The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-09-17

dollar was only "a legal tender for -. the
owner of silver bullion could take ii 10
the mint and have DO coined. But 10 was
the law of 1876 which took away that
right. ana thus struck down free coinage.
DIMES LEGAL TENDER IN 1893.
He agreed with Mr.. Daniel, that silver
was the money for the people He knew
that il had been frequently said that
from 1872 to 1873 the coinage of silver dol
lars had only aggregated SN,OOOOOO. But
ND to 1858 dimes were "a legal tender. \
man might have gathered up dimes,
quarters and halves and made payment
of million dollars up TO 1888. And OF
those coins there had been nearly $40,
100000 in circulation The final outcome
of all the legislation as TO silver was the
striking down of the legal tender
quality of silver in 1876 And now,
he continued, we are asked TO
sustain measures and to sustain policies
that win bring this country. in my opln-
ion, to the single standard Of silver. ms
law of 1890 was a temporary law. 1t was
an experimental law also, in one sense
Nobody believed at the time, that 1t
would stand long upon our statute books.
! certainly did not believe II. / don't be
lieve in the policy of piling up bullion IN
the treasury of the United States and
holding il there uncoined. l believe that
the policy is a most dangerous policy for
TO the price of silver.
1872 100000 OUNCES IN BULLION.
In nv Judgment, 1t has something to do
with the depression in that metal. What
would be the effect in Europe if it were
known that we were going TO sell the sill
yer in the treasury We have there now
$4,000, 900 ounces; and a proposition to
sell it would carry down the price more
rapidly than it was carried down when
E 4 10, 1aV
myself l am in favor of coming every
dollar of silver bullion in the treasury
1t ought to be coined.
1 don't mean now-presently. But it
should be understood to be the policy of
the government that it shall not have
this silver bullion stored away in the
treasury. 1t must be done. Not dol
lar of silver bullion can be sold without
the sanction of congress, and that sane
ton, am sure will never be given. The
piling up of that silver Is menace to
the price Of silver everywhere, and there
fore it should be coined.
vERGING ON A SILVER STANDARD.
undertake to say that we cannot con
tinue this purchase of silver without en-
daGgering seriously the standard which
we have had since 1878, and without
bringing this great nation, and all its OPP
portunities, with all its wealth, with all
It's industries and labor, TO a silver stand
ard from a gold standard, when the dis
parity between these values now is well
nigh fifty per cent 1t is just as plain as
the MONDAY sun that, if we go on pur-
chasing silver and putting it in the treas
ury as bullion, IL is only
question Of a few months Tor few years
at mOst) when we viii fail to redeem our
obligations in gold, and then we will be
silver standard. | believe that Just as
nc ( baliaxra that I a this
ment addressing the Senate have
studied that question for all these years,
and have brought to the study my best in
dustry, aud have never changed my
mind, from 1878 till this moment, that we
cannot, ourselves, restore the parity in
value between gold and silver at the ratio
of Is to l.
CHANGE OF RATIO FULL OF DANGER.
Mr. Allison digressed from the course
of his argument to reply to questions
from different senators upon collateral
subjects Returning to it, he said: 81
want to repeat my belief now-that all
history discloses the fact that when you
make even a small divergence between
the established ratio and the true com
mercial ratio, the result is disastrous.
undertake to say that it is utterly i'm
of ratio at this time. The ratio of IS to
would be an increase of ratio,
because we now have known
the price of silver to change
by 20 per cent. in single day
The moment the action of the India coun-
Gil was known, silver went down 20 per
cent. In the next week it went up 10 per
cent How, then, can we make a "a ito
that will measure the value of all debts
and all credits on the basis of the bullion
value of silver2 The situation in India
has changed the situation here.
ATTEMPTING AN IMPOssIBuITY.
We are trying now to keep up the
price of thing that will go down below
the cost of production, whatever tn at
may be. A senator tells me that it is be-
low it now. / have no doubt that it is
But what, as a matter of fact, are we
buying the silver for9 We are buying ii
for the people who consume (the world
over $106 900, 600. We are buying it from
Mexico, from Australia, and from every
place where they produce it-thereby
keeping up their price as well as own
We are buying it in the face of the fact
that England has come now into the mar
ket as an active competitor with the pro-
ducers in the selling of silver.
After a further elaboration of this
point, Mr.. Allison continued: There
fore, believing as l do, am in favor of
the repeal of the purchasing clause of the
Sherman act. l have no more idea that
they can maintain the gold standard in
India than | have that can fly from this
chamber to my home under present con,
ditions.
HELPING ENGLAND, NOT OURSELVES.
But we help them to do it, What we
are doing now in the purchase of silver
will have the effect lit may be but
straw of helping England to carry ou
her present Indian policy They have un
dertaken to sell council rupees at | shill
ing 4 pence. That they cannot do, OF
at least have not yet been able to do
But, if we help them to hold VI
the price of silver bullion, they car
carry out their policy as respects India
Therefore, if we continue these sill
yer purchases we uphold the British
policy in India. The inevitable effect of
what we are doing here is either to up
hold or to destroy, or impair the ability
OF England to maintain its policy in India
If we cease to purchase silver, it will bl
impossible, in my opinion, for England L
carry out that policy, and it viii becom,
an utter failure. l am as assured of thai
as | am that am standing. In my opin
ion, silver will be re-established by tn,
passage of this bill
After discussion of the Brussels con
ference, Mr.. Allison said: If this gov
eminent will undertake the policy of al
international agreement between silve
and gold, believe that that policy vii