The Atlanta constitution. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1885-19??, 1895-02-11
TffE GOLD STANDARD
Cannot BE Maintained l'y Multiply lag
Promises 80 Pay Gold.


From The New York sun.
5 hundred millions more Of bonds are
about 10 be issued TO repl5nisE ttr Ee.i ir
serve ana maintain the gold sta--1fd- II
would seem that 10 ought 10 become mann
fest by this time that the gold standard car
not be maintained by multiplying promises
to pay in gold whether ia tAc form Of C5A
notes OF o. bonds. and especially ny IA
creasius our sold debt abroad To the eN-
tent that gold has been crawn from the
treasury for export il has gone out q tAe
country u pay what we lack i'm paying Win
commodities and 10 Issue bonds Tor aueh q
purpose is simply borrowing gold 10 Fay m
terest abroad, instead d paying IL with
commodities no banker il New York
would lend money to q business man VINO
was known 70 be borrowing money To pa'
interest on what ne already owed. Inc
evil day may, indeed, III this way pc Pu'
Off bur 1t is only 50 much the worse "Ash
il comes, as come it must sooner or I9IeI.
There is one way. ana one way ONLY. oy
wdicn the gold standard can be maintained
and that Is by forcing down the price lever
in this country enough below the price ieFti
of ctaer countries 40 turn gold t,.a way
or. At any rate, to induce oar creditors 70
take commodities FOR what We owe them,
instead OF demanding sold. Ia other words,
We must buy the gold, ana 10 pJy y W
must pay for IL with commodities 90 tflces
as low as the lowest il any country. livery
reucy expansion, or by protective lawns
must necessarily operate TO lessen tEc eN-
portation OF commodities and increase ils
outflow of gold.
Again, no debtor country can Uointf-r an
even level of prices with cred or ~"uhtlitS'
all having a common money STANDARD 1he
price level in the debtor country must pc
enough below the price level IN creditor
countries To induce creditors TO take cciu-
nodirles for what is aunuyIiy - C@ t2ld
them. and leave the sold. That We ere a
debtor natiOn'noboGy denies. Al rs 2dmittcI
also that cur annual payments aorU II, m
GLIDING interest. dividends, the cost o. car
rying trade ana sold spent by American
travellers in Europe, reach 10 three or four
hundred millions No doubt as long as cur
creditors viii take new ponds Tor the IN
Ierest we owe them, we can tide over tut
Under such policy the lay OF inaI settle
IleuL WI be Il Jay OF unto!i disaster. Ihey
who taIN OF preventing disaster 10 our nd
tonaI credit now BY issuing bonds are in
sincere or they 10 not know what they are
talking ABOUT.
TO maintain the gold standard permanent
w. ali forms of currency except gold must De
contracted and bauR CREDITS CcstrILted, and
the price level in tins country forced enough
below the price level OF other countries to
turn gold this way. AS prices 80 down, Of
course wages, salaries and everything else
that enters INTO the cost of production must
follow. There is no other way IL attempt
anything else is but temporiZinS THAT TINS
is nor an easy road 10 ,r1Tel j. noniiest
enough but II is the price OF the gold stand
ard; and il that standard is To De perma-
ntntly maintained, the price Eiu3t be paid
sooner or later; and the Ion.er it IS put
on the more ii wiz cost IN che eli.
it is 10 be hoped that congress, before
its Adjournment, w4ll at any rate separate
the question oil pcov4Ging Tor government
expenditures from Jnat OF main taining me
god reserve, 50 thar The Confusion which
now prevails Oh TINS question may be clear
ga away. II the revenues are Tot enough
TO meet government expenditures, Or II IL Is
necessary 10 anucipt,te revenues Ior 4 lew
inuntas, let some temporary provision ue
lidue, Dut let the question: OF SOLD reserve
anu The maintenance OL the SvIu STANDARD
stand by ilseIt anu on It's own bottom, 50
tnat the people can see Just what that
means.
one thing more: Ia makes no di!fc--n1e. in
maintaining the gold standard, whether the
Solo comes from Or passes through the
treasury OF the United states, or whether il
goes directly from banks or other boards.
il is purely question of the outflow of
gold, and it takes just as much and the
effect in the end is precisely the same,
whether it is derived from one source or am
gold in this country. The gold standard
can be maintained only by keeping gold
here: and gold can be kept here only by
lowering prices till the tendency of gold
is toward us instead of away from Us. The
flow of gold is in the END a question Of
price level and nothing else.
a. J. WARNER