The Philipsburg mail. [volume] (Philipsburg, Mont.) 1887-current, 1894-05-10
A New York Financial Man
Who Strongly Fayors 1t.
DON'T BELIEVE IN M0NO-METALLISM
Adherence to the Mono Nj etallic Stan.
dard Will Crush the Debtor Class
Good Argument in Favor Ofa
Bi-MetalI1c Standard,

Hon. A. Foster Higgins, vice -presi-
dent of the New York chamber of COM
merce, who made very forcible address
before that body last spring against the
repeal of the Sherman purchase act, IN
a recent interview strongly favors a re-
turn to bi-metallic standard. He said:
81 am satisfied, as was when the cry for
repeal was loudest, that adherence to q
m ono-metallic standard Of currency will
crush the debtor class out Of existence.
It is the debtor that carries on the
worlds business, and whenever condit-
ions are as they now are the worlds bus
mess will languish. Almost the entire
civilized world IS to-day trying to do bus
mess with gold alone, and the result is
worldwide depression.
"It is not the moneyed man who takes
risks. 1t is the man whose wealth has
yet to be won, who, with splendid pluck
and nerve, risks everything and assumes
heavy obligations in order that he may
prosecute the enterprises that result in
material progress and improvement.
Now, if We have for the basis of our cur
rency metal that is constantly dimin-
ishing in quantity and increasing in
price. as gold certainly is, the man who
becomes debtor to-day in the sum of
$4,000 may have to meet his obligation
when it falls due, some years from now,
with the equivalent of $4,000, and he
may find it impossible to pay at all, in
which case, of course, he will be wiped
out. Gold is now at premium, though
some gold monometallists deny it. To
say that prices have been steadily going
down is only another way of saying that
gold has been going up. The adoption
OF gold standard by all the strongest
nations of the earth, and that has already
been done, will infal]ibly tend to still
further enhancement Of the value of the
yellow metal, and series OF periodical
crashes is sure to follow unless a change
OF financial policy be made. More money
is needed every year with which to do
the worlds work, and some means have
got to be devised to do it. I am in favor
of the adoption of bimetallic standard
for that purpose, and believe the whole
world will be obliged to come around to
that view of the matter.
''The commercial demand for gold is
growing enormously every year, and this
OF course puts up the price of the metal.
In 1860 the total amount Of money in
the world was about $5,9O0,O0O,OOO. In
1890 it was $l200O,000,O00, one third pa
per, one third silver, one third gold.
Stop moment and think what that
means. The amount of money accumu-
lated in all time previous to 1860 has
been more than duplicated in the thirty
years that have elapsed since then. The
entire history OF the world does not re-
cord any other period of such rapid ma
terial, scientific and intellectual develop
opment as the thirty years that closed
with 1890. This period saw the develop
ment OF steam communication both on
sea and land, the growth of popular cul-
ture, the modern home It may we'll be
called the age Of machinery. All this
required an unprecedented augmenta-
ton Of the volume Of the worlds curren-
cy. In round numbers the yearly in
crease since 1860 has been S2OO,OOO,OOO.
The total annual output of gold Is only
and of that amount from
to s70000,00o a year is ab-
sorbed in the manufactures and the arts
Now, should like to know how the
$200,000,0O0 of currency needed yearly to
keep up the progress of the world can be
got out of the s30,0O0,0oO to $5OOo0000
worth Of gold that is left.
II do not know just what form legis-
|ation for relief should take. You remem-
Der the quack doctor of the old story
who said he was Halifax on fits, and so
threw his patients into fits, which he
was certain he could cure. Last sum-
mer the country was sick. The repeal
Of the Sherman law threw us into fits
and the fits must be cured. Meantime
the rest of the world must suffer as we'll
as the United States"