Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1895-07-11


Of closing the minis was foreseen by Til
ablesteconomists six years before 1t tool
| place. Since that article was laid befori
my readers, Mr.. Shaw has published |
much fuller and more detailed accoun
OF the whole business, TO which may
refer them. But / may cite his de
liberate judgment on the case. which
exactly agrees with my own. He says
THE second idea which Is commonl,
| entertained with regard to the action Of
France during this latter period (from
1903 10 1874 viz. that her action secured
Tor the world at large fixed and steady
ratio, is equally--indeed, still more--fal
laoious. At no point Of time during the
present century has the actual market
ratio dependent on the commercial
value Of silver corresponded with the
French ratio Of 15t, aud at no point Of
time has France been tree from the dis.
astrons influence of that want OF CORE
spoudence between the legal and com
merclal ratio. The opposite notion, which
prevails and finds expression in the
ephemeral himetallic literature Of to-day
is simply duG to ignorance. From 1915
England has been Withdrawn from this
| aShahh VI bAbiClhiilt ia wv aIQ VIC fIiOutTI
insular pamphleteer has before his eyes
no sign of its working in his own coun
try. lie therefore assumes universally
OF such experience, and attributes II Ia
the French legislative ratio. IL Is In no
polemic spirit, butsimply in the interest
OF science, that this particular mlsap.
plication OF history TO the squaring of q
theory is to be branded, The plainest
facts Of history are thereby absolutely
misrepresented, aud the assumption OF
cause and effect is so far FROM being true
that the repose OF the English currency
history of the 10Th century is to be at
tributed to the absence of bimetallic
systemic its despite rather than It's
presence and influence"
most heartily endorse every word OF
this.
have been blamed in certain quar-
tiers for the severe language in which l
have spoken of bimetallisin. NAV be
permitted to say that have not taken
up this question foFthe nopee or In view
Of the present disturbance in commerce.
have carefully considered the question
oil double standard-or bimetallism, as
Its advocates are pleased to term it---for
thlrty-fiye years. Forty years ago cir.
cumstances compelled me to take up
economics, and saw that one of the
great defectspf the current works ON the
science was tho insufficient attention
they gave to the theory of the coinage
and the history of tho coinage. The
theory OF the coinage aud the history of
the currency are one of the most i'm.
portant departments Of the economics of
country. lnlmy elements of Puliti-
cal Economy, published in 1857, for
the nrst time gave sketch of the his
tory OF the coinlge of England. In the
course Of this Investigation came upon
Sir Thomas Gilsham's letter TO Queen
Elizabeth, which for the first time IN
this country explained that bad money
always drives tpt good money. Per-
ceiying the transtendent importance Of
this law, | suggested that it should be
called Gresham's aw; this has new been
universally accepted. In 1864 the great
treatises of Qreslns and Copernicus were
first published In popular form under
the edltorship OF ny friend, M. Wolow.
ski, and it appeired that they had
already anticipated Greshams law In
their respective Countries. This great
fundamental law has been invariably
verified in the history of the coinage Of
every country duling 500 years, and
notably so in the Period from 1903 to
1874 in France, which the bimetallists
cite as the golden age OF bimetallism,
which 1t was in the tense of demonstrat.
Ing its utter futilitr. Bimetallism has
ruined and destroyed every system of
coinage which il ever touched.
When, then, l saw persons in RESPONSE
BILE positions addressing cheering meet
ings and gatherings OF artisans and
rustIcs, making assertions which knew
TO be founded on fictitious facts and dis.
torted and falsified history, holding out
anticipatIons which knew to be utterly
delusive, and making promises which /
knew to have no more value in them
than SO many bills drawn upon the
Bank of Elegance or Aldgate Pump, it
was difficult to refrain from the language
OF severe censure.
Since then, as | have said, Mr.. Shaw
has published a work which, like my
own, embodies the results of careful
study OF the history of the coinage of
the principal European countries for
900 years; and his judgment agrees in
every point with mine and he speaks of
the bimetallists in just as severe terms
as do. He says;
I'm economic history there is no de-
partment in which the study Of the ex-
pcrience OF other times and nations is
more necessary and resultful, lessonful,
wisdomful, than the domain of cur.
rency. The verdict of history on the
great problem of the nineteenth century
-blmetalllsm-ls clear, crushing, and
final, and against the evidence of history
no gainsaytng of theory ought for q
moment to stand"
And also:
The modern theory of bimetallism is
almost the only instance in history of a
theory growing not out Of practice, but
OF the failure of practice; resting not on
data verified, but on data falsitied, and
censure marked. No words can be too
strong of condemnation for the theorlz.
ing OF the bimetalist who by sheer
lmaginings tries to Justify theoretically
what has failed in five centuries of his.
tory' and to expound theoretically what
mas proven itself incapable Of solution
save by cutting and casting away"
endorse every word in Mr.. Shaw's
treatise. II would be too much to expect
the bimetallists to betake themselves to
the study of the huge volumes contain
Ing the history of the coinage of differ
ent countries, as Mr.. Shaw and have
done. but at all events no blmetallist
who has the least regard for truth can
be excused from studying Mr.. Shaw's
epitome of them, and no bimaetallist
who is endowed with the fsintest ca.
pacity for scientific reasoning car fail to
see that the mirage of bimctallism has
vanished into the absolute nothing. |
have now said my Say. Requiescam in
pace.
NEWSPAPER NEWS EXCURSION.
Their Delightful Outing sunday on tho
Elegant Steamer Republic.