The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1895-06-01
CRITICISED BY HILL.
Shermau's ZanesvilIe speech Not Rel
ished by the New Yorker.


Aished by the New Yorker.
ALBANY, n. Y, May Ex-senator Hill
to-day asked whether he had read Sen
ator Shermans speech on the monetary
question. "Yes," said the Senator, Il have
carefully perused Senator Sherman's Zanes-
vile speech on silver If an Ohio Democrat
had made the speech there would have been
condemnation all along the Republican
ranks. The implication startled me. that
there are, in a prosperous State like Ohio.
Republican voters who wish TO degrade our
dollar standard, repudiate one-half our pub
lie debt and pay their debts in cheaper
money than they promised to pay. 1 have
not met such voters in New York 1t is
difficult for me to believe that a majority in
any American State in any American
Congress will vote to create new dollar
merely in order that thereby debtors may
evade the payment of one-half. or one-quar-
ter, or any percentage Of what they owe,
and have promised. That would be worse
and more indefensible than the creation in
1852 by Senator Sherman's party OF the full
legal-tender greenback dollar. Then the
country was in the agony of civil war, but
now there is profound peace. Reputation
of private contracts had not been attempt
ed in our history till 1862. Whether our
standard dollar was silver or gold, or both,
IL was from 1892 to 1862 an honest standard,
an undegraded standard.
Senator Sherman said at GAINESVILLE, what
was news to me, that for fourteen years
after the resumption of specie payments,
while the Republican party was in power,
We had gold silver and paper money pass
ing current in all parts OF the commercial
world. l had never known that from 1880
till 1884, when Cleveland came, our silver
dollars and greenback dollars were export
able like our gold dollars. One OF my OBJ
jections to our present government taking
full legal silver and greenback dollars Is
that they are not exportable. l would ex-
terminate forever the greenback dollars
make the chiefest Of our existing currency
woes. | would by international bimetallism.
by free bimetailic coinage on ratio of 151z
TO /, and not by Senator Shermans bastard
bimetallism exemplified in his law of 1880,
now repealed, lift our standard silver dollar
into a worldwide parity with our gold dol
lar. / would thereby put an end 10 the
degradation of any coined dollar of ours.
would not have, as now, one ratio which Is
16 for our silver dollars and higher ratio
as now for minor silver. L object to
Senator Shermans misdescription OF the BIZ
metallsm OF 1872, which on an International
ratio of 151a, / advocate.
I'VE have suspended the compulsory
treasury purchasing of silver and coming
of silver dollars. I urged it in the interest
of international bimetallism The suspen-
sion is steadily working in Europe TO that
end. 1t has persuaded Bismarck. IL l could
have my wish, 1 would not have the treas
ury purchase another ounce OF silver, or
coin another silver dollar under existing
conditions, till the possibility of interna-
tional bimetallism ratio of 15Is to l
has been fairly tested by the whole power
OF the United States, exerted earnestly and
in good faith by their Congress. their Pres
ident and Cabinet, their Secretary of State,
their diplomatic and consular agents every
where"