New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1893-10-28
THE WEST FOR GOOD MONEY
MINING STATES NOT DISHEARTENED by rFr
REPEAL BILL
THEY HAVE ENORMOUS RESOURCES AND ONLY
ASK FAIR PLAY-AN INTERVIEW WITH
REPRESENTATIVE BANKER
OF MONTANA


F. d. Edgerton, president OF the Helena Nations,
Bank. one OF the leading banks Of Montana ia visit.
ing New-York and communicating to the bankers
and capitalists here with whom he has association.
some Views OF the situation In the mining States
which many may think novel. Mr.. Edgerton was
a delegate from his State to the Bankers Congress-
held recently in Chicago He expressed these views
in a paper which he read there. and which. by its
conservatism. National spirit and reasoaaplrness
attracted attention and won praise. Mr. Edger.on
does not admit that the passage OF the Repeal bill
is going seriously to injure the mining States.
LAS might have been expected" he said yesterday
to Tribune reporter, "the Industrial and financial
conditions Of the Northwestern mining States are not
greatly improved by the news that the silver-pur.
chase clause OF the Sherman act is about to be
repealed Nor, on the other hand, they serious.
~ injured The news has been discounted The
possibility of the passage OF unconditional repeal
has been so well understood that mining and bust.
ness enterprises generally have braced Themselves
to receive the shock and have been administering
10 themselves successive doses Of consolation. OF
course our people did not want the Repeal bill
pa ssed in an unconditional FORM The financial
question with US is twosided 1t is both currency
question and an industrial question. While there 10
no disposition to go back on the patriotic and
pucky stand that our representatives at Washington
have taken and magnifcenty held all these
weeks yet 1t is generally admitted that their posi-.
is
ural political battle is like every other in that
the contestants overlook all else than the main al.
vantage they are pursuing The Senators from the
mining States could not say everything they
thought without seeming to make concessions
which would have injured them In the fight They
know however, as all people ought to know, that
all statements are mistaken which impute to the
people OF the West anything like harsh sectional
feeling. or which imply that we Of the mining States
esnecialv are In any sense advocates OF bad Honey
or currency imitation. Nor are we afraid to declare
ourselves"
OPPOSED TO ALL SCHEMES OF INITIATION.
DO you mean that the West advocates gold
Standard?
..No but do mean that while the mining
States believe in silver as money metal, they
are as loyal 10 the doctrine OF sound money as
the East Is, and will be found as earnest In
opposing AT schemes of imitation. Although the
currency question IS embarrassed with us by the
fact that If silver falls into dlsuse vast industrial
enterprises must shut down and thousands OF
workmen be thrown out Of employment, never
tkeless. there is desire for deoased currency
Our people realize well as the people anywhere
else that dollars worth OF labor must De ex-
pended TO earn dollar and when II mas peen
expended We want good dollar for our labor
is to be had anywhere.
Montana will not be crushed by the repeal OF
the Sherman act. II has population only one
twelfth as large as the city OF New-York. There
are many cities In the Empire State where WITHIN
the limits Of mile square more people live than
are to be found In all our vast domain rc2ching
nearly 600 miles in direction and 400 In the
other But the few people sparsely scattered over
this enormous tract Of country are assessed az
the owners Of real estate worth more man $500 o
Of more. than llS4oOO sheep, valued a! more than
100000 of 10000 horses valued at $780,, They
property Of SS9, $500 They manufacturer last
year from their own lands 5lS,Cooeo feet Of lum.
placed in their pockets sij5G5626. Their trade
supplies profitable business for twen'y,nine dis
Their state and county Indebtedness Is less than
100000 and in all the vast stretches Of their cou'
s 3 .srv Sh q Tssss S
going to be Knocked under by the refusal q the
to ouRh S convince the
East that Montana Is something more man mere
anG women ofa serrse ability
sound sense. What IS true Of Montana is equally
IL anybody supposes that they are engaging in cru.
saGcs for a debased currency. or that they LOOK
opor.ssS s Of that they have staked their all on
the issue Of the silver controversy he Is gong 70
find himself nightly mistaken
WHAT Is INSISTED UPON.
How do they want the silver question soived"'
Whatever they want or don't want" Mr.. Edger.
the proper solution of that question TO njure the
sa,ings banks depositors OF NewEngland by Fore
ing them through National legislation 70 accept
I'm PAYMENT for the deposits they have made dollars
OF less purchasing power than the dollars they de-
posted on the contrary. 1t Is Insisted by our peo-
pie generally tsat the Government snail not den
in fiat or deprecated money. They simply insist
that metal which has been successfully used for
twenty centuries side by side with g9ld ana
has suffered in character By adverse LEGISLATION
be as part OF ali Ie eass depre.
citation Of all property hurt to an en,eFprlSeS Inv
borrow and always lend money. And, recognizins
the difficulty Of the problem pr. scented by ne ritu,
In Europe as well here. they insist that the con-
trovcrsy shall not he abandoned ana thar our Iov-
stanty. to the repeal OF that legislation ana
the reinstatement of silver in It's old place as
Moreover the people of the mining States arc
snxious that the people OF the East SHALL see that
the ys sc, S @ part an of the TSe
states are or. country ana the immense MINING ~,
forests. en- the soil Of whatever State they may
happen to b' placed The anniciaon OF silver In n
the product OF thai metal hut 4; involves in grea,
the les; OF s@ D in ce sger aa
The throwing out Of enpoimsnt OF 81, thousands OK
syer mn @Soyc OF ali pa rs Of G tSr coan
try in competition that they can less anord than
drcst copSSn Nn o ,se Sank. Tan OF III.
merchant tho farmer and the laborer of New
ENGLAND and Ncw-York to continue as many men
in lucrative employment on the Western coast
as il is possible 10 keep employed there In develop
nr tho country Every dollar OF value produced
Their, in copper lead. silver and gold is that much
addition TO the substantial available wealth Of the
Nation II these facts are duly appreciated hv ;ie
peorIe OF the East the citizens OF the Rocky Noun.
tain Siatcr have small doubt that there wiz soon
result legislation entirely satisfactory to them
the silver question
TIE ELEMENT CT TIME APPRECIATED
Cant you indicate the lines which your PEG.
n,e would be willing TO see the question settled"
eft can't be settled TO suit them Of course. until
free and unlimited coinage IS restored Rut they
fully appreciate the element of time involved in
that They would be satisfied with the coinage
of American silver and the exclusion of all Other
silver from the minis; the coinage 10 be conducted
under such terms as would give the actual mtIlct
yahie 10 the producer Of the bullion in coin from
hi. own silver and the s-gniorlse profit on the
coinage TO 20 TO the Government. This would
remove the Eastern objection that the Rocky Noun.
tain miners want gold for their silver. r1nV viii
..at e1..N.. tf