The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1893-11-28
CARLISLE ON GOLD AND SILVER.
THE MONETARY POLICY OF THE
- UNITED STaTES.

y GOlU If tnc universal anu acceptei
Standard OfBdhe wOrId-Silyer
Dependent Upon the Increase o
Population aTd the Growth of GU
lndustries-This Country is Deepl
Interested III tie White Metal.
The followingis the address of Hon
John G.. Carlisle, Secretary of th
Treasury, before the New York cham
ber Of commerpe, at its anniyersal,
banquet. last week:
Mr.. Pfesidentand Gentlemen
The oSubject presented by the senti
ment ,jtst reaf Is soslarge and involves
SO many conSih iherations, notmly of pub
lie policy sait for public and private
honor aDd.aood faith, that 4 scarcely
know howsto respond to+it on snch al
occasion}as this. whore breyity will bt
more i,ppriopriate than eaaborate argu
ment.,,f ann somewhat. embarrassed
also by the: fact that am to talk to ar
assembiage Of gentlemen who, by rea
son OF their personal experience il
commercial and financial affairs. arc
at least in as good position as | an
to understand and appreciate the value
" OF sound and stable currency and tC
foEesee the injurious effects of q de-
partpre from correct financial meth
= DDS. ~
= Money and IS representatives con.
VIC GOOlS WlUI WHICH INC
chant and the banker perform their
parts in the numerous and compli.
Gated transactions necessarily occurring
in the growth and development of our
trade at home and abroad. 1t is not
possible to do perfect work with i'm
perfect instruments, and If il is at
tempted the consequences will not fall
upon you alone, but must be felt sooner
or later in every part of the land. Con
fidence would be destroyed, trade would
be interrupted the obligations of con-
tracts would be violated, and all the
evils which have invariably attended
the use of u base or huctuating cur
rency would afiiict, not the CONNER.
cial and financial classes only, but the
country at large. But our commercial
interests are not confined to our own
country; they extend to every quarter
of the globe, and our people buy and
sell in nearly every market of the civil
lized world. A very large part of our
farmers, mechanics, and other labor
ing people find constant and profitable
employment in the production and
transportation of commodities for sale
and consumption in other countries,
and the prices Of many Of our moro i'm
pOrtant products are fixed in foreign
markets. Without exception these
prices are fixed in the markets or coun-
tries having u gold standard of meas
ure Of value either by express provi-
sion of law or by public policy which
keeps their silver coins equal in eX-
changeable value to the gold coins ut
value of our trade with the people of
other countries during the last fiscal
year was more than $1,70O, ,0OO,O 600, and
more than ST, 100,0 ,000,000 of this was
with the people of Europe, while with
the people of Asia it amounted to lit
tie over 800, 900, 900, and with all the
countries of South America, excluding
Brazil, which has single gold stan
dard, it was only $16,000,000 While it
would be unfair to attribute this un-
equal distribution of our trade with
the outside world to the character of
their fiscal legislation. think it may
be safely asserted that this country
could not long maintain it's present po-
sitiOn as one of the most conspicuous
and important members of the great
community of commercial nations
which now controls the trade of the
world, unless we maintain monetary
system substantially,at least, in accord
with the monetary systems of the other
principal nations.
There can be no international legal
tender without an international agree
ment, but there must, from the very
necessities of the case, always be a
common basis upon which bargains
are made and common currency in
which balances are settled. No nation
can determine for the others what that
basis shall be or what that currency
shall be. 1t may establish currency
for itself and for the use of it's own
&, h,,{
the value Of the currency will be ulti-
mately measured and conclusively
fixed by the international standard,
whatever that may be. The stamp of
it's coins attest their weight and fine
ness, but it adds nothing to their in
trinsic value, and nothing whatever to
their exchangeable value in the mar
kets of the world so that a, nations
stock of international money always
consists of its uncOincd bullion and the
bullion value of it's coins. 1t cannot
augment its stock of such money to any
extent whatever by overhauling either
gold or silver in it's coinage laws, nor
can it diminish its stock to any extent
by undervalueing either metal. While
the number of its nominal dollars, or
shillings, or francs, may be increased
or diminished, as the case may be, the
will not be changed in the least, for no
act of Congress-, or other Legislative
body, can repeal or alter tho laws OF
trade or the laws of finance; and every
attempt to do SO must result in disas-
ter sooner or later.
No matter, therefore, what our mon.
etary system may be here at home as
established by our own laws, we must
either relinquish largo part OF Oul
share in the commerce of the world or
conduct our international trade upon
such basis as the general Judgment OF
commercial nations may establish,
We cannot possibly change this situa
ton, and, consequently, the only prac
ticel question is. whether it is bettol
to establish by law an inferior kind o.
money for use at home exclusively ant
another kind for use abroad. or to have
all our money good enough for use il
every market whero our people trade
I believe tho people of the United
States are entitled TO have for use IL
their domestic trade just as goot
money as any other people in the
world have, and they are entitled Il
have Just as much OF 1t rs may be nee
essary to carry on our business regu
larly and profitably. Whether 1T b.
gold or silver, or both, or paper baset
upon the coins OF the two metals, TIL,
people have n right to demand that J
shall be in fact what it purports to b
"a Just and true measure Of value, o
the representative OF O just and tru
measure of value.
Gold is the only international money
Al 10 lNoln ,Att 1a1