Santa Fe daily New Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1885-1897, 1893-07-05
FOR FREE SILVER.
Demand of the Southwest Delegates
at Silver City-A Letter from
EX-GOy. Prince.

Special to the NEW MEXICAN;
SILVER CRY, July 5.-The southwest
silver convention was called to order at
noon yesterday. Hon. A. B. Fall, Of Las
Cruces, was chosen temporary president,
hon. E. s. Slower, of Albuquerque, was
elected permanent president, T. B. Com
stock, of Tucson, secretary.
A resolution was adopted setting forth
that the people of the southwest demand
the repeal of the Sherman silver purchase
act by congress, and an enactment in it's
stead of law providing for the FREQ and
unlimited coinage of silver and gold, at the
rate of 1898 parts of silver to of gold
as the most effective and only relief from
the present deplorable financial condi-
ton, thereby restoring silver to its con-
sttutional place as money metal, with
out compromise upon the ratio or the
legal tender quality of the money of
either metal.
The next meeting of the convention
takes place at Albuquerque during fair
week.
rx-Goy. PRINCE's RESPONSE.
Hon. l.. Bradford Prince, who is now in
Chicago on duty in connection with his
labors at the Worlds fair, was expected
to be present at the convention, but was
unable to do SO and in response sent the
following letter:
To the President Of the Southwest Silver
Convention:
CHICAGO, July l, 1803.-Dear Sir: I
have hoped all along that I could accept
the kind invitation to be present at the
Silver City convention and make an ad-
dress on the silver question, and am very
sorry that it is now evident that will not
he able to leave here IN time.
regret this, especially as the recent
events IN India open some new and inter.
esting questions which it would be a
pleasure to discuss. The convention will
no doubt observe that the results have
already shown the truth of our statement
that the decline in the price of silver Is
caused not by over-production but by
demonetization, as the demonetization in
India has instantly been followed by a
notable fall in price in face of decreased
production.
The present situation calls for more
earnest action than ever. In my opinion
this should take the form of campaign
of education. Very little is to be gained by
conventions in sections which are already
intelligently informed on tho subject Of
bi-metalism. No good can result from
denouncing the mono-metalists of the
east as ''gold bugs" and "conspirators."
The great body Of the people there are
honest and conscientious but strangely
ignorant on the currency question.
Nineteen out Of twenty think that the
demand for "free coinage" is simply a
selfish cry from silver producers to make
dollar out of sixty five cents" The
best people you meet there believe that
it is only specimen of "western dis
honesty" They have never heard of the
facts SO familiar to us, which show the
steady fall in price of every product of
mans industry, corresponding with the
depression in silver, which has naturally
followed the contraction of the amount
of solid money caused by destroying half
of its volume. 1t has never occurred to
them that money, that is, gold, has been
going up by reason of increasing scarcity,
instead of silver and all other productions
going down. In fact, there is an entire
ignorance of what seems to us in the west
to bethe fundamental principles of the cur
rency question. This is simply because
their attention has not been drawn to the
sub bject, except in one-sided way in their
newspapers and otherwise.
It seems to me that the work of most
practical Importance which the conven-
tion could undertake would be the prepar-
alton of brief and plain document on
the principles of finance, showing how
the decentralization of hall. of our precious
metals affects every kind of property and
every product of labor and must increas-
ingly affect them until the most disas-,
trous consequences ensue, and change
of policy by the restoration Of free coin.
age of both metals again brings pros
perity and happiness to the people.
Sick headache! Beecham's Pills will
relieve.