New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1893-05-20
UOPr CHANGE PROPOSED.

"Gold and silver monomctalli>tS are both
fanatical. and a compromise OH such basis a
20 10 il foolishness" Men and brethren,
said the negro preacher. there arc two ways
before YOU. tn, broad and narrow way that
leads to p rlt.on, and the straight and crooked
WAY that leads T. damnaion" In this fashion
a friend c!itcises the criticism OF current meme
iary schemes by TIE TGErNE. Then he asks
if we " should plod along Il we are now dong.
under thr sherman act. which u such an an
,ur1iy that Senator sherman favors is repeal
These are pertinent questions. but they might
we'll be addressed 10 the leader of Change, the
Hon. Grover Cleveland. President Of the United
states who has Congress controlled IN both
branches by his own patty 10 AID HIM IN >olV-
ing all financial problems. THE TRIBUNE i
aware that it, function Al present i - look on.
but not = govern. What should be done, the
Democratic party will tell H., if II can. But
il will do no harm % say that the sherman act
has no, wrecked the country thus far. The
chief harm has been done b! the fear OF some
thing worse than that. If the country could
be sure that the laws would remain exactly IL
they were in September and October last, there
i, no reason 70 believe that serious disaster
would result. Silver fanaticlSm Nh. Cleveland
promises to block Gold fanaticlsm Congress
will render impossible. Compromise on the
30 TO basis is extremely foolish but there is
the real danger Presumably silver men may
fancy that free coinage Is the open door to a
millennium. no matter on what ratio. Possibly
President Cleveland may imagine that free
coinage on such ratio would be a snake with
the poisoned fang, torn out hateful but harm
less.
The business Of THE TRIBUNE is to let every
body know tina. 20 to | does not extract any
fangS but means silver monomeiali>m and
disaster. without the supposed advantages for
debtors which free coinage AT 10 to / promises.
It is mere dcluson and fooli,hncSs TO suppose
that the proposed new ratio would prevent a
further decline of silver, or stop the export Of
gold from the country by paper issues against
such silver We have several hundred millions
Of silver paper already. redeemablc in silver
at the ratio Of 10 10 |, or about g. cents in
gold 10 the dollar. How would il help any body
to put out new kind of paper redecmable in
silver at the ratio Of 20 10 |. or about 30 cents
cold to the dollar. and to put that paper out
without limit? II it goes into circulation freely
all the silver Of the world could come to this
market to get so cents for quantity worth
Ga cents elsewhere. The gold would have two
premiums, % per cent in the new paper dollars
and coins. and about 30 per cent in the present
standard dollars and their certificates nice
mess we should have Of it with these three
legal tenders in use-G4 cent, SO-cent and 90
cent dolars--but the trouble would readily cor
rect itself, for nobody would pay out the dol
lars worth 100 cents.
"What shall we doT' Republican Con-
yrfss and President would probably stop silver
purchases and coinage altogether, and let the
outside world find out how much it needs an
international agreement on the silver qucs-
tion. But until we have such President and
Congress we must od-nalurcdly submit to
the will of the people, and take the change
which the Dem2elats may see fit to give us.