The Indianapolis journal., 1893-07-05
PROF. ANDREws's METHOD.

How He Would Force Europe to Remon.-
tize silver-Eviis of the Act of 1873.
COLORADO SPRINGS. Col. July 4-The
Colorado Summer School of Sciences. Phil
osophy and Languages was formally opened
this afternoon. An Grafton was delivered
by Prof. 4. ID. Andrews, q member of the
international monetary conference. Prof.
Andrews began by describing the ruinous
effect Of the demonstration of silver In
1873 by Great Britain and Germany. and
described the characterization policy as the
hardest, sgddest blow to human welfare
ever delivered by the action of the states.
Continuing he said:
This mallgn policy caused she fall of
prices and the rupture of tho world of CON-
merce into two hemispheres. between
which trade can 60 on only with greet
difficulty. The fall of prices brought with
1t two subordinate effects, each fearful In
Its way. One was injustice. dire. wide
spread and inexorabie, making every man
who was In debt Overpsy when he paid.
and so with every man who has run In
debt fScm that DAY TO this The other
effect was the paralysis of productive IN
dustry and the tendency to turn banker and
money lender. If you engaged In industry
your stock went downward in value, while
on your hands, il you bad money. it's pro-
ducing power increased on your hands, ir-
respective OF interest. while you slept. do
not say that all the stagnatiOn of industry
since 1873 came from the fall in prices but
firmly believe that this has had more TO
do with IL than any other siDe gle eausc. The
other main etfecs OF demonotization was
the schism OF the world into gold-using z
exchange between us. Here In Amor
lea We have thought less of this than
the fall in prices, but everything
considered IL is quite as great an event.
There is no par of exchange any moro be-
tween Mexico aud the United States. be-
tween Mexico and Great Britain, between
the United States. China and Japan, any
more than there is between gold and iron
or between wheat and zinc. A Chinese
wall is built between the gold world aud
the silver world. worse than any tariff ever
created. This is what has palsicd
England's trade with India and all the
East. and led. at last to the recent attempt
to place India upon q gold basis. Not only
is trade between two parts of the world re-
duced to o gamble. but International loan
ing and borrowing across the chasm of ex-
change Is also painfully interfered with.
II propose to consider what IN all proba,
6ility wonld come To pass should the United
States begin free coinage alone. No dOu bt
after the first strIngency, accompanying
the announcement OF q free coinage policy,
there would be a strlngency arising from
the fact that gold would he instantly with
drawn from circulation. while silver would
be coined to take It's place. but slowly our
country would derive great advantage
from siding with the silver states. The
foil of prices could be yed; perhaps
some rise of prices ensue. Besides.
tho United States would take it's
place as the one great manufactur-
ing nation of the silver world and
derive from that position the immense
gains which England has hitherto reaped.
but largely lost by the demonetization of
silver We should manufacture for Mex
ioo South America, China and Japan. aud
England. owing to lack OF par of exchange
with them. would lose most or all of their
cnstom. No doubt here is splendid
chance. do not wonder that the prospect
carries away so many. for 1t Is indeed a
glorious one. But there are shadows after
all so dark that II 10 my belief that 1t is
best not to attempt IL now. but to wait q
little longer In our present unhappy and
anomalous condition. till we bring Great
Britain to rejoin us In remonetizing silver.
But how can We induce Great Britain
TO act with usf By ceasinR to pnrchase
silver and make a law ordering the Secre-
rary of the Treasury to open orr mints TO
the free coinage of silver al any date when
he is informed that England, Germany and
the Latin Union or two OF those will do SO.
What would be the result of such a stand?
IL would probably make i'm possible the
proposed introduction of the gold standard
In India. leaving only an exchange aud the
finances of the Indian government IN
more unsound condition than ever.
The Indian government. you know.
proposes by stopping the free coin
age of silver to treat the
rupee as the equivalent of 30 gold cents
when Its silver is worth only about 26
cents. 1t is doubtful whether they can do
this now SO slender is their stock of gold
and so immense their supply of silver, but
our act increasing the coinage and pnr-
chase of silver would depress the intrinsic
value of the rupee still more. and at the
same time make It harder for them to get
gold BY dropping silver for the time be-
ing and joining the struggle for gold We
other fall of prices so aggravated that the
most obstinate banker of Lombard street
will have to admit that gold cannot be
safely taken the sole intern ational
money"