Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1895-06-02

yd fine msta.s according to s6sr fsiatfYs eoys tnercisi value. and that they would h0t exchange ono pound of gold for nIteen pounds of silver, either in coin Or bullen. nor gold coins as money, when the amount of bullion in the coin was worth in the market more than the ean itself. In short, rilver had been over-v alued and gold had been unde-.valued in tho law, and the ronseauenee was that by the year 1S12 gold had disappeared from the country, and l from that time on until after the passage oi the act of 1884 the United States had practically silver monometallism.
 JEFFERSON SUSPENDED SILVER COINAGE.
 "In May. 1905. President Jefferson stopped the coinage of the silver doilar, and during period of thirty-ono years thereafter not q ssaele standard RilFeF dollar was coined At ths hints of the United States but, under | the act of 1792. the subsidiary coins were Of fuIl weight as compared with the dollar and l were legal tender. and those coins. with | Spanish dollars, French crowns or o>franc pieces, and bank notes constituted our eiren- lated medium. Gold having disappeared 1 fFOm circulation, congress determined, ID | 1884, to bring it back by changing The ratio. The act of 1884. supplemented by the act of | 1887 provided that the legal retio ah Ouid be l6 to 1 that is. that sixteen pounds of silver in the coins should be equal to one | pound of gold in the coins. and the effect | oG this was to drive silver 0ut of circulation and substitute gold in its place. because sii. yer wss dgoid was Over-vslA ued in the statute. One pound of gold, coined or uBcoined. was not, In fact, worth tntrinsicsliy or com mercfaliy sixteen pounds 1 of silver, coined or unCoibed, and therefore l the coins ot the two metals could not citcu i late together with that ratio. The authors and supporters ef this law well knew what 1 the effect of such Q legal ratio would be in casa it did not conform 10 the com mercisl ratio, but their purpose was to bring gold back Into the circulation. and all other considerations wore suboFdinated to 1 fhet.
 DOUBLE STANDARD COULDN'T STAND.
 "0oubtless many of them still believe that the so.calied double standard could be main tained, and that the oins of the two metals could be kept in circulation together at the new ratioi but they were mistaken. Silver went out and gold came In The gold basis was established in 1884, by the practical operation of the ratio, just com peteiy and eiectually AS f it had been expressly declared in the statute. Here, then. were two experiments in tho free coinage of the l two petals in this eountrF, covering pc. Fiod Of eighty one years. at leg ai ratios very 1 nearly corresponding 10 the real relative values in thu com mmereiai world, and they l BOKH kHAi&H--IH OuB G0BS U6e6uBe b1tA RF W 2S oyers1aiued and in the other because gold wRs oYer=valued. A Fcry small psreens 1 tage of difference between the legal ratio and thR com mercisl ratio has always been found sufficient ia modern times to drive ths uBdcTvstued metal entirely out and substi- tute the 0theF, Of paper based upon thu ather. ia lts place, hnd nc congress or pariia' ment cen repeat or alter the natural law ai 1 trade by which this movement of tho metals is governed
 Tn 1853 congress, in order to maintain 1 tho circulation of subsidiary colns-halE i dollars, quarters and dimes-Teduesd tBe weight Of the ms stat contained in them and m ade them legal tender only in the payment of gums not exceeding s5 in amount. Undes this act the value of tho bullion contained ln two haIf.doliare, four quarters or ten dimes, was not equal to the value Of the bullion contained in either gold silver dollar, and consequently these small limited leg al tender coina went into circulation And remained in use until expelled hy the eheRpPI paper currency Issued during tho war; not being full legal tender. they could not drive out the gold coins
 This was the condition of our monetary system at the time the act Of 1873 Waf passed Our legal position " as bimetailic but our actual measure of value gold and our actual circulating medium v ae paper with O purchasing power measured by the gold standard. We had no silver and 1t had no Influence whatever on our priceA. or oD our ability to pay debta.
 WHAT THE ACT or '73 DID.
 "Thc act of 1878. therefore. did not sN6 could not taRe away from the peaple of thT United States any advantage they then pos. seRsed, but t did prevent the coinage of iuf
 legal tender silver dollars thereafter, and thC act of 1874 destroyed the debt-pay ing ? powel of the old standard dollar coined before 1S79, except in sums nor exceeding 50. Il l there hsd been any such dollarH iu ciTculat tiou or in ezistspces here this latter act woDld l have abridged tho ability of debtors to dis charge their oblis ations. but aR there werS none, it had no practical effect at that time.
 ''1hus we remained until 1878 We had tried to keep tho legal tender coins of tht two m etals in circulation st the same timt under system of free coinage. but had ut terly tailed. h 1878 q new policy was adop. ted and 1t was determined to restore tbt standard silver dollar to the coinage and tC l circulation with full legal tender qualities Dot by opening tho hints to It's free and un Hmitsd coinage ca individual aceount al Ia now proposed. but by providing for the pur i chase and coinage of not more than $a, O0O. .0O0 worth nor less than e2, 0G0. DOC 1 worth of said bullion each month by tht | government itsei Under this act and ths go sailed Sherman act "nd The act pro vidiua for She recoina2e or the trade dollars, there have been coined at the mInts of the United States and put into circulation during seven teen years $897, 652, ,973in full legal teDdel standard silveT, agaiast s6.03O. COG csined during the whole previous existence of the goveFnment-G period Of eight ty-nins years.
 USE OF SILVER VASTLY INCREASED.
 Tn other words there have been coined and pua into circulation among the people, iu coin itself or in certificates issued upon t. nearly fifty times as many full legal tender ssaver dollars were produced at the mints of the United States from 1792 to 1878 and yet some gentlemen are writing books and making speeches to convince theie Tel low itizens that silver is demonetized fin thls country There was never it. our whole his toyy onP-thrd as much legal tender silvoz in ase in the United States at Onc time as tbeIa is now. and it ia used without depTtving US ol aS eur gold, which was never done before.
 'Stlver is not demonetzed in this country but it's coinage has been so limited and reg ulated by law, an1 the financial affairs o1 ths government have been so conducted tha up Go tho present time it's purchasing power hsa been preserved and it's circulation to q