The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1893-05-09

not Of q kind to train Their judament and
reasoning powers"
In the current number IF the: Csntuyy is
published the following letter Fl inquiry
from reader in LlncolnziIle, Han:
Your answer to = letter from Arkiasss in the
January number encourages ne 20 esS ques-
ton In the hope OF having e accof.ei similar
courteous and instructive tsestmens And IL Is
with no hostile critical obi eet that ask il, for
/ am inclined TO think yogr posit on on the
money subject the right ora. II is shs: Why,
If a e6-cent dollar will buy sally 65 ems worth
of goods. Can We go into ans store .n the land
and, laying down FIVE silver doilarsl a. readily
get s. worth OF goods as II ~s had Offered Is
gold piece?
The language Of this Lester sh iws plainly
that its author was an sreducatH1" man at
least to the level of our public schools. and
it also shows that he vas rs. man of
practical intelligence, who masters the
facts and then thinks a,sight Il man Of
respectable reasoning powers wsuId never
have found it necessary 20 ask :he Century
to answer his question. and this man who
could write a very respectable ind intelii-
gently expressed letter could INST answer .
question in the very = c of popular
financial education.
Of course, there are ,housatds Of mel,
not il!iterate, but grad ates o. our COM
mon schools, who are 10 wiss::- than this
Kansas correspondent q the Century, and
when We add TO the ras ks of ,tlese men,
who ought to know Something. since they
have been educated at the puls,ie schools,
the thousands of illit1rates, who know
nothing of books and Aave newer been to
school, what wonder that tee Populist
party carried Kansas; what Il onder that
''iree silver" socialism. government ware
house certificates, Bella:nyism of all sorts,
has 80 many supporters among the people.
There need be no SURPRISE that the
Populist, who believes IN issuis,g treasury
notes on the deposit given. cotton. to-
bacco or any other 81 ricu tural product,
should favor free silver" for one propo-
si,ion is not more ridiculous than the
other: the mind anc intelligence that
favored one would bo sure SD favor the
other. The demand Of the Farmers
Alliance or Populist party to issue treas
ury notes on the deposit Of agricultural
products, is not more ridiculous
than our present practice to dump
the proceeds of :ae silver mines
into the national trea.ury, and
issue therefor treasury notes Interchange
able for gold or silver ,oin. 1..e man who
is sincerely unable to see t.e intrinsic
folly of one of these propositions certainly
would not be able to zee the :iolly of the
other: so we need tot woiiier that a
Populiss who believes IN the ISSUE of fat
money to farmers on the basis, Of his pro-
ducts should believe in the tissue Of tat
money to the owners IF silvtr mines on
their products.
The editor of the Ceatury ti.ats the in
quiry Of his Kansas correspondent with
perfect courtesy and keeps :ais counte-
nance while he tells hum that. the reason
why he can get five dollars wsrth of goods
as readily by laying down fivs silver dol
lars, worth in bullion put 81 csnts each, as
If he had offered five dollar fold piece, is
because the country IS on the gold stand
ard and the credit Of the United States
government is behin'i every silver dollar.
The editor Of the Cent.ry goes :Gurther than
this and points out TO its Kansas CORE
spondent that the Z aited States govern
ment Is able to keep rs word and give FIVE
dollars in gold for i've dollecs in silver
only so long as tha coinage Of SILVER is
limited, or only SO long as aks treasury
has sufficient gold 10 meet all demands
upon it.
"Free silver" or the curreslcy imitation
produced by the ISSUE of lega. tender notes
in payment for silver bulli.ln would, of
course, ultimately drive god out of the
country. When tbs gold supply becomes
go redlced that the government can meet
its obligations only by paying out its
boarded silver and cannot Exchange that
silver in demand for .gold "then
the five dollars of or.t inquiring
friend will drop Instantly to their
real value, of about u cers.s today, and
he will be able to sly only 50. 20 worth of
goods with them" The mo: nent the gov.
eminent could no longer exchange silver.
dollars for gold dollars the :tradesmen in
Lincolnvilie, KAN woul. mark their
prices up to the req iiremenes of the silver
standard that is a.ore thap 3 third above
their former Level While: prices would
advance instantly wages: Of all kinds
would advance at $ much I:ore moderate
pace, and the reso,t woul. be the same
that it always is in such tin'es of intiation
the wage Garner and the s;oor man gen.
orally would be tbs chief sufferers from
the change"
When the governments: gold reserve
begins to melt avs az it Cal: stop the issue
of legal tenders ~ repeating the silver
purchase act Of July, 1890, .r it can Issue
gold bonds The repeal of she silver pur-
chase act is really the essential thing, for
without its repeal ise issue 0t gold bonds
would be only borrowing g:id to buy silver
with that We do nct need, sNhich is as alb
surd AS 1t would b. 10 borrow gold with
which 10 purchase iron So do not need.
Up 70 February /. iSlS. III. der the silver
purchase act of Ju.y, 1897. .Se had bought
l.9 go. 7S5 ounces of s.,y.r! uaying Tor
1t Sl21.-S9.sl0. al hav: issued legal
tenders 10 that amount. t@nder the Bland
act the silver pur.,lases csst SJ05, lS5. 497.
making a total Out ~ for s:,iser during nj.
teen years OF ga ,372 30: The market
value OF this silver IN Jaa;a-y p OF the
present year Was t.s5l. 10. :JI, showing a
total loss 10 the & yerBmeI.t. since The sill
yer purchases beg 70. OF So 9t5, $50 or an
average of more than $1,000 wear.
The government - uoi: oa.y lost this