The herald., 1895-07-09
William D. Bynum Opens at
Spencer, Indiana
ARRAY OF FACTS AND POINTS
Free Coinage of Silver Means Change
of Standards
And q Fluctuating Base by Which to neasure
Domestic Commerce, Which
neans Ruin
Associated Press special Wire

| SPENCER, Ind, July o.-Ihe hon.
| William D. Bynum of Indianapolis opened
his sound money campaign here tonight.
He spoke in the opera house to large
and representative audience composed OF
the members of both political parties. He
was listened to with the closest attention
throughout and literally applauded. He
was introduced by the Hon. William
Pickam and spoke for ,wo hours. He
said:
Ladies and Gentlemen: am not here as
the representative of any political party,
and do not assume to speak for any one
but myself. The people OF the country
are confronted with the solution OF an
important question. The broad expanse
of our Territory, our varied and unlimited
resources and the great growth OF our
commerce, require that we should have
the quickest and most convenient forms
of exchange and as sound financial sys-
temias any nation on the face OF the
earth. The question of sound money is
one thai affects directly the interests OF
every citizen. 1t enters every home and
demands the thoughtful consideration OF
eevry intelligent mind. l believe that
the people in every section OF the country
desire to see the government maintain
sound money .that theiadvocates OF free
silver as well as those opposed to the
same favor maintaining the largest circu-
lation of both gold an ! silver at parity,
and are opposed to any policy. which
would result in the banishment of either
from use. The controversy lis not as to
the result to oe obtained, but how to
achieve it. No one, l presume, desires to
see a policy inaugugrated that would re-
suit in separation of the value. OF our
gold and silver. The cheaper will always
drive out the dearer, and the result would
be the expulsion of our gold. No person,
even if he could afford to do so, would
pay in the more valuable when he had
right to discharge his obligation in the
cheaper kind. Our present circulation
consists of about $3.50, 600, ,000 of gold,
$3.50, ,0O0 900 of silver, $685. 600, 900 OF green
backs. $4s, 600, 900 of currency certificates
and $211, 600, 600 of national bank notes,
all maintained by the government upon
an equality. A dollar of our silver mon
ey or paper currency is worth hundred
cents in any part of the civilized world.
assume not only that no one desires to
see separation in the values of our coin,
but that no one desires to see policy
pursued that would debase our circula-
ton, The legal ratio between gold and
silver, as fixed by our laws, is l6 to 1,
while the commercial ratio is about S2 to
l. The effect of opening onr mints to
the free coinage of silver would be to
tios of the two metals together, or
to reduce the monetary value OF the
silver dollar to its commercial ratio.
In the event OF the latter the silver dollar
would be worth only so cents IN compar-
ison with the gold dollar. and would,
therefore, drive gold out of circulation.
There can be no question that with free
coinage of silver the value of bullion in
dollar would become the equal OF Its
monetary value. The i'm mportant ques-
tion. therefore. to be determined is.
would the price OF bullion then 60 up
a
world over, or would the monetary value
of our silver dollar come down to its bull
lion value, about so cents? 1t is fact
that the commercial ratio of the two met
als.has always controlled their movements
in spite Of their coinage ratio. The ad.
vocates of free coinage assume, and all
their arguments are based upon the err
oneous assumption, that with free coin
age of both metals at a ratio OF l6 to /,
we would have bimetallism. This assump
tion is the great desideration IN the dis
cusson of this question, and until they
demonstrate that both metals would re-
main in circulation. all their declaration
about double standard, bimetallism and
anSincreased circulation, is pure fustlan.
1t is said that even members of congress
didSnot know what the provisions OF the
act OF 1873 were. There is nothing start
ling about that. My experience OF ten
years as member of the house of repre-
sentatives has led me to believe that not
ten members of that body ever do know
what is being done. | am in clined to
the opinion that the silver question was
deemed of such little consequence at that
time that no one felt much interest in
the subject. therefore paid no attention
to the details of the measure. Gold has
been standard money with us ever since
1884; we had coined bat 8. 900, 900 of sill
yer dollars and they had all left the coun-
try. From 1873 to 1873, during which
time it is popularly supposed that our
mints were idle, we coined over $50, 000,-
900 of silver Thus we see that during
the first four years after the passage of
the act OF 1873 we coined over 1850, 900, 900
of silver as against Sl45, 900, 600 during the
seventysix years previous, and yet it is
earnestly and apparently seriously insist
ed that the act Of 1873 was the cause OF
the fall in the price OF silver which began
about that time.
In 1878 we again commenced to coin
the standard dollar, and up to and in
Guiding part OF 1893 had coined S415,-
0O0, 600 besides over $50. 900, 900 Of subsid-
iary coin, and purchased under the pro-
visions of the Shermaua act and have on
hand sufficient bullion to coin $125. .000,-
600 more. The consumption by us of
silver since 1873 has been more than $685.
O00, 900 OF coinage value, and yet it is
boldly asserted that the cause OF the fall
in its value was the discrimination
against it as a money metal.
AS nations advance their commerce
grows, their transactions increase and a
more valuable standard becomes neces-
saIy. The displacement of silver has not
been because OF any unfriendliness but
because conditions had so changed,
wealth had so increased as to require the
use Of more valuable standard. General
Mansfield, in his work on moneys, de-
cclares that iron is the monetary m etal
of a people extremely poor copper of a
people who are poor, silver of people
who are well-to-do, and gold of a people
who are rlch.'
This increased demand for gold by
many European nations was met by an
increase in production, and thus silver
was relegated to IA subordinate position.
In 1873 the coinage value of the worlds
production of gold was S96. 200 900, while
in 1894 it was over $780, 100000. The
value of the gold product of the world in
1894 was greater than the annual average
product of both gold and silver from 1861
to 1865. Not only has the production of
gold increased nearly 100 per cent but the
production OF silver has increased in
greater ratio.
Is it not apparent that the free coinage
OF silver means change of the standards
with us? Yea, 1T means more. 1t means
an abandonment of the standard and the
adoption of tiuctuating base by which
to measure domestic commerce. Who can
contemplate the Generalization, the wide
| spread ruin that would result from such
pollcy2 Let 1t once be definitely settled