The Kootenai herald. [volume] (Kootenai, Idaho) 1891-1904, 1895-07-20
OPENING STATEMENT OF MR.. uoRR
Coins Financial school, Is Full of Err
rors, He Declares.

Coins Financial school, Is Full of Err
rors, He Declares.
The following is the open statement
of Roswell G.. Horn in the debate begun
this afternoon between him and w. H.
Harvey of Coins Financial SCHOOL,"
Judges and Gentlemen-It is agreed
between Mr.. Harvey and myself that
previous to entering upon the general
discussion each of us shall make a
brief statement defining in a general
way the position he proposes to occupy
in this debate. The question which we
are about to discuss is one that is not
only receiving very great attention
among the people of the United States
but 1t is one that is also receiving some
attention from the nations of the old
world. The question involves the kind
of money that shall be used by the
United States and has to do with laws
with which we affect the great business
interests of this nation. The question
of finance is a very complicated one
and there are some features of it about
which the ablest men of the world have
been differing for years.
The foundation for the discussion up
on which we are about to enter is a
small book published by Mr.. Harvey.
>
Financial School" The real aim and
object of that book is to convince the
people of the United States that this
government alone should at once enter
upon the free and unlimited coinage of
silver upon the old ratio of 16 to 1. The
wisdom of such a course I dispute. Mr.
Harvey will still maintain the affirm
alive of that issue. 1 will state in the
outset that from the beginning to the
end of the book there is hardly a prop
osition made to which I give my as
sent. propose to controvert many
things which are stated as facts and
shall attempt to prove that the entire
theory as set forth by the author, if
adopted by the people Of this country,
would lead only to business disaster
and financial ruin. 1 do not remember
to have examined a book carefully in
which l found so few statements that
] consider worthy of belief and I GER
tainly never saw so many absolute err
rors crammed into so few pages.
NOT OPPOSED TO SILVER.
] am not here as an opponent of BIZ
nletallism. l believe in the use Of gold
and silver as money to the fullest ex-
tent that can be done on sound bust
ness principles. My position upon this
question has been too frequently stat
ed within the last five years to be mis-
understood. 1 believe that both gold
and silver are the natural money of
the world; that in all the larger trans
actions gold is better adapted to the
needs of the people than silver; that
all the small business transactions of
human families for many years have
been and always should be conducted
with silver. 1 also believe that in all
transactions Of the nations of the world
between themselves the two metals
should be used in the settling of bal
ances, but only at their commercial
value. / also believe that in the bust
ness of our nation the people should
never attempt to use either metal ex-
cept at its actual value, only in cases
where one metal may be used as a
token of money and be made redeem
able in metal at its commercial value.
INTERNATIONAL AGREEMENT.
I have always entertained the hope
that the business men of the world vet
would come together in an information
al convention and agree upon some
basis whereby gold and silver can both
be used as the money Of final settle
ment among the people of the entire
world. I am very clear in my idea that
until some such arrangements shall be
made it would be simply suicide for
this nation to adopt a system Of free
coinage of silver upon the old ratio, a
ratio which all the civilized nations of