Mexico weekly ledger., 1895-08-01
Silver, Gold and Credits,
REVIEW OF THE MONETARY HIS
TORY OF THE UNITED STATES
BY MR.. PATTERSON.
He is For Silver Coin, but Only at q
Parity With Gold LabOring Men
Interested Deeply in the
Gold Standard.
From the st. louis Republic.

from the 81. tFbtlA1 Sl'''''
REASONS FOL A GOLD STANDARD.
Our election of the next President
and the next Congress will come OH in
! November, 1896, and the Congress then
elected will noG convene until the ilrst
Monday i'll December, 1897. 1t Will be
practically impossible to enact a law
| to change the standard by the passage
of an act for the free coinage of silver
ut the ratio of IL to l for is months
| after the election. In the meantime
every creditor would force his debtor
to n settlement, so as to protect him
self from the impending loss. The
larger proportion of the mortgage in
| debtedness is payable in gold, and
| debtors, whose obligations were not,
would be forced either TO renew them
payable i'll gold or submit TO a forced
sale of their property.
If this Government in q time of pro-
found peace should, by law, deliber-
ately change its standard of value
from a dollar worth 100 cents to a dol
lar worth u cents, thereby debasing
its money and impairing the obliga-
ton of all contracts for the payment
of money to the extent of 40 cents on
the dollar. it would be accepted
throughout the Christian world as an
act of national dishonor. It would
debauch alike public and private NOR
ais and so impair and destroy public
and private credit as to arrest the
progress and obscure the high destiny
of the American people.
| prefer gold as the standard be-
cause it is the money of progress. |
challenge the advocates of free COIN
age of silver to look abroad over the
world, in either hemisphere, or Oh any
continent, and name one country
where trade and commerce flourish;
one country where the Christian viz
tues ennobled the lives of men and
women, and from whence Christian
philanthropy sends out missionaries
in the name of the Master to subdue
III ollO SOhLtAJ "hoiS nv
mechanical arts and appliances are
manifested in the development of in
dustry and enterprise; one country
where science is laying bare the
secrets OF nature; N country where
schools and colleges are cherished;
one country where intellect and cul-
ture are in the ascendant; one coun-
try where good government prevails
or II country where a days wages is
sufficient to maintain the man who
earns it in comfort and independence,
which has the silver standard.
Far be it from me TO insist that
China is China because it has the sill
yer standard, or England is England
because it has the gold standard. /
know this country was on 4 silver
basis when Jackson fought at New
Orleans, and that Germany was a sill
yer standard country when William
fought at Sedan. | know that in the
past nations have developed and
prospered with silver as the standard
of value. This | do not controvert,
but | do say, and saying it challenge
contradiction, that in the march of
progress and the advancement Of
mankind to n higher plane of civiliza-
ton, every enlightened country in the
world has elected the gold standard in
preference to the silver standard.
prefer the gold standard because
there is not 4 gold standard country
on the globe which does not largely
utilize silver al money, whereas there
is not a silver standard country which
uses gold rs money at all. | am aware
that gold, az in India, may be found
boarded in the silver countries, but it
is held As n precious commodity, and
it does not perform the functions of
money. | assert, and again challenge
contradiction, that Notwithstanding
the silver countries have 200 600 900
more population than the gold coun-
tries, yet the gold countries have
more silver money in circulation than
while the silver countries have no gold
whatever. / say this for the benefit
of those who have been led to believe
that the advocates of Il sound cur
rency intended to strike silver down
as money. 1t is not true. There is
not one of us, from Mr.. Cleveland
down, who is not guided by a purpose
to retain our silver now coined in cir