The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1893-09-08
vAa1ous VIEWS ON SILVER.

In Judging the course of members of
Congress on the silver question, people
who desire to be just ought to understand
the different views entertained by be-
levers in bimetallism. 1t is q great mis-
take TO suppose that all who voted for the
repeal of the bullion buy
ing law are opposed to silver as money.
Many of the silver papers of the west are
misleading in their denuDciations of those
who differ with them, and they help to
add to the gloom which overspreads the
silver producing regions.
To a great many people who draw
their information from such sources,
every person who does not believe
in the free and unlimited coinage
of silver Is monometallist and
a s'goldbug,'' the latter being
term OF reproach equivalent in some
peoples minds to highwayman or public
robber. Also both Democrats and Republi-
cans, who think the SHERMAN purchas-
ing provision ought to be abolished before
any further financial action is taken, are
denounced as traitors to their party and
platform.
The financial legislators of our country
may be divided into several classes.
First, the gold men who think that a
single standard is the only permanent
one, and that it must be gold in order TO
be OF international stability and univer-
sal use. It is doubtful if any of them de-
sire the entire exclusion of silver from
the coinage of the country. But they
would have it subsidiary and limited in
quantity, and a legal tender only to a
small amount, say from five to ten dol
lars. They would MAINTAIN the financial
policy which makes all debts public and
private above the amount specified, pay
able in gold coin.
Next there are the extreme silver men
who would make the silver dollars the
standard of value to be coined in unlim-
tied quantities at fixed ratio with gold,
so as to make the latter the subordinate
metal. They are silver monometaIlists
and are comparatively few in number.
Then there are believers in both gold
and silver as the money of the United
States, who think there is enough silver
already coined to meet the public wants.
in connection with gold and the paper
money issued on the basis of that coin
age. They would not retire the silver
dollar or other silver coin. but they would
stop further silver coinage.
Others there are who think the money
of the United States should be gold and
silver, but that the dollar in either metal
should have equal bullion value. That
there should be as much silver in a dollar
as would bring a dollar in the market as
metal.
Some contend that both metals should
be coined, but at ratio which will be
agreed to by all the great nations of the
world which have commercial relations
with each other. believing that under
these relations it is impossible for this
country to establish a free silver policy
alone.
Then there are others who think that
fixed amount of silver should be coined
by a given date and that then its coinage
should cease for term OF years, to be re-
sumed when necessity shall arise, to be
determined by new legislation.
The free, unlimited silver coinage men
advocate the policy of opening the mintsof
the country for the coinage without charge
OF all the silver that may be taken to
them into dollars at ratio with gold az
determined by law. These are divided as
to the ratio that should be fixed, the ma
jority holding to that existing previous to
the law of 1873, which was Is times the
weight in silver of the dollar in gold.
Others contend for different ratios from
is to l up to Is to 1. Some would enlarge
the silver dollar, others would reduce the
gold dollar. But the main point is the
coinage Of all the silver presented at the
minis into money, to be used in circula-
ton or held as basis Tor silver certifi-
Gates and to be legal tender to any
amount.
There are many arguments advanced
against this policy, but we are of the
opinion that they have been fairly refuted
by the free coinage advocates. However,
where there are SO many different
opinions, it is moi fair to assume that
those who object to unlimited silver coin.
age are influenced by improper motives