The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-07-10

q
I 2sls grains less OF standard silver than the
/ silver dollar. The treasurer Of the mint
was required TO purchase the bullion with
public funds out Of which this small money
was TO be coined. and the right 10 coin 10
on private account was denied. The coins
we're made a legal tender only for sums
I not exceeding five dollars. and their
amount was 10 be regulated by the score
tary OF the treasury, who was authorized
10 exchange them for gold coins at par.
This act IS In force to-day and all our maii
money. amounting to about eighty mill
ions. has been coined under IT, The ne
cessities OF the people for small change
| hold these coins on a parity with gold
and their amount IS regulated by the de-
msnds Of commerce for money below the
denomination OF one dollar.
When the act was passed AR. Durham,
who had the bill in charge. advocated its
passage on the ground that the country
was then on the gold standard, and the
purpose was for il TO remain so and to
regulate the value of silver by that stan
dard. Speaking for the committee which
reported the bill, he declared that "it de-
sired 10 have the standard currency t.
consist OF gold and that the silver coin
should be entirely subservient 20 IT," Not
outstanding these open declarations on
behalf Of the committee having the bill In
charge. it passed without practical oppo,
sition.
Now fellow citizens. let US see for a mo-
ment what the practical effect was of the
acts Of 1884 and 1873 on the coinage Of
gold and silver. From 1884 to Jan. J. 1862
when specie payment was suspended dur
ing the civil war, we coined 2,77S,045 silver
dollars and 1876 COS dollars in small silver
coins; SS9, 562, 5S5 in small silver was coined
prior to 1853. and S474l4,O70 in subsidiary
silver under the act of that year. AS the
silver dollars and the small silver coined
prior to 1852 were practically forced out OF
circulation, the result was that w.len the
war came on we had, substantially, no sill
yer in circulation, except the 81 4l4,O10 of
small change coined under the act of 1853.
With gold it was Altogether different.
From the time the act of 1884 was passed
1t began TO flow, in increasing volumes,
into the mints of the United States. From
1884 to 1862. a period Of tWenty-cight years,
We coined and put into circulation the
enormous sum Of Sig7 %, 1856 in gold.
We started out with the proposition that
the bimetallic standard could only be
maintained whore the coinage ratio CORE
sponded with the market ratio, and where
ever and whenever the coinage ratio
varied to any appreciable degree from the
market ratio that 1t was impossible to
maintain standard gold and standard sill
Yer money in concurrent circulation.
Without referring 10 the vast accumu-
lation Of evidence to be gathered from the
experiences Of other governments, 1 have
traced the history Of our own experience,
step by step, from Washington down TO
the breaking out Of the civil war. l have
shown that American statesmen of all par
ties, at every successive step, recognized
the principle for which l am contending.
/ have shown that under this memorable.
economic law the coinage and market ra-
ito parted company under the act of 1872,
and gold being the more valuable money,
retired from circulation when 1t was worth
only five cents more on the dollar as bull
lion than itswas as money. / have shown
that after the departure of gold the act Of
1884 was passed to induce it TO return to our
circulation, and the same principle was
invoked to bring 1t back which had forced
1t out / have shown that under the act
of 1884 the silver dollar was worth about
threescents more as bullion than as money
and that silver money. in obedience to this
same law, universally recognized and APP
piled in the commercial world. took its
leave. have shown that the small silver
coins we now have are coined at such
rate as to make them more valuable as
money than as bullion, so that in obedience
to this law they would remain in circula-
ton.
now reinforce the argument by point
ing to the fact that there is no standard,
economic author, writing in any language
or living in any country from the days
of John Locke and Sir Isaac Newton down
to John G. Carlisle who does not recognize
the truth of the proposition l here main
tain. point to the fact that the CONNER
cial world, with practical unanimity, not
only admits, but recognizes and acts upon
the principle for which contend. l point
to the fact that silver in recent years, has
vacillated in price to such an extent in the
open market as to render 1t impossible for
any government to adopt coinage ratio
that will correspond for any considerable
period of time with the market ratio. FL
nally, and to put at rest all doubt on the
subject, / challenge each and every man
in this great audience to name one coun-
try in al the world where the bimetallic
standard is now maintained. 1 pause for
a reply. No one has answered; no one can
answer; for there is no such country on the
globe.
now challenge each and every man in
this great audience to name one country
in all the world where the free coinage of
silver obtains that is not absolutely on a
silver basis. Again 1 pause for reply.
No one has answered. for no such country
exists.
Therefore, fellow citizens. say that the
irresistible conclusion is, that Mr.. Cleve-
land was right when he said that the pro-
osition to coin silver as standard money,
at the ratio. of 16 to l. means neither more
nor less than the establishment of silver
monometanism in the United States.
Its advocates are not bimetalists, but
the champions of the single silver STAN
dard. l protest that this is not matter
of choice with AIR. Cleveland. Mr.. Carlisle,
myself, or any other advocates OF sound
money. If the free, unlimited and indie
! pendent coinage of silver, at the ratio of
16 to !, would result in the establishment
and maintenance of the bimetallic STAN
| dard, we would support il as quickly as
Bryan of Nebraska or Sibley of Pennsyl-
vania. We know such would not be the
result, and in opposing it, we simply bow
| to the mandate of the universal economic
| law which teaches that ii is impossible for
two kinds of standard money of unequal
| intrinsic value to circulate, side by side,
in the same country.
In order 10 emphasize this conclusion
| now challenge each and every man in this
! great audience to name one country that
/ is not either on a gold or a silver standard.
Again pause for a response. No answer
comes, for there is no such country in all
/ the world.
Then, my countrymen, we are brought
face TO face with the alternative that,
acting independently for ourselves we
must elect the gold standard which We
now have or abandon it and adopt the sill
/ yer standard.