The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1893-08-02
@Estimated in whitaker's English Almanac

ESTIMATED in Whitaker's English Almanac
for 1893
Commenting upon this matter, Whit
aker's Almanac says: ''This represents
the sum required by the Indian govern
ment, in addition to what it raises by
sterling loans in England, for the pay
ment of it's home charges. The sale of
bills and transfers is utilized by the
the exports from India over imports.
To obviate the necessity of double re-
mittance of specie, an exchange is
effected; the merchants purchase the
bills of the council of India in London,
with sterling money, and receive the
equivalent in rupees in India from the
government treasurers in Calcutta,
Madras and Bombay"
AS the Journal of Commerce and
Commercial Bulletin says: ''But the
Indian government has interest, sal
aries and pensions to pay in gold, and
the number of rupees it was collecting
by taxation being no longer equal to
the pounds it disbursed in London, it
was compelled to make rupees more
valuable, or at least stop their fall or
else increase the number of rupees it
collected by means of taxation. AS
the fact of an increase of taxation
could be most easily concealed by in
creasing the value of the rupee the first
stepin that direction has been taken
by preventing it's further decline''
Salaries of government officials, en-
ployes and others will now be upon a
gold basis and pensions will be paid in
an increased number of rupees, having
a less exchange value each. In this
manner there will be but little differ
ence in the gold price of imported mer-
chandise and the price in silver rupees,
while such portion of salaries and pen
to their families in England, will re-
tain purchasing power about equal to
that of gold.
Rajeshri Nagpurker, a native of In
dia, recently in Washington, expressed
his views upon the financial trouble in
his country as follows:
81 believe the action stopping the
free coinage of silver in India was
more in the interest of thosewho gov
ern than in the interest of those who
are governed. English officials are paid
in Indian money. When they send
their remittances to their families in
England they go to dealer and ar
range, for instance, for remittance of
e10O. They have to pay for this amount
little more than 1,600 rupees. Form
erly the same amount would have cost
them only 1000 rupees. The deprecia-
ton in the rupee value, therefore, was
a loss to them, and they have been
working to bring about different
state of affairs. The natives, however,
have not been benefited by this. All
their savings are in silver and they
will now lose a great deal through the
action of the government in stopping
free coinage"
It is not at all unlikely that when
congress meets in special session, there
will be proposed by the administration
and accepted by the silver men, prop
osition which will follow closely after
the policy just adopted by the Indian
government. That is to say, the gold
dollar of 25.S grains of gold will be de-
clared the standard of value" and the
silver dollar, of present weight and
fine ness, declared legal tender for Is
cents; or else the dollar will be in
creased in weight. so as to conform to
ratio of 20 to l, and free coinage be
&C corded to silver, which Senator John
2. Jones has already intimated the sill
yer men would be satisfied with.
GEORGE C. WARD.