The gold leaf. [volume] (Henderson, N.C.) 1881-1911, 1893-09-14
VANCE ON SILVER.
AGAINST THE UNCONDI-
TIONAL REPEAL OF THE
SHERMAN ACT.

TIONAL REPEAL OF THE
SHERMAN ACT.
Full Text Of His Speech Deliver
ed in the Senate September
1st---He Advocates the Free
and Unlimited Coinage of Sill
yer at the Present Ratio Of Six
teen to One---Says Uncondi-
tional Repeal Means the End
Silver for the Generation
Strong and Urgent Plea for BIZ
Metallism---His Effort Pro-
nounced One of the BestSpeech-
es Yet Made on the Financial
Question.
The Senate having under consideration
the bill (H r. y to repeal part of an
act approved July 14th, 1890, entitled " An
&C: directing the purchase of silver bull
ion and the issue of Treasury notes there
on, and for other purposes, -
Mr.. Vance said:
Mr.. PRESIDENT The metallic
money of the world is estimated at
about $500, 900, 900. About one half
of this is silver, which is full legal
tender money, and in addition thereto
there is S55o,ooo,ooo subsidiary ofsil-
yer in use in the different nations of
the world. This money is the means
by which the worlds exchanges are
effected and their values measured. 1t
is needless to say that the great law
of supply and demand has operation
and effect in regard to this money, as
in regard to everything else. When
money is abundant prices are high !;
when money is scarce the prices OF all
products are low. Therefore, he that
increases the abundance of money ben
efits productions and enhances prices
and wages, and he that contracts or
diminishes the amount of this money
depreciates everything which is tor
sale, including wages, though by rea-
son of combinations and defensive
measures in many parts Of the world
wages are affected less than products.
The effect upon the condition and
we'll being Of mankind which would
follow the destruction of one half Of
this currency-it is impossible accu-
rately to describe. The imagination
of poet would be required to portray
its misery and only he who has wan
dered through the horror laden mazes
of the Inferno, or he that exultng in
still sublimer song portrayed the
wretchedness Of mans dlsobedlence
and fall, could adequately set forth
the evil, the suffering, and the sorrow
which would come to mankind if their
wages and the prices of all their pro-
ducts were decreased in the proper
ton that would follow the destruction
of one half of the worlds money. Yet,
this process of destruction has been
going on quietly since 1872, the result
of which we see in prices lower IN
many things than have ever been
known within the memory of man.
Great Britain led off in the demon
citation of silver SO early as 1916, in
consequence, as is said, of her great
debts to the Jew Rothschilds, to meet
which she made gold her only stand
ard of money, reducing silver to sub
sidiary circulation. After the great
Franco -Prussian war Germany was
induced to adopt the gold standard.
So great then became the pressure
upon adjoining nations that the Latin
Union, which had been formed for the
purpose of maintaining silver within
the boundaries of France, Belgium
Switzerland, Italy and Greece, were
compelled to cease coming silver and
devote all their efforts to the main
tenance of that which they had coined
About the same time the United
States coming, by fraud in leglsla
ton. when silver, which at that mo
ment was at premium over gold, be
gan to decline, and has continued to
decline ever since.
In 1873 the indignation OF the peo
pie forced its reconciliation, and un
der the operation of the Bland law
coinage was resumed at rate OF no
less than s., 900, 900 month and no
! more than s4,ooo,ooo, at the dlscre
Etion Of the Secretary of the Treasury
Tor course, this discretion was exer
icised against silver, as it always ha
been, and only s2,ooo,ooo montl
was coined; but it stayed the down
ward course of silver, and the common
people received it gladly.
At the beginning of this year, 1898
it was coined for legal tender pur
poses in none of the commercial ma
: tions of the European world, to but
limited extent in the United States
and in India it was coined freely. l
is remarkable that in the United state
and in Germany in 1873, when it wa
demonetized, silver was at premium
and in 1916, when Great Britain de
monetized it, it was likewise at pre-
.. MUM.
In June of this year the British In
dia council, anticipating, as was said
the action of the government of tn
limited States in reDeI ing the Shel