Kansas agitator. [volume] (Garnett, Kan.) 1890-1905, 1892-03-10
FREE COINAGE OF SILVER.
An Extract from the Majority Report OF
the House Coinage Committee.

The majority report of the house com
mittee on coinage. weights and measure
on the Bland silver coinage bill 'liScnsse'
the various objections made against free
coinage. and shows how free coinagt
would greatly benefit this country.
After providing for the free coinage
of silver. the report says i. is pro
vidc.l that the silver be of standard fine
ness to meet the cost of the alloy used
the alloy being all the expense now eX
acted of depositors of gold. Coin notes
may be issued on the gold or silver de
posted, if demanded. instead of waiting
for the coin. The committee raised the
maximum denominations of these notes
from $500 to $1,000. so us to accommo
date dealing in large transactions ano
bank exchanges
These notes are made legal tender, re-
deemable in coin on demand. The bill
provides for the conversion OF all oul
gold and silver notes into coin notes, re-
deemable in coin. thus doing away en-
tirely with all legal distinctions. 1t is
believed this will greatly tend to pro
mote equality i'll all respects. There vii
be no longer issued gold or silver notes
but bimctallic notes payable i'll either
coin at the pleasure of the government.
The report says it is contended thai
the reason we exported silver bullion
while our mints were still open to its
free coinage was that our ratio was sucE
that bar coin and bullion silver was
worth more as compared to gold al
European minis than here. and that the
same results would again follow oul
ratio remaining ut IL to l. with ths
French minis open to free coinage al
1913 to |. This. it is held, would prevent
European nations, especially France
from again returning to the bimetalliC
system. To avoid this the committee
provided that our ratio should be
changed to 49, to so soon as France
resumes free silver coinage at that
ratio.
The report then, under the head "Ths
Dump of Silver" proceeds to discus
sion of the cry that free coinage OF sill
yer would make the United States the
dumping ground for the silver OF the
world, and says:
THE familiar warning that free coin
age would cause shiploads OF silver from
other countries to be brought here anC
dumped ut our mints in exchange fol
our gold is still urged. How can this b.
under the bill or proposed law? The
shipload of silver brought to our mint'
by the foreigner would be coined int
standard dollars and these dollars re
turned to him. but he could not go tt
our treasury and demand gold for them
Nor could he compel one of our citizens
to swap him gold dollar for Il silver
dollar; that is voluntary trade that nc
law ought to interfere with.
'Should the foreigner take coin note!
for his bullion instead of coin, the same
thing happens. He can take his COLI
notes to the treasury and demand re
demption. but the notes are redeemabl'
in coin and the secretary of the treasury
could hand him back. the coin STRUCK
from his shipload of bullion. The for
eigner then would ascertain that he haC
committed tie blunder of bringing sill
yer to our minis when it is worth three
cents on the dollar less than it was a
home and that he loses this three cent
and cost Of transportation besides
What then will he do with his money
He must either invest il III propert,
here or 20 home with it. He could no
buy gold with it or gold exchange un
less gold and silver were at par; in thi
case there could be no reason for pre-
: ferring the one metal to the other. |
gold went to IL premium he would hav