People's party paper. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1891-1898, 1894-10-12
Has Gold Risen in Valued

upon the silver question was printed
in the New York Press the other
day made the following observa-
ton:
"You say that under the influence
Of rising gold prices have fallen.
When has gold risen in value? 1t is
silver that has declined because of
Its overproduction; and the decline
il prices is not due to the status Of
gold at all, tor its status has not been
changed for years"
1t is clear that if, for example, the
law should forbid wool to be used
ior clothing the price OF cotton would
at once advance. If the use of beef
for food should be prohibited the
price Of mutton would Immediately
rise. In either case a demand here
tofore borne by two commodities
would be thrown upon one, with the
inevitable result to enhance the value
OF the favored article.
For centuries, down to 1873, the
demand OF the civilized world for
metallic money had fallen upon gold
and silver. In and about 1873 silver
was demonetized, and the whole
stress of the demand came upon
gold. Under such conditions the
rise Of the value of gold was sure to
occur. That it would occur was
foretold by eminent lnen who con-
sidered the subject. The rise was
indicated by the decline of the prices
of commodities. That is to say, be-
cause Of the artificial scarcity OF
metallic money, gold dollar was
worth so much more that a greater
quantity of the fruits of human toll
were required to obtain possession
of it.
This fall of prices occurred only
after the demonstration of silver.
From .1S49 to 1873 general prices
rose So per cent. They began to
fall as soon as silver was displaced,
and they have been falling ever since.
That fall of Itself, oven'if no cause
for it could be plainly disoerned in
familiar acts OF legislation, would
have supplied conclusive proof that
gold was gaining in value. Sir w.
Houldsworth, q British delegate to
the International Conference held in
BRUSSELS in 1892. EXPRESSED the fact
with perfect accuracy when he said:
cit is said that the appreciation OF
gold has never been proved, If
there has been a general fall Of pri-
oes, that is the proof. The one ex-
preston is the converse Of the other.
They respectively imply one
another" But there is addi-
tlonal evidence. While gene
rel prices in countries using the
gold standard have declined in the
20 years beyond anything recorded
in history, prices in the silver stand
ard countries, like Mexico, the South
American countries and India, have
not declined at all. In our case,
values are measured in gold, aud
thew have fallen. This can be
explained in no other manner than
upon the hypothesis that gold has
appreciated. 1t is true that there is
monometallism III both cases; but
the silver using countries, never hav-
ing used gold as standard or meas
uring money, have had no distur-
bance of ancient and ordinary condi-
tons, while the countries now using
gold alone have lost one-half of their
metallic money.
1t is asserted by the correspondent
referred to that silver is overpro-
dueed. There is indeed overproduc-
ton relatively to the demand, be-
cause the demand has been dimin-
ished by the arbitrary rejection Of
silver as standard money. But the
quantity of silver produced, rela-
lively to the quantity of gold, is not
excessive. 1t will probably surprise
many persons who have been misled
by misrepresentation of this subject
to learn that from 1862 to 1898.
thirty-onc years, the worlds produc-
ton OF the two metals was as follows:
Gold, 81, $50, 400, 600.
Silver, &2,925,14A000.
Thus, while of the precious metals
produced during the period referred
to, 53.45 per cent, or more than
half, was gold, but 1855 per cent,
or less than half, was silver.-New
York Press.