last ten years; and
France to day has more than twice as much
gold as Germany and nearly double the
gold of England, and still keeps all her sill
yer. The silver IN coin in Europe will net
come to us, but it would add greatly to the
prosperity of our people il it would, and it
is folly to think for a moment that We
could get the silver plate OF Europe to put
II increasing the volume Of good money
which this bill provides for. is dangerous
to the best interests of our people, then T
have studied monetary history in vain.
That this bill, if it becomes the law of
the land. would place and keep silver at
that ratio with gold as it is in our dollar
coins. or at the value of $l.29 per onuce, il
proven by the monetary history Of the
present epoch, those converssnt with that
history, we'll know that France. a country
VIII k6Sh tuhA Ouo-toutut uo area, ana DRlf
the population of the United states, pre-
served single handed that ratio etwee
these metals. throughout the world, for
over sixty years, from 1900. to 1861, which
period included the times of the greatest
fluctuations in the cooperative production
of these metals that the civilized world has
ever seen, embracing the early days of Cali
fornia and Australian; simply by keeping
her minis open equally to both metals at
this ratio, exactly what this bill provides
for Us.
BY the veto Of this bill the president Of
the United States would assume the re-
sponsibility of setting up his single OPINION
sud will against the wishes of the people,
IA expressed by the action of their repres-
entatlves. in a matter of vital importance
to their welfare. He will be backed BY the
money owners. the gold mono-metallists of
New York and London, and by most of the
leading journals of the east, which a,e
owned or controlled by them; it ia greatly
to their interest to oppose the restoration
of silver, for the value of their money will
appreciate by its continued scarcity, and
this means the still further depreciation of
all the products of labor of our farmers and
planters in the production of our wheat,
cotton and corn. and in the value of every
farm and home in the country, The
present scarcity of money in the United
States Is injurinR most OF the business in
terests Of the entire country and has
crippled many of our western enterprises
and in forcinu vaat nnnharc-T kh;rL T ,,,u