The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1892-12-04
POOR OUTLOOK FOR SILVER
Congressman Bland Says the Brussels
Conference Will Accomplish Nothing.
he Thinks All the Bullion in the Treasury
Ought to Be Coined Into Cheap Dollars
Rothschild's Plan to Be Amended.
He Does Not Think the Monetary Confer
ence Will Benefit silver Barona

He Does Not Think the Monetary Confer
ence Will Benefit Silver BaronA
WASHINGTON, Dec. s. Represen tative
Bland. chairman of the House coinage
committee and the champion of free
coinage of silver, was asked by q
reporter what he thought would be
the effect of the failure of the information
al monetary conference TO agree on any
thing. He replied: II don't see that it
would have any effect one way or the 9TH
or. / never regarded it as amount
ing TO anything more than q make-shift
to tide over the election and perhaps
help movement to demonetize silver. l
have always regarded 1T as having those
objects in view. moro than any real ex-
peotation of doing good to silver. / don't
think the public generally expect much of
it,"
"Doyou expect anything from the con.
ferencei"
81 do not; and (decisivelv) 1 never have"
Suppose that the conference should fail,
and that proposition should then be-
made to repeal the Sherman law, what
thenr'
That will be proposed any way. pre-
sumo. / am in favor of repeating it if we
cannot get something better for silver.
don't like the Sherman law myself. At the
time IL was proposed / stated on the
floor Of the House and in my report that
it would not increase the value OF silver or
tend to promote it's restoration as money;
that it would be failure in that respect.
Yet you might say it Is connecting link
Between tS,sl demenessatGn and ,S1ns some
would be bad policy to repeal it unless we
can do something else at the same time.
Our bill and tho Stewart bill repealed the
Sherman law. but substituted free coin
age"
silver leRislationW
IL would not like to express any opinion
on that. because do not know how men,
bers feel. From the way they voted last
session there is not much prospect Of It."
Aside from free coinage what plan can
YOU suggest that would improve the finan-
cial situationp
Il would 60 TO work and coin ell the
bullion which has been purchased. That
would be great relief. because it would
would show that we are determined to
fixed ratio"
..It." added Mr.. Bland. with a signifi.
canoe that may appeal to the economists of
the House. would be the means by which
a deficiency in the treasury could be
mes All the bullion we have in
the treasury uuQer the present policy
might just as we'll be dumped
into the p otomac, so far as making money
of 1t is con cerned. 1t is treated as q COM
modify. and as treated by the Treasury
now it is much dead capital.
We have purchased since the Sher-
man law went into effect nearly 1885,
100000 ounces of silver which would
coin about Sl62. 100000. Rating the pur-
chases at an average price OF 90 cents an
ounce. we would gain. approximate
ly, Sl0,0000O0 on coinInR the bullion.
which would bridge over any difficulty
arising from the deficiency in the treasury
the coming fiscal year, so that we need not
issue bonds, nor take any other steps than
coming the bullion TO provide ourselves
with needful funds"
Don't you think the proposition to make
silver legal tender up to f5 shows a more
liberal disposition towards silver on the
part of Great Britains"
That wouid make il q subsidiary cur
rency: nero token. Any proposition that
does not make it full legal tender 10 not
making money of it, What Great Britain
wants il to drive the United States to de-
monetize silver: to make IL simply q sub
sidiary currency. Whay we should do is
to drive Great Britain to the use of
silver money. And We could do 1t
We would only have to mako money
cf silver. and Great Britain would have
to act with u. for il has too many