The Windham County reformer. (Battleboro, Vt.) 1876-1897, 1893-07-28
SlLAS NJ. WAITE.
AND HOW HE WOULD SOLVE THE
SILVER PROBLEM.
AND THE FINANUIAL DISORDER

ShAN EAG GAhObLEM.
AND THE FINANCIAL DISORDER.
A Very Ingenious scheme-Apd Tables IN
!iIustrate 1t - But What History SAYS
About 1t. '
Silas NJ. Waite, of former Bra.Ieboro bank.
Ing fame and now employed In the office of q
trust company ut Omaha. Neb, contributes to a
recent number of the Omaha World Herald
an article OH the financial situation and the
silver problem. Silas was always an original
ana ingenious man and his solution at least
commands this merit. II is In brief to stop
trying TO catch up with the downward move
ment OF silver by Increasing the size of
TIE silver dollar, and to put gold enough In 1t
10 oring up Its value to 100 cents, as r.eas.
ured by gold, and to increase or decrease the
amount as may be necessary from time to
!llne 10 keep up the parity. While the
scheme IL doubtless both original and ipgen-
lous. CO... Waite is In error In saying that
past financial history" furnishes no
precedent. This combination of metals
called e!ectrum, was very common In Asia
to have used 1t 900 years b. c. Certainly
Lesbos. Ny rteena, Lampacas and Syracuse
used 1t 800 to 450 b. c. 1t was at one time
supposed to be the pure metal as silver and
gold are so often mined tOs ether. A pattern
Tor dollar very similar to what he proposes
an0 about The size of a half dollar, was made
1or this government in 1879 and was reject.
reason was, and 1t is the reason
why the scheme has never been adopted
more, to remedy the obvious difficulty of too
bulky and too small money, Is that 1t is a
combination that can he easily initiated with
orelde for instance, so that no man could d.
tect 1t by sight or without scales to weigh 1t.
The more obvious objection TO w aItes s scheme
Is the Stact pOtntnU nd Int = ,Il
compel the government to do; for the yarla.
ton is values Is not thing of the pre- ts,nt,
due wholly to the discrimination sgainst sil.
yer, and to lie remeied by remonetizing 1t.
1t has varied through history " bile both have
been recognized as money metals all the way
from to 10 "a to l. But without fur
ther discussion, let lis see Waite's argument
1.-The increase of silver pro luction has so far
exceeded In relative proportion the increase
OF gold that the long established ratio of
about IL to cannot be sustained In the bu.-
lion markets Of the world. Right or wrong,
this adherence to this arbitrary proposition
enables the gold standard countries OF Europe
10 hoard gold, depress silver, and gradually
exhaust the gold Of the United States and de-
press the value of silver that makes our pres.
elt standard coin of 4l2 l 2 grains to dollar.
This conduct may be contrary to good policy
or good judgment, yet 1t Is a fact which Is be.
yond the control of any law or influence that |
this people or nation can use. To propose
conferences Of various national financiers !
seems 10 furnish good way to spend money |
and make large amount of impractlcable |
theories to discuss, and then adjourn, leaving |
The question entirely unsolvcd.
Inc two valuable metals, gold and silver, |
have been for all time the medium of eur.
rency value, and II Is safe to assume always |
will be. But the wonderful development of
silver mines is now producing silver In such
quantities that 1t is not readily absorbed for
nose purposes. and the prOportionate value
20 gold Is from this cause being gradually |
owered. Tine experimental remedy OF COM
DelliDg the government to buy fixed quan.
ity each month and convert 1t into paper
money, does not seem to accomplish what lis
advocates prophesied, nor does 1t establish |
my fixed value for silver per ounce. The
lated since The enactment OF the Sherman
liver a,t in 1890.
Now comes the ne Xt theory to restore silver
o parity with gold, as the proportion has
heretofore been of about 1G 10 /. That tine.
ry Is that the United States shall establish
specified weight, to be Of legal value of 81
or all purposes; to be coined free OF expense
0 the owner OF the silver. Can 1t be possible
hat this theory can be q any more substan-
lal value IN solving this than the purchase
ct of 1890 has been?
There IS nothing in the past financial his.
Dry of the world to be governed by. The
srgc amount of silver that Is now available
new factor to deal with therefore 1t De-
ONES necessary to adopt a new rule for gov
rnng this new state or condition Of finance. |
hat gold and silver should always maintain
relative proportional value as currency will ;
e our basis. That this relative proportional
alpe should be so fixed as to be rs permG
ent as possible and not liable to fluctuations
absolutely essential to Its becoming the rule
govern the metallic currency for the COM
ercial business of the world. 7
Suppose that the future standard doiars be 9
xed at 420 grains eIch, compounded as fo,- 6
VS..
0 grains of silver when silyeris 81
cents per OF, 10
S grains OF gold. calling gold $l6 per
oz. :sss
, grains of alloy valued ats 8 cents, 3 Is
$lO0
grains of silver when silver is IS u
cents per OF, 6S l-3 I
grains OF gold. gold at slG per OF. 80 Is c
grains OF alloy, l'3 d
leo
} grains of silver when silver 81
grains of gold, gold at SIC per OF, l3 is Il
grains of alloy, l-3
grains. slOo
grains of silver when silver is $l.la
perez, % l-3
grain of gold, gold at SIG per OF. S13 n
grains of alloy, 1'3 y
| -
grains, 81 90 10
Z grains of silver when silver Is pl
$i.2O per or, e6 s-s So
grains OF all y, l-3
grains, 81
Mr. Waite gives a long series of tables, of
lich the above are only Illustrations to show
: different proportions of the two metals OF
of the alloy that would have to be ust d, 10
silver varied from "a cents To al 90 an ar
nee, and then says: ~
III we keep this same standard weight for q, =,
, dollar and follow the same relative pro. -
rliOns In its coinage as silver NAV fuctu- =