The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1895-05-02
COIN WEEPS.
ELI PERKINS ExPLODES SEVERAL
FINANCIAL THEORIES.
He Relates in an Interview, Converse
ton Which Recently Took Place in
Chicago.

Coins school, The little man has been
teaching financial school in Chicago
for q year. His teachings have finally
been published in book form, but [
could never understand what he was
driving at"
Did you find out?" asked a re-
porter.
YES" said Eli. II asked Coin
point blank if he was for free coinage. ~
Yes" he said, that is whatI teach
Now, Coin,' [ said, what do you
mean by free coinage?'
Coin was silent.
Do you mean by free coinage that
'ou want men or governments to go on
oining silver dollars DIS they do in
yhina, Mexico, Japan and Asia, not
guaranteed by gold, where these dollars
are only worth AZ cents-the same as
bullion?"
NO said Coin, I don't want that.
We may as we'll have bullion. Such
money when coined is worth no more
than commercial bar silver. That
wouldn't change Matters
. Then you want it fixed so that any
man can take AZ cents worth Of silver
lar) and have it stamped 100 cents in
gold?"
" Yes, that is what I want. That is
what / teach in my book. / want COM
mercial bar silver remOnetized. 1t has
gone down way below 16 to /; that is,
16 ounces of silver are really worth,
commercially, about half as much as an
ounce of gold. We want all the silver
dug and in the mines put back the same
as the United States dollar, Is to /.
No beating around the bush at ALL
every we'll, said, Now we can rea-
son together How many people in
the world are using debased silver, or
AZ cent dollars?"
We'll, 1,2O0,000,000. This in
cludes Mexico, Japan, South America,
Africa and Asia said Coin.
How many people have put gold
under their coined silver?"
3" why, said Coin, 'only 300, 100000
This includes the United States, Eng
land, France and the Latin states
+" How much have these half civil
lied nations lost? / asked.
"'Well, said Coin,' they have lost
half their wealth. If man was worth
$1,000 in Mexico or China a year ago,
he is worth $447 now
Has any American, Englishman or
Frenchman-Or any citizen OF civilized
nations lost anything?
"'No' said Coin, hanging his head,
they haven't lost a cent. Our good
government has pat a gold dollar under
every dollar coined in America. They
| l. +10o in .-or1o nd. ~
many. Italy and France too, and 30O,
00O,0 900 civilized people have escaped
| oss.'
"'And the 1,2OO,OOOOOO half-civil-
zed people have lost half their wealth
you say?'
T" 1T would seem So said Coin, as he
scratched something behind his ear.
"'Now Coin,' | said, when l went
around the world last year, [ saw
Cinnamon and japanese and MeXicans
and Africans taking our American sill
yer dollars at par. They called them
worth 100 cents in gold. They paid
tea freights from China with them,
paid their passage to San Francisco
with them. and the bank of Hong Kong
and Shanghai took them the same as
,reenbacks or gold. DO you think any
me on, earth has lost cent handling
American dollars?
"'N-n-no.' said Coin.
Now. Coin,' | said, look me in the
eye and answer me this question. If
the United States had the free coinage
you want-that is, if every one could
ISake piece of silver as big as a MeXi-
can dollar to our mint and get dollar
with gold under it, what would be the
resultY
Coin was silent again.
Wouldn't the MeXicans and Chinese
and the rest Of the half-civilized ma
tons bring their commercial dollars
worth AZ cents to our mint and get 81
as good as gold? Wouldn't 200, 600 600
people unload the debased silver of the
world on us? Wouldn't we be bank
rupt in a week ~
az wasn't thinking of that, said Coin
trembling at the thought of such dis
aster. L was thinking how much more
money our own silver miners would
make. Their wealth would be doubled.
wouldn't itY
" Yes, Coin, | said. land the price of
5 cent cotton would be doubled if the
government would buy it at 10 cents.
This government has no more right to
boost up silver than it had to boost up
corn, coal or iron. The government i
no respecter of persons. The miner and
farmer and manufacturer must stand 1t
alike. If they can't afford to mine AZ
cents worth of silver then they should
mine coal or zinc. If they could not
afford to raise 5 cent cotton then raise
hogs and corn.
al see it all now said Coin. My
800 page book confused re-
"'Again, Coin, - | ask. Hasn't the
country been prosperous for 80 yearsYn
eyes, very prosperous
"'Then after this prosperous govern
ment changed, and the democrats came
in, how much silver did we buy p
! why, only S. ,O00, 900, said Coin.