The Philipsburg mail. [volume] (Philipsburg, Mont.) 1887-current, 1894-04-26
Interesting Letter from Sir
M0ret0n FreWen.
SIGNIFICANT REMARK In THE SENATE
what the Closed MINIS Have Done
for the Vast Trade Of Indfa-Mr.
Frewen Talks of a Plan That
He Thinks viii Soon Bring
England to Her Senses.

England to Her Senses.
The following letter written to the San
Francisco Chronicle will be found inter-
esting from the fact that it advances a
new idea in relation to the silver queas-
ton: Permit me to draw your attention
to Senator Lodges speach yeserday in
support Of Senator Wolcott's proposal
that the United States mints should, by
agreement, be opened to the free coinage
Of silver into Mexican dollars. After
drawing attention to the trade now
coming through the Suez canal to Lon
don, which might be diverted to cross
the Pacific to San Francisco, Senator
Lodge proceeded to say: II think the
experiment. contemplated in. this resolu-
tion is worth trying. I think 1t will in
jure her England in that way. But I
would go very much further than that
[ would strike her on those points where
she would feel it most-on her colonial
trade. In the interests of silver { I am
not now speaking with the slightest re-
ference to protection or free trade) [
would strike her with prohibitive duties,
Unnecessary, on cape diamonds. I would
strike her in the same way on her Assam
and Ceylon teas. Iwould put discrimin-
ating duties on her Australian woods.
We want, if We can, to force England to
take the view of the silver question which
we believe is not only for our interest
but for the interest of trade, Of good
prices and better wages all over the
world"
This silver -cum-tarif policy thus out
lined by Senator Lodge is an opening
wedge Of immense power, and If only
the Southern free-silver Democrats would
join hands with the Republican inter
national bi-metallists-th followers of
Professor Francis A. Walker-in support
of this policy every trade center in Great
Britain would become alarmed, would in
three months be clamoring for bi-metal-
lism. Indeed so interlaced are the tariff
and silver questions to-day that there is
not corner of the globe where this
short statment of Senator Lodge yester-
day will not be read with interest and
even anxiety. Australia sends to Eng
land annually about $l3O,OO0,OOO worth
of wool; the exports Of tea from India
and China are of immense value; the ex-
ports of diamonds from Cape Colony are
more than one-half of the entire exports
Of that colony; the consumption of dia.
monds in the United States pmounts to
over one-third of the whole worlds con-
AS to India the experiment of closed
mints has already broken down. When
in few weeks or months the India Office
at Whitehall has been forced to recog-
nize that such is really the case, then
The only possible alternative to bl-metal-
ism having been tried and having failed,
England will have to "eat crow" and ask
'or monetary conference. Events are
now moving fast.
A speech has been sent me from India,
made at Calcutta by Robert Steel, the
commercial member of the Viceroy's
Council, on the 23d of February. Mr..
Steel, who is personally known to me as
one Of the ablest fnanciers who ever left
England for India, says:
We can now Judge of the results of the
closing of the Indian mints. The Secre-
ary of State cannot sell his council bills;
he balance Of trade has disappeared;
exchange is falling and there seems to be
70 no chance of the downward course
'eing arrested until we reach the metal
ic value Of the rupee. Money is at 9
'er cent and may 60 much higher, but
he banks, in view of the further ex-
,ected fall in exchange, will not bring
'ut one rupee more than the amount
hey absolutely need to pay for the bills
Ivy AoVO OouSAo. WILL LILO pIo6cDCt9
# dear money and the prospect of dearer
money, trade here is paralyzed. The
act is the closing OF the mints has caused
liver here to fall to much lower price
han 1t would otherwise have done, and
,et it appears that whether the mlnts be
closed or open there is no chance that
council bills can be sold on the scale of
,ur requirements until exchange reaches
he bullion point. Our trade has been !
'aralyzed in the hope of relieving the
'mbarrassments Of the governments, and
ret the departure from a sound currency
ystem is making the position of the
Government worse than it was before
che present course can not be persevered !