The evening herald. [volume] (Shenandoah, Pa.) 1891-1966, 1893-08-09
PRESIDENTS MESSAGE.
An Able Review Of Existing
Financial Conditions.
REPEAL THE SHERMAN LAW
It Is Described as the Cause Of All
the Trouble,
DEMAND FOR A SOUND CURRENCY,
REPEAL THE SHERMAN LAW
DEMAND FOR A SOUND CURRENCY,

Dur Gold Reserve Withdrawn rom the
Treasury and Exported 20 Increase the
Financial Strength Of othor Nations.
where COLD and silver Part Company.
yo Cannot Sustain Flat Money.
WASHINGTON, Aug. 9.--The following is
. copy Of the communication on the fiscal
affairs Of the nation forwarded by the
president Of the United States and read In
both houses Of congress yesterday after
noon:
TO THE CoNaREss OF THE UNITED
existence Of an alarming and
extraordinary business situation, involv-
ing the welfare and prosperity Of all our
people, has constrained me to call together
In extra session the people'srepresent
In congress to the end that through wise
and patriotic exercise of the legislative
duty, with which they solely are charged,
present evils may be mitigated and dan
gers threatening the future may be
averted.
Cause OF the Trouble.
Our unfortunate financial plight Is not
the result OF untoward events nor of con-
ditions related to our natural resources
nor is II traceable to any Of the Affections
which frequently check national growth
DEOSDtIlLNs
with abundant promise of remunerative
production and manufacture, with un
usual invitation to safe investment and
with satisfactory assurance to business en-
terprise, suddenly financial distrust q
fear have sprung up on every side. Mum, -
Gus moueyed institutions have suspend ID
because abundant assets were not i'm
mediatelv available to meet demands Of
frightened depostors. Surviving cOrpor
ations and individuals are content to keep
in hand the money they are usually anx-
ious to loan, and those engaged in legiti-
mate business are surprised TO find that
the securities they offer for loans, though
heretofore satisfactory, are no longer aC-
cepted. Values supposed to be fixed are
fast becoming conjectural, and loss and
failure have involved every branch Of
business.
I believe these things are principally
chargeable to congressional legislation
touching the purchase and coinage of
silver by the general government.
Evils of the sherman Law.
This legislation is embodied in a statute
passed on the 14th day of July, 1890,
which was the elimination of much agi-
tation on the subject involved, and which
may be considered a truce, after a long
struggle, between the advocates of free
silver coinage and those intending to be
more conservative.
Undoubtedly the monthly purchase by
the government of 4,500000 ounces of
silver, enforced under that statute, was
regarded by those interested in silver pro
duction as a certain guaranty of its in
---~ara in nrioa The result, however, has
been entirely different for immr,litot,Iy v
e. fn i,rhf a.. 81,
price of silver began to fall after the pas
sage of the act, and has since reached the
lowest point ever known. This disappoint-
ing result has led to renewed and per-
sistent effort in the direction of free silver
coinage.
Meanwhile, not only are the evil effects
Of the operation of the present law con
stantly accumulating, but the result to
which its execution must inevitably lead
is becoming palpable to all who give the
least heed to financial subjects.
To Preserve the Parity.
This law provides that in payment for
the $4,000 ounces of silver bullion
which the secretary Of the treasury is com
manded to purchase monthly, there shall
be issued treasury notes redeemable on de.
mand in gold or silver coin, at the discre-
tion of the treasury, and that the said
notes may be reissued. 1t Is, however, de
cared in the act to be "the established
policy of the United States to maintain
the two metals on a parity with each
other upon the present legal ratio, or such
ratio as may be provided by law" This
declaration so controls the action of the
secretary of the treasury as to prevent
his exercising the discretion nomi-
nally vested in him if by such
action the parity between gold and
silver may be disturbed. Manifestly, a
refusal by the secretary of the treasury to
pay these treasury notes in gold, if de
manded, would necessarily result in their
discredit and depreciation as obligations
payable only in silver, and would destroy
the parity between the two metals by es-
tablishing a discrimination in favor of
gold.
Gold for Silver.
Up to the 18th day of July, 1898 these
notes had been issued in payment of silver
bullion purchases to the amount Of more
than S147 600, 600 While all but a very
small quantity of this bullion remains un-
coined and without usefulness in the
treasury, many of the notes given in its
purchase have been paid in gold
This is illustrated by the statement that
between the 1st day of May, 1892, and the
18th day Of July, 1898, the notes of this
kind issued in payment for silver bullion
amounted to little more than S54 900, 900,
and that during the same period about
So 900 We're paid by the treasury in
gold for the redemption Of such notes.
The policy necessarily gdopted of paying
these notes in gold has not spared the gold
reserve Of 500, OO0, 900 long ago set aside by
the government for the redemption of
other notes, for this fund has already been
subjected to the payment Of new obliga-
tions amounting to about $3.50, 900 on