The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1894-12-16

with bank notes while the burning is
sue is our primary money: coin. Iden-
ticalIy tlltored. our chief executive has
required his secretary to abandon the
option conferred by law upon the Uni
ted States, and grant holders of Uni
ted States notes the right to exact
gold always, silver never, as their re-
deening coin. Had the option to re-
deem in silver dollars been exercised
boldly at time when only three mil
lion silver dollars We're owned by the
United States with the ownership or
SIG, 000. 600 gold, any possible alarm
would have been hushed to scorn. An
amendment to seize upon and exercise
the option now or under. prospective
conditions Of the treasury would be
to court all the perils OF disaster"
Mr.. ST. John stated that the same
policy led to the present proposition OF
substituting the bank promises Of
money in place of the primary and
secondary money gold and silver
which they promise. Mr.. st. John took
up the cases of silver monometallism.
He characterized the repeal of the
Sherman act last year and closing of
the mint to silver as 'fthe worlds blind
experiment in money. 1t severed the
last link that coupled silver to it's Grip
pied right of money in the western
world Mr. ST. John declared it was
the duty of Congress to stop expert
menting, and go back to the Hamilton
Jefferson coinage system to restore BIZ
metallism Independent of other ma
tons. He took up the subject of what
he termed the ''goldites." He cited the
record of France in independent BIZ
metallism. The conditions in the
pitious for such action. Within ten
years there was promise of exceeding
the population of Great Britain and
France, and our gold and silver could
circulate over a territory seventeen
times the area of France.
Against the Bankers.
Mr.. st. John closed with a review of
the notable features of the present
financial condition. The dollar is eff
ficient, but prices are ruinously low,
capital lacks investment and manu-
featuring is restricted by low prices
and labor starves.
.sThe enduring fact" said he, eff
this aspect of money is to be preserved,
is that the rich be made richer and the
poor poorer as the one achievement of
our statute law"
At the conclusion Of Mr.. st. Johns
statement, the committee took a recess,
asking the witnesses to return for
further examination.
81 want to combat every statement
of every banker who has appeared be-
fore you," said Mr.. st. John, as an in
dication of the line of questions he
desired.
Representative Culberson of Texas,
questioned Mr.. 81. John as to the
remedy he would propose for the pres
ent conditions. The witness presented
a bill as a remedy. 1t provides for
silver coinage on the same basis as
gold. Mr.. st. John said the bill would
put the country on a silver basis for
time-thereafter both metals would cir
culate. AS to the Carlisle pIan Mr.
st, John said it would fall fiat" Banks
would not accept it. They would be-
come state banks. But the secretary's
bill was better than the Baltimore plan.
rency under the Carlisle plan be safe?
Would Cause a Panic.
Mr.. st. John-There would be no
currency issued by them. They would
not accept it. Instead of that you
would have the worst panic on rec
ord.
He pointed out that the Safety fund"
under the Carlisle plan was to be ac-
cumulated in small percentages and
would not be realized for ten years.
In the meantime, for the next ten
years, there would no safety fund
behind the proposed bank notes. Mr..
st. John said that the bankers before
the committee had weighed the retire
ment of greenbacks, but he regarded
as preposterous that $346, OOO, 900 of non
Understanding greenbacks should be
retired by the government at the very
moment that the government was is
suing 50,O6O,OOO of per cent bonds.
The witness said state banks would be