The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1893-08-16
THE PRESIDENTS MESSAGE.

OF states IaanSlnP. IL IL d ClSdii AHCOAi'7
gent and comprehensive statement of the
financial situation, and the cause of the
existing financial troubles. 1t is wholly
free from partisanship, and deals with
the subject in hand as one in which every
citizen is concerned.
A marked feature of it is its confident
tone The president is convinced he is
right, and he takes the whole response
bility for what he says, and what he rec
ommends. He seeks no support by re-
ferring to party leaders or tinanciers who
are regarded as authority; he speaks
from the standpoint of common sense,
and what he says carries conviction.
The Atlanta Herald has the following
analysis of the message:
In the first place, is the president
right in his belief that the Sherman law
is mainly responsible for the existing fl
nancial troubles?
Let us see where we started. In 1889
the country was in a prosperous condi-
ton. Business was good, collections
were easy, and there was absolutely no
complaint of hard times. These are
facts that any business man will recall.
In 1890 the Sherman law was passed.
The people generally paid very little at
tenti0u to it, Nothing was sad about
its being a Pandora box of evil. But
how did it operate? What took place?
The president says
Between the first day of July, 1890,
and the fifteenth of July, 1898, the
gold coin and bullion in our treasury de-
creased more than S132, 100000, while
during the same period the silver coin
and bullion in the treasury increased
more than S147, 100000.
Is it not a plain matter of fact that as
silver was piled MP in the treasury gold
left the treasury? AS the governments
gold 50 rapidly disappeared did not the
commercial world begin to consider Sc
riously whether or not the government
could maintain gold payments? Was
the government not going rapidly to
silver basis? 1t is also fact, stated by
the president, that these very same silver
certificates were used TO extract from the
treasury S49, 100000 of gold between May
'92 and July '93, Almost the entire is
sue Of silver certificates came back to the
treasury at once demanding redemption
IN gold.
Here is what Mr. Cleveland says of
it:
This is illustrated by the statement
that between the first day of May, 1892,
and the 18th day OF July, 1893, the notes
of this kind issued in payment for silver
bullion amo united to little more than
S54, 100000, and that during the same
period about $40, 000,0 900 were paid by the
treasury in gold for redemption of such
notes.
While the government has been dis
placing gold with silver at such ire
mendoas rate the commercial value of
silver has been rapidly depreciating.
There was an arbitrary increase in the
amount of silver but no corresponding
increase in the amo lnt of gold, and at
the same time the most astounding de-
crease in the price of silver since the
foundation of the world. The United
States has been buying silver on
Stamping market.
There are those who have failed to find
in the message the president idea as to
what should he done with silver, We
call their special attention to the follow
ing:
Possibly if the undertaking we have
III hand were the maintenance of spe-
cific known quantity Of silver at parity
with gold, our ability to do so must be
estimated and gagged and perhaps, IN
view of our unparalleled growth and re-
sources, might be favoraOly passed upon.
But when our ayowed endeavor is to
maintain such parity in regard to an
amount Of silver increasing at the rate of
S50,000,000, yearly with no fixed termi-
nation to increase, it can hardly be said
that a problem is presented whose solu
tion is free from doubt.
The above is clear. Nj. Cleveland
would coin and use specific amount of
silver. He would say to the world, "Of
the currency of the United States there
will be SO much silver, anu 50 much
gold, and so much paper" The would
would then know. and we of the United
States would know the rength and
stability of our currency. There is as
much necessity for knowing the ratio of
silver circulation to gold circulation as
here is for knowing the ratio of the
pld dollar to the silver dollar weight.
We maintain the parity of coppers aud