The Lamar register., 1893-07-22
THE USEFUL METAL.
NATIONS THAT USE SILVER.
The White Metal Indispensable for Money
In Many Countries

In Many Countries
The New York Pres, which has hitherto
been strongly opposed to free silver, mas
heard the voice of the people, and says In
lengthy editorial that '.the question should DC
treated upon full Information as to the tru,n'
without any obsequious subserviency TO the
financial policy of Great Britain or any other
foreign country and adds;
.'In the present agitation regarding the DC
cline of silver in value as compared Win solu'
there is disposition TO rush to the concur
sion that silver Is entirely dlscredited, and,
moreover, to overlook the great interest Whieh
this country has In upholding and protecting
the value of metal Of which the United
States is by far the most important producer
In order to assist the public, therefore, In ar
riying at a correct and deliberate conclusion
on the silver question, 1t may be well to call
to mind certain facts which ought to DC
familiar
The Pres has before pointed out that the
suspension of free coinage in India does not
imply that silver is to cease to be the eurrent
and ordinary coinage Of India Not the
slightest authority has been adduced to show
that silver Is to be dcmonctl1ed IN Englands
vast Indian empire Indeed such PROPOSE
ton would SAVIOR OF madness, and would be
impossible OF accomplishment against the
manifest viii Of people with whom the use
of silver as coin Is second nature, and the
vast majority of whom have no Interest
whatever In the fluctuations of the gold price
of the rupee The substitution OF gold for
silver In India is practical impossibIlliy fer
the reason tha; gold would not answer the
purpose india now has gold coin called
the mohur, worth about &, but nobody thinks
Of making It a measure Of value. The measure
OF value must DC a cola known TO the people
and in current use among the people, and
such a coin IS the rupee, Of the rominHl Eall'e
of IS cents The rupee Is too small In value
to be coined In gold, but Is just about large
enough in amount iobe a measure OF value In
q country where wages are as low as in India
1t must therefore, continue to be a silver
coinage and a silver consuming country.
The important state OF Persia, west Of In
dla, Is silver country. IL Is true that gold
Is coined there, the gold tomAn beins worth
about sl.ss, but very few gold pieces are in
circulation, and the coin for measuring val
ues is the silver kran, worth something over
Is cents. 1t appears, therefore, that while
Persia has gold, the Persian people have no
use for it In currency. The great empire Of
China is a silver country, 20 far as large pay
rnenis arc concerned, which arc made In sii-
yer bullion, and by an imperial decree issued
In 1890 the silver dollar coined at the Cantoa
mint is made currcnt all through the empire
The legal money OF Siam Is the teal. silver
coin. Turning to the empire OF Russia VIC
find that the larger value OF metallic money
coined is silver, ., ,4S5, sos silver rables having
been coined in 1921 against 9, 5sS, l4o Hibles
In gold. The silver rable IS the legal unit OF
,aanax tn Rf.sFa The rrprf-. ny hnxa
10000, 600 yens uhe yen being about si) in
silver to 62,oco. 900 in gold. While Turkey
coins the golden Ira, the coins in general use
are silver, and It may be said without exag-
geration that Asia and Eastern Europe arc
silver regions.
France, from l7a5 until ls9a, pot Ia cir
eulation nearly eight thousand million of
francs in gold and about i've aud halt
thousand millions IN silver. Italy, from 1851
to 1921, both inclusive, has eolned about ST.
0oo, coo of lire In silver to about 4,oOo. 900 IN
gold. In Mexico and South aud CcatraI
America silver is In general use, and Mexico,
# is said, Is continuing free coinage, and
finds It difficult TO supply the demands OF In
creaslng trade 1t Is we'll, therefore, TO re-
member, in considering the silver question,
that by far the larger part Of the world uses
silver as currency, and that among the eoun-
tries so using the metal are those with which
It is for both the political and commercial In
teres;s of the United States TO keep IN active
intercourse. IL also should be remembered
that silver is an American product, and that
while the credit and the currency of the ma
ton must under any circumstances be sus-
tanned, nothing should be done unduly to dis
credit n metal in which Americans are deeply
inierested.n