People's voice. [volume] (Wellington, Sumner County, Kansas) 1890-1917, 1893-07-14
A NEW LINE OF BATTLE.
The Time Has Come for the Advocates OF
Inconvertibie Paper Money to Force the
Fighting All Along the Line.


The Time Has Come for the Advocates OF
Inconvertibie Paper Money to Force the
Fighting All Along the Line.
Three weeks ago, | concluded an
article in relation to the monetary
problem, with these words.
$50, then, it appears that so long
as India remains upon a silver basis,
the United States, in self-defense,
must adopt the free and unre-
stricted coinage of silver, to the
end that the low price of silver may
not prove the source of the spolia ton
ane ruination of the American farmer.
Either India must adopt the gold stand
ard or the United States must accord
to silver free and unrestricted coinage.
For the United States the evils con-
nected with partial metallism have less
terrors than those directly consequent
upon the entire decentralization of sill
yer. India, with her silver basis, forms
an almost unsurmountable obstacle in
the way of the United States adopting
a rational, scientific, American none
tary system.
what, then, can we do? We can do
this: Supplement our volume of silver
money with an additional volume of
absolute full legal tender paper money,
which shall not be a promise to pay,
but promise to receive, and shall not
be redeemable in any other kind of
money. Reinforce and support our
monetary system with an act of con-
press providing that as fast as we lose
metallic money by export there shall
be issued an exact equal amount of alb
sOlute legal tender paper money to take
its place, and thus render the pernicious
fallacy of metallism powerless to work
any harm. This is the scientific solu-
ton of the problem in the interest of
the wealth producers"
Since then a mighty and stupendous
event has taken place, which will, in
the near future, revolutionize the mon
etary systems of the entire world and
which entirely changes the trend of
financial discussion. The Indian en-
pire-wkich in 1885 adopted the silver
standard and since then has imported
Sl,64O, 100000 in silver, freely coming
into rupees all silver taken to her mints
has closed her minis to the free coin
age Of silver and virtually adopted the
gold standard.
Not only has she done this, but she
has changed her coinage ratio from -
to to q 9-10 to and the rupee will
hereafter have monetary or coinage
value of 1914 cents instead of 47.37
cents, as heretofore, while the none
tary value of an ounce of silver has
been reduced from S1.37.7 to94. 36 cents.
Thus, at one fell stroke, a rupee circu-
lation amounting to about /, $50, OOO 900
rupees has nearly one-third of its none
tary value taken away from it, to say
nothing about nearly half as much I'M
coined silver held by the natives.
The momentous Importance of this
action upon the part of the British gov
eminent of India can hardly be over
estimated. Whatever the ultimate re-
suit may prove to be, the gold-bugs of
the United States, under the leadership
of Grover Cleveland, are responsible
therefor. The agitation against the
Sherman silver act and the active Shy
lockian campaign carried on in the
United States against silver, were the
active causes of India new departure.
India merely anticipated and fore
stalled the action of the United States.
The correspondence between the gov
eminent of India and the India office
has been issued. 1t opens with letter
from the Indian council, under date of
March, 1892, urging the home govern
ment to aid in the settlement of the
silver question by an international
agreement, failing which, not to defer
determining upon an Indian policy, as,
if an international agreement should
not be attained, the United States might
suddenly stop the coinage Of silver,
leaving India unprepared.
The council, in a letter written in
June, 1892, advises that if the interna-
tional monetary conference at Brus-
sells fails, and direct agreement be-
tween India and the United States can
not be attained, the minis of India be
closed to the free coinage of silver and
a gold standard be introduced
In minute to the council, Mr.. Bar
bour, financial secretary of India, OPP
poses the stoppage of free coinage I'M
til it becomes evident that the United
States will not adopt free coinage.
Thus, thanks to the assiniue policy
OF the present gold-bug administration,
the way has been paved for financial
crash such as the world has never be-
fore witnessed.
If India undertakes to replace and
supersede her silver currency with gold
coin she will require 1915, OOO, 900 in
gold, and then she will have only
about sl.25 per capita in circulation.
1t is Knockout blow for silver, as
it would doubtless take longer to re-
verse this action on the part of India,
than has been occupied in fruitless eff
forts to undo the crime of 1873 upon
the part of our own government The
days of silver as a money metal are
ended, and those who battle in its be-
half will be the leaders of forlorn
hope. India possesses at least one
fourth of the worlds silver and its
value is now legally settled and affixed
af OF aapfc IN O,,pao - ILL Gill;. =