The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1893-08-12

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the long struggle, between the ad-
vocate of free silver coinage and
those intending to be more con-
servative.
! Undoubtedly the monthly pur-
chases by the government of 4,500,-
r000 ounces ofsilver, enforced under
that statute, were regarded by
those Interested In silver produce
tion as Il certain guaranty Of its
increase in price. The result, how
ever, has been entirely different,
for Immediately following a spas
modic and slight rise, the price of
silver began to fall after the pas
sage Of the act and has since reach
ed the lowest point ever known.
This disappointing result has led
to renewed and persistent effort in
the direction of free silver coinage.
1 Meanwhile, not only are the evil
effects of the operati; II of the pres
ent law constantly accommodating
but the result to which its execu-
tion must inevitably lead is becom-
ing. palpable to all who give the
least heed to financial subjects.
This law provides that in pay
ment for the 100000 ounces of
silver bullion which the secretary
of the treasury is commanded to
purchase monthly, there shall be
issued treasury notes redeemable
on demand in gold or silver coin,
4 at the discretion of the secretary
of the treasury, and that said notes
may be reissued. 1t is, however,
declared in the act to be "the es-
tablished policy of the United
States to maintain the two metals
on 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 nom-
inally vested in him, if by such ac-
tion the parity between gold and
silver may be disturbed. Mani
testify refusal by the secretary to
pay these treasury notes in gold, If
demanded, would necessarily re-
suit in their discredit and depre-
citation as obligations payable only
in silver, and would destroy the
parity between the two metals by
establishing discrimination in
favor of gold.
Up to the fifteenth day of July,
1898, these notes had been issued
in payment of silver bullion pur.
chases to the amount of more than
$147,OO0,000 million. While all but
a very small quantity Of this bullion
remains uncoined 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 first day of May, 1892,
and the fifteenth of July, 1893, the
notes of this kind issued in pay
ment for silver bullion, amounted
to little more than fifty-four mil.
lions of dollars, and that during
the same period about forty-nine
J millions of dollars were paid by
the treasury in gold for the re-
demption of such notes.
The policy necessarily adopted
of paying these notes in gold has
not spared the gold reserve of one
hundred millions of dollars long
ago set aside by the government
for the redemption of other notes
for this fund has already been sub
jected to the payment of new obli.
a cations amounting to about one
hundred and fifty millions of dol
lars on account of silver purchases
and has as consequence, for thu
! first time since its creation, beer
, encroached upon.
!, We have thus made the deple.
d tion of our gold easy, and hav'
d tempted other and more apprecia
: tive nations to add it to their stock
That the opportunity we have of
t fered has not been neglected, il
8 shown by the large amounts o
. gold which have been recently
= drawn from our treasury and ex
! ported to increase the financia
, strength of foreign nations. Th'
8 excess Of exports of gold over itl
# imports for the year ending June
i 80, 1893, amounted to more thar
J. eighty-seven and a half millions O
h dollars. Between the first day O
s July, 1890 and the fifteenth day O
j. July. 1898, the gold coin and bul
n lion in our treasury decreased more
d than one hundred and thirty-tw'