Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1895-07-11
MACLEOD ON BIMETALLISM.
Why an International Agreement on This
Question Is Tmpossibis--An Able Answer
10 Hostile Critics and a Good Subject for
Study.

June Nineteenth Century an answer to
the critics OF his former paper In the
same magazine last November We
copy the most material part of IL;
Bimetallists assert with the lightest OF
light hearts that the liking OF common
ratio by International agreement is a
mere Insignificant matter Of detail, a
mere bagate.le. The thing to 10 done is
TO fix upon spme or any ratio. If, then,
as Sir David Barbour asserts, the fixing
by the nntous upon common ratio
would regulate the rela.ive value Of gold
and silver for over, why not, as Locke
said, at once declare that gold and silver
shall be equal in value weight for
weightY Ii the bimetallists believe Id
the doctrine which they 60 persistently
assert, why do they hesitate at that
which would greatly simplify matters?
And then every fortunate possessor Of
silver would lind himself tbirty.flve
times as rich Us he was before. Ii the
bimetallists believe that the ratio to he
fixed upon is an insignificant detail,
they either, us the Chancellor OF the
Exchoquer said, show that they know
nothing about the matter or will not
argue honestly.
suppose tnat congress Of pure BIZ
metallists of all nations, free from the
presence of any fossil mOnometallists,
were to meet to settle the question, the
main and only question would be-
What is to be the ratio? And then
they would fluid their troubles begin.
Now let us examine the effects of set
ting ratio. M. Cernuschi, the arch
hlerophant OF bimetallism, has re.
peatedly declared that France will con-
sent TO no other ratio than 151 to /.
Now what would be the effect upon
England OF establishing ratio of l5t to
when the market ratio was 35 to / =
Il would simply be that all debtors--the
government, all banks, all corporations,
all traders, and all private persons who
had contracted to pay their debts with
EOS. in go!d--would be allowed TO dis.
charge their debts with quantity Of
silver only equal in value To los. in
gold, which simply spells universal
bankruptcy for England. Does any one
OF common sense suppose that England
would ever agree to such proposal9
Suppose, On the other hand, however,
that the present market ratio OF So to /
was adopted, what would that mean to
France? The Bank of France has an
enormous mass of silver In reserve,
which is valued at $4,000, 900. But how
is IL valued at that sum- Simply by re.
tanning the obsolete and imaginary ratio
OF l54 and vigorously closing its minis
to the free coinage of silver.
French five.franc pieces, which are
now legal tender to an unlimited
a urn in, raaltk.E
money as our shillings, whose present
market value is somewhat less than Sd.
The market value of the silver in the
five france pieces is about ct francs. If
the French minis were opened to the
free coinage of silver at the present
ratio of 50, the bimetallists maiutain
that silver bullion would rice to the
value of silver coin. But the exact re-
verse would take place. The silver coin
would fall to the value of silver bullion.
The Bank Of France would instantly
lose about &2S,000, 900 in the value Of its
assets. Every debtor in France would be
allowed to pay his debts in fiye.franc
pieces worth about q francs. French
renters would be paid in e.franc
nieces worth less than half their nomi.
nal value.
Inc silver currency in France In five
franc pieces cannot be estimated at less
than E2O0,000,0U0. All this mass of
currency would instantly fall to its
market value az silver bullion. Every
one in France would instantly lose more
than half of his income. That means
instant bankruptcy and ruin to France.
Does any person of common sense sup.
that Hrunaa
such proposal 7 The leading French
bimetallists have explicitly declared that
they would do nothing of the sort.
But it is absolutely impossible for
France TO agree to bimetallism at any
ratio. She cannot stir a step in the
direction of bimetalism without bring
ing on national bankruptcy. Even If
the whole world were to agree to the
ratio OF lot insisted upon by the keenest
French bimetalllsts, it would not have
the slightest effect upon the laws of
nature. The whole of the active cur.
rency of France at present consists in
these silver flye.franc pieces, and if the
French minis were opened to the free
coinage of silver, at any ratio, the value
OF the whole silver currency would at
once descend to the market value of
silver bullion, Notwithstanding all the
cobwebs OF International, agreements.
and that would spell universal bank.
ruptcy for France. She is therefore
hrmly and immovably fixed in her
present position. She cannot adopt
bimetallisln al any ratio without bring.
ing on at once national bankruptcy.
and that at once shows that the homes
OF The bimetallists are utterly futile.
Thus suppose that this conclaye of bi.
mctalllsts were to meet TO establish A com.
mon fixed ratio by international agree.
inent, the very first proposal to fix
upon a definite ratio would at once |
shatter 1t to atoms, like bombshell of |
dynamite, and 1t would vanish into
nothing. So much for the contention of |
tine bimetallists that the fixing of com. |
mon ratio by International agreement is
u mere insignificant matter OF detail.
The great fundamental law of tho
coinage, first demonstrated by oresme |
in France, by Copernicus in Poland. |
and by Gresham in England, that in. |
ferior coins and superior coins cannot. |
In the nature of things, circulate together
in unlimited quantities at fixed differ. |
ent ratio which differs from the market |
ratio Of the metals in bullion, which he |
has found to be true in all ages and |
and which has been recoq. |
nized as true by all sound econmists. Is
not confined to single and separate
states, any more than the law of grayi. |
tation or the laws of optics are. These.
when once demonstrated by any one
country, are found to be true through. |
out the world. So this fundamental law
Of the coinage is true through however
large an rea which has a single system
of coinage. And it is no more possible
to fix legal ratio between gold and
silver by an international agreement
q Ann shuhn nl Gtatl.n liz L. l