The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1894-09-08
CRISP AND SMITH ON SILVER

Out the attention or capital once Sc
cured, its confidence must also be wor
and it was, therefore, of the utmost
Importance to the future welfare OF
the state that in the coming election
the people Of Georgia should show the
world that the wild theories of tn
Populists had no foot-hold amongs
them.
PopuIistic Belief.
Calling attention to the recent ex.
perience of the great states of Kansa
and Colorado under Populistic rule
the secretary asked who would wisi
to see Georgia follow the leadership o
a Llewelling or a Waite. Bad as wa!
the record of the third party in the
west, the crazy theories of their lead
ers in Congress were enough to staggel
comprehension and shock thoughtful
men. They sought disbursements
amounting in the aggregate TO over
$25, 900, 100000. The people of Georgia
could not afford to endorse such q
party. The state would be disorgan.
lied locally and discredited before the
world if it appeared to have even
listened to their impracticable theories
Few of their beliefs were worthy of
discussion; but there was one which
seemed to have appeared attractive, al
though when carefully investigated il
must be classified with their other
theories as almost equally wild and
impracticable. He referred TO the free
and unlimited coinage of silver at the
ratio of 16 to / by the United States
alone, and declared it to be plan ut
terly at variance with sound business
and fraught with incalculable
evil.
Is a BimetaIIist.
He did not wish his position mis-
understood. He was a thorough BIZ
metallist, strong in his faith, and no
one could be more unalterably opposed
to the adoption of a single gold stand
ard. Such a course would bring about
a contraction of the currency calculated
to cripple the industries and to lessen
the demand for supplies.
The injury inflicted by single
standard currency has been recently
demonstrated abroad and the evil eff
fects had been felt here upon products
Of this country raised for foreign con-
He believed the evil effects
would be lessened by preserving the
present per capita of currency here;
but when three-fourths OF our great
cotton product goes abroad, three
fourths of the injury could not be
reached except by the success CT BIZ
iueldlllSill III lle pldCeS VI cOusull u
ton. Currency in the United States
had not been contracted, but ON the
contrary, the per capita today was
S24.19 as against an average of SASS
from 1850 to 1860.
The secretary then described the eight
different kinds of money now used in
this country and maintained that the
instant any one of these went to pre-
MUM it would become commodity for
private sale and contraction would fol-
low, but by preserving them upon an
and by an increase equal to
the growth of business and population,
contraction would be prevented This
could be accomplished, first, by chang
ing the bullion in a silver dollar, SO as
to require a hundred cents worth of
silver in any dollar second, by inter-
national agreement, which, if secured,
would prevent the necessity of chang
ing the ratio; or third, by calling in all
money of small denominations, say ten
dollars and less not consisting of silver.
and giving silver the right of way. He
urged the repeal of the 10
per cent. law on state banks as a rem
edy within control of the United States
Of great value.
Silver Decentralization.
After sketching the history of silver
characterization by Germany in 1871 and
by Norway, Sweden. Den
mark, Holland, Russia and nations
the Latin union, Secretary
Smith said:
In the meantime the United States
had changed from the coinage of s.
5Sl, 500 silver dollars in eighty years up
TO 1873, to the coinage Of 419.256. 600
standard silver dollars and to the pur-
chase of silver upon which treasury
notes were issued, making a total coin
age OF $510,000,00 600 of silver used in this
country during the last twenty wears
from an average of S1,000,000 a year
the United States had changed to the
use of nearly 100000 600 a year. The
annual production of silver, in the
meantime, had changed from $50 900, 900
at the coinage ratio of 1873 to 5000.
100 at the coinage ratio of 1892. and
appreciated in value about so per cent.
The Conclusions Drawn.
From these facts several conclusions
are irresistible. First, the people of
the United States have the use of sew
enty times as much silver as money of
tull legal tender at present as they had
before 1873. Second, the depreciation
IN the value of silver was due to causes
other than its treatment in the United
States
1T is. therefore, evident that silver.
al ratio of 16 to l, if unlimited coin
age was attempted in this country.
must either flood our minis with enor,
nous quantities of silver, which would
at once depreciate the value of our
money. or it would be coined only in
quantities, and this could
not substantially affect the mercantile
value Of the bullion throughout the
world. In either event, we would be
.orced TO the exclusive use of dollar
worth only little more than half the
present dollar. 1t would cause the SET
.lement of all contracts at the rate of
ID cents on the dollar 1t would re-
luire the reorganization of all prices to
De adapted to the new deprecated cur
rency. 1t would compel change of
all legislation in fixing salaries. 1t
would necessitate the entire readjust-
nent of the private and government
of the United States to meet
conditions caused by a degraded dol
ar. The confusion incident to such
changes would be great. Commeriai
iailures. business wreck and ruin must
1t once be precipitated. No panic which
)ur country has ever suffered co1lld
De compared to that which would fall
upon the industrial interests by such
action. The fear that the government
II the United States would not he
ible to maintain its various monies
.poh party, ana mat we were upon
he point of being forced to the silver
standard, with results similar to those
ust described, might be contributed to
he panic of last year For the condi-
ion OF the treasury which led. in part.
o the fear the Republican admin
stration was responsible. The whole
administration of Harrison, with the
execution of the first year, (Which re-
,eived its impetus from the excellent
financial conditions existing at the
lose OF Mr.. Cleveland's ternl). was one
II falling revenues, increasing expendi-
ures ana a heavy expectation Of gold.
COMMUNICATIONS Compared.
THE receipts during the Cleveland