The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1893-05-02
THE FOLLY OF FREE COINAGE.

The Ogden trans Mississippi convention
passed the following resolutions:
Resolved, That we demand that .hs congress
OF the United States immed .ste.y reopen the
minis of our country to the Tree sSe unlimited
coinage q both silver and geld OF equal terms
At the present ratio Of sixteen to 'aua. and that
the government use coins OF both nasais with.
out discri rninstion.
Resolved, That we are uuaiferahy opposed to
the re peal OF what is known es the Sherman sill.
yer purchasing act until it 10 :.laced with .
Law providing Tor such freq AID unlimited
coinage.
There were but forty-sevsn vQt"s against
these resolutions. which were vigorously
and ably opposed by john +. Irish. the
brilliant editor Of the Alta Chliformidn.
Col. Irish to no purpose roinsed out the
utter absurdity Of the howl concerning
the demonstration of silver through the
act of 1873; that the silver dol ar was prac-
tically unknown in the mats of the
United States for nearly thirty years be-
demonetized it had been practically obso-
lete for third Of q century. Only eight
millions of silver were co.. ned In the first
eighty-four years of this counsrs's history.
Mr.. Irish ought to have iurn*G on United
States Senator Stewart, of Nevada, and
asked him why he votei for this act of
1873. which he did as cheer$uily as did
John Sherman.
The act of 1873 was in discussion before
congress many months hefors its passage
in February, 1873; it was printed several
times and was fairly talked to death.
Nobody deemed it other .hap wise meas
ure until the increased production of sil-
yer and its demonstration b. continental
Europe forced the fal. OF the price
of silver bullion. Then and rot till then
did the silver lobby beein to iatswl for free
coinage Of silver until they succeeded in
passing the Bland-All:son ret of 1873,
which has since been replaced by the oil.
yer purchase act of 1897
The demand of this Ogden convention
that the United States shall order the free
ana unlimited coinage of silver at the
ratio Of 16 to means that the United
States shall pay 100 cents Cor every "a
cents worth Of silver bullion presented for
coinage. The United States adopted the
parity of l6 to 1 when years ago she coined
the gold dollar of 25s grains weight and
the silver dollar Of 4l2I grains weight and
10 per cent. alloy.
The real parity today is scout Is to 1.
At the market price fer bullson the silver
dollar of 4l21I grains contains about g.
cents worth of bullion. Th4s free coinage
of silver means that any holder Of silver
bullion can take it 10 the United States
mint and get il coined laso dollars"
which while containing hut about g.
cents worth of bullion ars legal tender
for 100 cents.
Thus free coinage OF silver means that
the United States government should pay
between IS and So cents ab1vs the market
for silver; free silver n cane the sale to the
United States of 81 cents' wurth of bullion
and getting In exchange a coin that is
legal tender for 100 cents.
Can any sane man tell wing the govern
meut of the United S. ates should pay for
silver bullion the price of twenty years
ago, any more than ii sho4l'; pay for any
other commodity the price # twenty years
agof Can any sane mas tell why we
should take the silver of tie world and
pay IS cents above the MAJ ket for it. any
more than We should take she potatoes of
the world and pay 81 cents above the mar.
ket for themf
We were on sound ground when We
passed the act of 1873, but tho silver lobby
forced the passage q the bland act in
February, 1873, when the a.G,,ion value of
the silver dollar was about 81 cents The
price OF silver steadily decilned until 1889,
when the silver dollar was in bullion value
worth about 70 cents. Thea came another
howl for free silver and sbe compromise
act of $780, The purchasa If silver was
doubled, and yet the prize OF silver has
been steadily going dowE from about 81
cents 10 81 cents fer the standard silver
dollar.
The government had ps6 from 1873 to
the end of December. ls92 FIR silver s424.-
$40. 495. and had Issued $3.50. $50 1877 of
notes, aud by depTe eiaticA the value Of
this silver had been reduced 10 1858, i42,.
$50 causing q loss of ST So. SIS to the
country.
OF the 36l, 500, sos silver dollars coined
since ISIS only 6,i5s 40 oege in circuia-
ton. And yet in fac Of these facts this
Ogden convention is not 3ly unwilling 10
stop the purchase 81 silver. hut is anxious
that there should he free silver coinage
which means that tls gov.rnment should
nay loo cents TO ev5,y maa who presents
"a cents worth Of yer 10 ion for coin.
age; that is, tie y aole y5ople should be
robbed for tie hensst Of ;:a silver KING,
1t looks =, though the pa2ple of Spokane
had become tired a Den cratic misrule.
Even the perocEaf c CArf7,icle does no.
seek TO defend the -ecor3: Of the present