The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1895-05-28
CONCLUDED FROM THIRD PAGE

~ Will ON "a gLO
property he purchased, he would ap-
preclate and indorse this argument
ana lG would be useless to discuss the
question with him. But if, as I have
already e~ndeavored to show, the i'm
mediate effect of the adoption of a free
coinage policy at the ratio of 16 to 1
would be to contract the currency to
the extent of about 1925, 0O0, 900, by the
withdrawal of that amount of gold
from circulation and from use as the
basis Of notes and other forms of credit,
prices would not even nominally ad-
vance. On the contrary, for the time
being at least, this contraction would
greatly reduce prices, because it would
alarm the country, destroy credit, and
undoubtedly produce the most serious
financial disturbance this country has
ever witnessed. Every depositor in
the savings and other banks, fearing
that he would ultimately be paid in
deprecated silver, would Immediately
demand the return of his money, and
this would compel the banks to call at
one for the payment of all the notes
and other securities they had discounted
for their customers, and the cOntrac-
ton Of the currency would cause an IN
creased demand for currency at the
very time when it could not be OBJ
tanned, and thus the difficulty OF the
situation would be increased by ootn
causes. The banks would be compelled
to either suspend payments themselves
or drive their customers, who are gen
erallv business men-the men who give
empioyment to labor in every com
munity-Into bankruptcy at once:
Who would profit by this condition OF
affairs9 Nobody except the FOLDER or
cold and the owners Of silver mines,
the holders of silver bullion and the
brokers and spectators n the stocks OF
silver mining companies The people
who owe debts and are unable to pay
them would be the ones to suffer most,
while the people who owe no debts and
have money on hand would be the ones
TO profit most. Every man in debt
would be called upon to ay it prompt
lV when due; there would be no more
extensions of old debts, or any new
credits given, because no man could
foretell what the money would be
worth at any time in the future. In
this crash the laborer would be thrown
out of employment by the failure or
suspension of his employer, the farmer
would receive less real money for his
products, property would be sold at
low rates under Judicial proceedings all
over the country, credit would be de-
stroyed, and all Industrial and com
mercial enterprises would stand still,
awaiting the result Of the new expert
ment with the monetary system. OF
course g great country like this, rich IN
natural resources, would ultimately re
cover In some measure from even such q
disaster, but how long a time would be
- orrsan6 70 do ca M nnnn RlT nRnHIOt
Ali the minis of the United States, if
devoted entirely to the coinage of silver
dollars, could produce only about forty
million dollars per annum. and, there
fore, with free coinage it would require
more than fifteen years to put silver
dollars in the place of gold we now
have and give back to the country the
same amount of metallic money now
existing. But in the meantime, WI
would have q deprecated standard of
value with nominally high prices
after the first collapse was over-on
account of the reduced purchasing
power of the dollar, and at the same
time we would have for a long time
fewer dollars to pay with. Common
prudence would dictate that, when any
considerable change is to be made in
our monetary system, some provision
. should be made in advance of the actual
Schange for a gradual transition from
the old to the new order of things; q
transition period should be provided
for so as to avoid, as far as possible, q
sudden disturbance Of business and
contraction of currency, but the advo-
Gates of free coinage have no such pur-
pose. They propose to make a sudden
6nd revolutionary change in b stan
dard upon which all existing contracts
of the people are based and by which
all values are measured, and let the
consequences take are Of themselves.
But, suppose the change is made, and
that the u5iness affairs Of the coun-
try have been finally ad justcd to the
new standard, what will be the effect
on our domestic trade2 The price of
all things will will be nominally in
creased-that is to say, it will require
Rgreater number of dollars to purchase
agiven amount of any commo5 ity than
it required before, There appears to
be a singular delusion in the minds OF
some upon this subject. Many good
people appear to think that in some
mysterious manner, which no one has
vet attempted to explain. the govern
ment, by legislation or otherwise, can
increase the price Of the things they
have to sell without increasing the
prices of the things they have to buy.
If there is any financial necromacy by
which the one sided increase of prices
can be accomplished, our free coinage
friends ought to explain it to the PEG,
pie. The plain every day, common.
sense view of this subject is the only
correct One. If prices are increased
solely on account of an increase in the
volume of circulation, or on account OF
a depreciation of the currency, with.
out any changer in the relation be
tween the supply and demand of the