Fort Worth gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1891-1898, 1895-07-14

they will have to secure the gold from
the nations which now have II, and
what nation has today any more gold
than 1t needs? The people of China
alone. amounting to 100000, would re-
qulre two-thirds OF the gold now held
by the United States, Great Britain,
France and Germany II we had to d.
vide with them SO as to give TO the
people of each nation the same amount
of gold per capita.
While il is true that as rule silver
standard countries do not use gold
along with silver, yet II Is also true
that the majority of the gold OF tho
world Is held by nations which do not
use silver as a full legal tender along
with gold. The United States, France
and Germany together own more than /
half of all the gold coin in existence,
and yet these three nations circulate |
more than $780, 100000 of full legal |
tender silver, according to the report |
of the mint. above referred to.
Mr.. Carlisle's fourth propositions |
reads as follows: There is not a sill
ver-standard country in the world to-
day that has more than one-thtrd of |
the amount in circulation per capita
that the United States has II Mr..
Carlisle means by this proposition that
the gold standard is responsible for the
per capita circulation In gold standard
countries he has stated proposition
which he cannot defend, and the prop
OSltlOn Is enllTely llllllhltIldi 10 tit
discussion of the money question unless
he does mean to assert that the gold
standard is responsible for the per
capita circulation. The report of 1898.
before referred to, shows that Mexico,
with a silver standard, has $i.N per
capita, while Turkey, with gold stan
dard and silver used only as limited
legal tender, has but S2.ss per capita.
If the per capita circulation Is due
to the gold standard why do we find a
| silver standard country with more
money per capita than a gold standard
country?
Again we find the Scandinavian
| Union on q gold basis has $500 per
capita. while Australia upon a gold
basis has s26.75 per capita. If the gold
standard Is responsible for the per
capita circulation why does one gold
standard country have three times the
| per capita circulation that another gold
standard country has?
| Again. Austria-H Hungary Is a gold
standard country, but has only 81 in
| gold per capita, while Australia, an
other gold standard country. has S25
in gold per capita, and England an
other gold standard country, has only
S14.47 In gold per capita. If the gold
standard is the cause of the per capita
| circulation why these differences In
circulation? If the gold standard de-
termines the per capita circulation why
does Turkey, with gold standard and
limited legal tender silver have only
$2Ss, and England. with the gold stan
dard and limited legal tender silver,
have $ls.42 per capita, while France
with the use OF both gold and silver as
full legal tender money, has SiO.56 per
capita?
l call attention to these statistics to
show that the per capita does not de-
| pend upon the standard which the
country has, but upon other conditions
and circumstances If the per capita
depended upon other conditions, then
the argument suggested by Mr.. Car
isles proposition falls to the ground.
The NTH proposition suggested by
the secretary of the treasury reads as
follows "phere is not n silver stand
ard country in the world today where
the laboring man receives fdli pay for
his days work" II Mr.. Carlisle means
to say by this proposition that the gold
standard makes good wages and the
silver standard makes low wages he
has stated proposition which he can
not defend, and the proposition Is en-
tirely lmmaterlal unless he does mean
that the gold standard determines
wages l might answer by saying
that there Is not a gold-standard coun-
try in the world today whore a labor
ing man has n fair chance to earn n
days wages. / might also quote an
editorial in the Chicago Tribune of
January g. 1873 as follows; "A labor
! ING nun Npulu lnIulNtlN prefer 10 De
set at work earning silver dollars than
to starve waiting for employment on
the gold basis" This accounts for the
fact that the laborlng classes now de-
mand the free coinage of silver at 16
to 1. Mr. Carlisle has spent tie best
part of his life answering the form of
argument which he now resorts to.
Protectlonisn have insisted that be-
cause the United States had a protec-
tive tarlff and paid better wages than
trade, that, therefore, protection made
good wages.
Mr.. Carlisle used to reply to this ar
gument by showing that England with
free trade paid better wages than Ger
many paid with a protective system.
We can reply to Mr.. Carlisle's present
| argument in the same way by saving
that prior to 1884, when this country
! used silver as its money of general
circulation, we paid better wages than
England paid under a gold standard
at the same time. / have no doubt that
the wages paid in Mexico, where the
silver standard is In use, are higher
than the wages paid In Turkey, where
the people enjoy all the blessings of
a gold standard.
In that fifth proposition, however,
Mr. Carlisle makes the mistake of con-
fining laborlng men to those engaged
in mechanical labor. II might be sug-
/
been maintained in this country by
labor organizations rather than by the
gold standard. and that while the wage
per day has been maintained generally
not universally. yet we know that there
is idleness throughout the United
states because wage earners cannot
find an opportunity for employment
But Mr.. Carlisle should remember
that the farmers OF the United States
are also lab0rers. and that their wages
are determined by the price received
for their produce, and that the fall in
the price OF wheat and cotton especially
has reduced the wages OF those engaged
In producing these crops. and that
the American farmer has suffered
more relatively during the past 20
years than the farmer OF India.
Another proposition laid down by
Mr.. Carlisle. but not contained In the
celebrated five propositions. is that the
free coinage OF silver will drive 5000, 0OO,-
900 Of gold out of circulation and that
1t will require fifteen years. with our
mints summing ut full capacity, to coin
enough silver'to take Its place, and that
this will make money so scare that il
Will be harder to obtain a silver dollar
under the free coinage OF silver than
It IS now to obtain gold dollar
II would be difficult to conceive of a