The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-05-30
Senator woleOtts View of Silver.

Senator Wolcott's View of Silver.
In the current number Of Harper's
| Weekly Senator Wolcott, of Colorado, in q
/ lengthy article gives what he calls "A
western view Of silver" What the sena-
tor SAYS in behalf of the free coinage of
/ silver is about all there is to be said. lie
/ insists that the west and south are prac-
/ tically unanimous in favor Of the free
I coinage Of silver. and that if neither the
/ Democratic nor Republican party declares
for it new party will arise that will
make IL the chief plank in its platform.
Senator Wolcott makes many assertions,
but he brings forward neither pertinent
facts nor strong arguments to sustain
them. The assertion that is most worthy
of notice, and the one that is reiterated
by all the silverites is this: If the United
States should inaugurate the free and IN
limited coinage of silver and should coin
the silver bullion now in the treasury,
silver would at once return to its former
value
1t is just here that the great majority
of the financiers of the country differ
with the silverites. They say, and we be-
ieve they are right. that if this country
should declare in favor of the free and
unlimited coinage of silver, the result
would be that instead of silver going to
81 % per ounce gold would go to a pre-
MUM. Senator Wolcott says we should
have bimetallism at once; the ablest
iinanciers say we should have silver mo-
4
based and degraded, and the country
would suffer all the evils that flow from
such a currency.
But what reason does Senator Wolcott
give for saying that the Inauguration of
free silver coinage would give us bimetal
ism? Not one. He has no reason to give.
II is true he says that France maintained
the parity of gold and silver for seventy
years, but he does not tell US why she
finally closed her mints to the free coinage
of silver. If he had done so he would have
destroyed the force of his statement.
There would be no objection to the free
coinage of silver if it could be satisfact-
orily shown that if it were inaugurated
the parity of gold and silver would be
maintained, but it has not been, and can
not be shown. If all the commercial
nations should agree to free silver coinage
at a fixed ratio the parity of the two
metals could be maintained, but it could
not be maintained by the United States
alone
1t will not be forgotten that there are
other assertions of the silverites on record.
They said the Bland act would keep up
the price of silver, but it didn't. Then
they said that the Sherman silver pur-
chase act would keep it up, and again it
was proved that their assertions are not
to be relied upon. Now they demand free
and unlimited coinage of silver, and
assert that it will maintain the parity be-
tween the two metals. What reason is
there for thinking this last assertion is
any more likely to prove to be correct
than either of the others?
The silverites are not safe men to fol-
low in financial matters By no act can
the United States give silver bullion a
value that it hasn't. BY international
agreement it can be maintained at a GER
tain value, but just at present there
doesn't seem to be prospect of such an
agreement.
The credit of this country is about the
best in the world, but it is not good
enough to float great deal more paper
money based upon silver at the present
rates. Even Senator Wolcott admits that
the Sherman silver purchase act is bad.
1t is certainly time il was repealed