The herald., 1894-06-07
BIMRrALLIsM PROGRESSING.

The progress that bimetallism is max
ing among the leading men and think
ers Of the work is rem arkable. In Great
Britain the change of sentiment upon
the subject of silver 10 marked. The
commercial ranks OF the large English
cities are saturated with the principles
Of the silver propaganda. The expert
ment of demonetising the white metal
| in India has reboundsd with disastrous
effect upon the merchants engaged in
trade with that important possession.
The clear and able championship Of the
restoration of silver by such men as
Balfour and Chaplin lie having q won
derful influence upon British public
opinion. At no stage of the controversy
has the outlook for popular demand
for the reinstatement of silver in Its
rightful monetary position been more
encouraging than it is at present in
Great Britain. AS Great Britain goes
on this subject, 60 will Germany and
Austria 60.
There are strong evidences manifest
ing them selves among the Republican
leaders in the eastern states OF CONVEX
sion to the tenets OF western Democracy
on the subject of silver. "Czsr" Reed
has given unmistskable signs of bis con-
version, and in q recent publication he
has taken advance ground in favor OF
reinstating silver in the position from
which it WAS by violence and fraud de-
graded in 1878 and the subsequent years.
Senator Quay and other leading Repub-
lcan public men have also been ga
gacious enough to see that their party
must make great and material conces-
sions to the silver sentiment of the west
and south if it is to hold it's prestige as a
national party. These men realize fully
the enormous strength of the popular
sentiment ON this subject in many west
ern states that were strongholds OF their
party in the years past. They know
that this sentiment has grown formid
able among the people of the west with
the evidences of the disastrous conse.
ouences upon their material interests OF
the gold policy, and that they will not
train with any party which fails to COM
NIT itself to the restoration of silver to
its full and perfect place in the financial
system of the country. They see that
the practical demonstration of silver
has placed all the material interests of
the country at the mercy of the gold
manipulators, and that until silver has
again taken it's old place in our money
system there will be no return to pros
porous times.
The bimetallists point with triumph
to the vindicstion of their principles by
the revolution which has taken place in
the relative values of the two metals
since gold was made sole king. When
the two metals were circulating side by
side ON an even keel, the equilibrium
between their values was established
and rendered fixed by their operation
upon each other. 1t was practically
found that when there was tendency
to depreciation in gold, silver acted ss a
counterpoise and soon brought it back to
its parity level. The cheaper money, by
the operation OF the Gresham law, be-
came plentiful and the desrer money
was boarded. The idle money that was
nominslly desrer, however, performed
no earning function, and was soon let
loose to partake of the benefits which
the circulating money was enjoying.
This would at once re-esta blish the equi-
librium, and they both would then work
in harmony to the advantage of mankind.
1t now looks as if the two leading
national parties will both be forced to
make bid for the support of the silver
men. When this period arrives the time
will not be far off when the United
States will restore silver to its former
position, make free coinage dogma Of
their political creed and favor the dis
enthrallment of this country and con-
tinent from the financial dictation of the
money centers of the old world.
We have established our political
freedom; the next thing for us to do
is to teach Europe that we are as capa-
BILE of going it alone in financial sense
as we are in political sense.