Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1894-05-04
PROFESSOR BENJAMIN ANDREWS.
The Famous Economist Pleads Ably In
Favor OF Bimetaihsm.

i'oi' hhulcWs, On rlsluS to speak,
received an enthusiastic greeting. The
subject of his address was "Bimetal-
lism-Is it Desirable? Is 1t Possible?"
Taking the affirmative side of the ques-
ton President Andrews spoke as fol.
lows:
Gentlemen of the Commercial Club
| esteem it an honor To discuss this
subject before an organization like
yours. The question how to treat silver
is an exceedingly important one, which
thoughtful men of business are consid-
ering as never before. A few weeks
ago, when an effort was made in Bos-
of general bimetallism, those concerned
were surprised to find how ready most
of the best business men in that capital
were To join. Gentleman who are not
faddists or doctrinalres believe that in
ternational bimetallism is very desira-
BILE and that it is possible. In these
views they represent an increasing null
titude of conservative business men all
over the eastern part of our country.
One great reason why silver needs to
be made full money again is that life
may be restored TO manufacturing and
trade. The present business depression
is general, not mere American NAL
ady. 1t RACES in England as well as
here. In an interview reported in the
New York Sun, March Z, Mr.. Moreton
Frewen, of London, being asked how
business matters stood there, said:
much as they do here, though here,
indeed, there seems improvement, but
with us none; rather the reverse" The
blight upon business originates beyond
all question in that scarcity of full or
exportable money, leading to contin-
uous and discorraging fall in general
prices, which first made production
and credit business less and less profit
able, and now at last makes them less
and less possible.
Silver ousted from Its old Office
Our present disease is only an accen-
tuation of that which the gold-using
world has been passing through ever
since 1873. That was the year when
Germany and the United States demon
etized silver, an act which, with the
similar acts to which it led other ma
tons, caused shrinkage of somewhere
near half in the supply of fundamental
money possessed by Europe and North
America.
Not only is silver ousted from its old
office, as full money. but, according to
all evidence the worlds value of gold
itself, available for money, has shrunk
much absolutely and still more relative
" to the needs of trade. According to
Soetbeer there was in 1890 1900, 000,-
900 gold in European and American
banks, and 81 1925, 100000 in circula-
tion among the people. total of 49,
325, 100000, but now nearly $1,000
100000 of gold more than this, viz,
SIS 900 900, 900, have been taken from
the worlds mines during the last four
decades alone That is, the gold mined
in the world between 1850 and 1890
by almost $4,000, 900, 900 all that was
in 1890 anywhere to be found in Eu-
rope and America. The whole stock
held by the western nations in 1850
and nearly 81, 900, 100000 of that ex-
humed since has been lost, consumed
in the arts, boarded, or sent TO Asia.
The demand continuing the same or
increasing, you cannot cut down the
supply of any material one-half without
enhancing the value of the material
per unit. This is just what has occur
red since 1873, an immensely increased
demand for money, through the growth
of population and trade, but decrease
in the supply. This is why there has
been, as careful price statistics show,
an increase of fifty per cent in the value
or general purchasing power of gram
of gold since 1873.
Rising Money Means Falling Prices.
The other phase of the phenomenon
called "a rise in the value of money"
is fail of general prices. That the
value of money goes up means simply
that the prices or values in money, of
things in general, 60 down. Rising
money value, falling prices. These are
simply the two sides of one and the
same inseparable fact. That the prices
of most things have been falling since
1873 is uncontested, but the baneful
effect of such fall is not so widely seen.
T,vo ,,,an,ora nda are i'm Mace at this