The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1893-07-14
MIssTATEMENTs OF THE sILvERITEs.

mined to injure the cause of silver be-
fore the country by their incorporate
and injudicious advocacy of it. First.
they issued q warlike manifesto. in
which, with much other offensive rub
bish, they declared that it were better
that blood should run as deep as the
horses brides than that the liberties of
the country should perish. Apparently
%repentiDg of tia warlikc declaration
they have followed it with an address to
the people OF It's United States, appeal
ing to them in very fervid and wild
Western language to rally round the
silver standard and thereby save the
si%lver-mining States from utter and
remediless ruin.
1t would be difficult to point out all
the glaring misstatements,
assumptions and false arguments that
this address contains. but a few may be
referred to. The address speaks CT
''the bimetallic money standard pro-
vided by the Constitutions" The Con-
stitution does not provide for
any money standard. either mono
metallic or bimetallic. ItsimpIy provides
that Congress shall have power to coin
money and regulate the value thereof"
Under this, Congress has repeatedly
readjusted the value of coins and
The advocates of free silver coinage
hurt their cause by asserting that the
Constitution provides for u bime tallic
standard.
Again, the address declares that the
%stOppage of silver coinage In India was
forced upon the Indian government
without O moments warning" etc. The
records show that the matter had been
under discussion in India and Great
Britain ut intervals for nearly ten years
past, and that the order as finally issued
was based On the recommendation of n
parliamentary commission appointed
four years ago, and which, after full
consideration, reported unanimously in
favor of stopping the coinage of silver.
1t would be as truthful to say that the
German army bill is the work of a
secret conspiracy, or that the hOme-rule
bill is being surreptitiously forced
through Parliament, rs to assert that
the stoDpage of silver coinage was
forced upon the Indian government
without a moments warming"
Again, the address says "the enemies
of b~imetallism number all those who
oppose free coinage for silver alike with
gold" This is false. There are hun
dreds Of thousands of persons who are
opposed to the free coinage of silver at
the present ratio who are still in favor
of a bimetallic standard. The free coin
age of silver at the present ratio would
lead directly and inevitably to mono
metallism by placing the country on a
silver basis. BY far the most numerous
class of mOnometallists in the country
to-day are protested friends of bimet-
allism who favor free silver coinage at
the present ratio. The only way to
maintain bimetallism is to establish q
ratio of coinage by which the parity of
value between the gold and silver dollar
ear be maintained, and precisely that is
what the Incorporate advocates of free
coinage at the present ratio are op-
posed to.
The address says:
We say to you in the most solemn and
truthful manner that reliable statistics
prove that, including but legitimate itsms
in the account, the silver of Colorado costs,
by the time &c is on the market, not less
than Sl.29 per ounce.
Against this statement We put the fol-
lowing extract from a New York press
dispatch in the Journal of yesterday:
Regarding the silver question in the
West, the president of a prominent down
town bank received the f%Ollo letter
to-day from the head of q leading mercan-
tile house IN Denver. Col, which has deal
ings throughout the SILVER states: I'm re-
gard TO silver mining IN this State will say
that we candIdly believe the present situ-
alton has been very much exaggerated. and
that as soon as there Is any prospect for
obtaining definite price for silver q great
many of our mines will be operated on as
large q scale as formerly. This We say on
the superstition that the present price of
silver. say Is cents per ounce. is a reasons-
BILE price. as silver costs very nearly this
hgure to produce"
The Denver address says the silver of
Colorado costs 1920 per ounce TO put it
on the market. If that Is 80. they have
been selling silver ut a loss for nearly
fifteen years past. Do they expect the
country to believe they are such fools?
The statement of tho Denver merchant
fairly represents the average cost of
mining silver, about 75 cents per ounce,
as can be easily verified by many au-
thorities.
The Denver address contains other
misstatements and fallacies. but these
will suffice. 1t is largely an appeal to
the ignorance, the prejudice and the dis
honesty of those who prefer cheap
money to honest money, and an inflated
currency to a sound one. This question
must be settled in the interest of the
whole American people, and not of those
of the silver-mininR States alone. 1t
must be settled in the interest of pos
terity as well "a of those now living.
WHY BEHIND CLOSED DOORS7