Birmingham age-herald., 1895-05-07
SOUND MONEY DOCTRINE Presented by Col. Josiah Patter-
 son of Tennessee TO AN ATTENTIVE AUDIENCE. Necessity fer the Preservation of the National Credit-The FalIacy of the Is to
 1 Craze-Snopsis of An
 Able Speech.

congress from the Memphis, Tenn, dis trict. discussed the money question to a good audience yesterday afternoon at the opera house in this city. He is a sound money man and presented an able argument in behalf Of that cause.
 After 2 few introductory remarks Col onel Patterson reviewed the different moneys used in this country since its foundation. The ratios of silver and gold at different periods were stated and dis cussed, and the causes leading up to the several financial crises of the country explained.
 Colonel Patterson said: Tn lS65 there was $500, ,000 900 of silver in circulation in this country but it's value rose until there was profit of or cents on the dollar to be made by buying up the coin and. shipping it in bullion to Europe. For this reason our silver was shipped away from this country and we had put little left in circulation. Every mer- .chant or blacksmith was issuing his shin plaster. Some of you have seen the old shin plasters. In the latter part Of the 50 $ and early 40s we had no small coin in circulation because silver was worth moro as bullon than as coin.
  facts that are incontrovertible l do not resort to the tricks of Coins Finan- cial School. Applause)
 "Congress in 1851 passed law to coin silver at the rate of 3S4 grains to the dollar It was coined to make change. It was then worth more as coin than as bullion and for that reason it was not sent out of the country. The silver dollar outweighs two half dollars, four quarters or ten dimes There must be limit to the coinage of silver. or our currency will be debased and our gold will leave us. You ask how are we to know when to quit coining 1t? l answer, How does a mother know when she has given a child enough mince pie?
 ''When congress finds enough is coined to accommodate the commerce of the country then the hints are closed. AS commerce grows and the demands in- crease, further coinage is resorted to.
 We now have nearly $l00,000, 900 in small coin in circulation.
 -The president of the United States in a recent letter said: The question Is whether we are to maintain the present standard of values or go to silver mono metallsm.' And the question l propose to propound is that if a difference of or cents drove gold out of circulation, as by the act of 1873, and as silver in 1854, and that, too, at times when all parties were trying to maintain bimetal- lism, how Is it possible for us to maintain the two on a parity at 16 to l, when the difference Is 45 cents2 It is question every thoughtful mind must settle for itself. Can we, my countrymen, main tain bimetallism?
 There is not one single bimetallic country on the globe Every habitable country on the globe has either the gold or the silver standard. Then, I put it to this intelligent audience, can this re- public, alone of all the countries of this globe, keep gold and silver a q parity? Is it better to maintain our present standard or go to silver monometallism
 ''It is a question for debate. But when it is debated there is but one solution for it. It is contrary to the history of man. kind and to the experience of humanity, this argument that gold and silver can be maintained at a parity by this coun- try alone and independent of an inter national agreement. l think it is best to maintain gold as the standard as we now have it.
 T believe so for three or four reasons. One Is that there is not country on the globe where Christianity and enlighten- ment are progressing, where schools and colleges flourish, where good government inures, that has not the gold standard.
 There is not country on the globe that is not progressing, where insurrec- tions are perennial, that has not the sill yer standard. Wherever they have de- preciated currency wages are at a low standard. Japan, China, Mexico and the Central and South American states. other than Brazil, have silver the stand ard. Compare these with the other na- tions, such as Italy, Austria, Russia, Roumania, Turkey and the other na- tions that have the gold standard. The gold countries of the world have more silver in circulation as subsidiary coin 1d 1tf nfDff 1n6 f.xfkxr yl than the silver countries have, while the silver countries have no gold. And you cant find silver country that has over $5 per capita in circulation.
 T want to state here in Alabama, where knew the country when a boy, when l camped here as a Confederate soldier. Your city was built up by labor. All human progress rests on labor. The poor man is the last man to be benefited by an unstable or a cheap currency. A few days ago, while in Washington, I called at the state de- partment and asked MT. Gresham to furnish me labor statistics from con- sular reports from all the countries of the world. From these I find that bricklayers in the United States get twice as much in gold as the Mexican gets in silver, and his dollar buys twice as much as the Mexican'se dollar. The, difference is even greater when you get down to the farmer and the laborer You know that a man can go into a Mexican restaurant, eat hearty break fast lay down his American dollar and get Mexican dollar in change"
 MT. Comer-"How is it that in the United States, where silver and gold are both used for money. better wages are paid than in England, where only gold is used for money?"
 Colonel Patterson-"That is another question. It has nothing to do with this question. It grows out of our sys- tenn of protection, and you will find that the highest paid laborer is the laborer who works in protected industry Cuba is a gold standard country and Mexico silver. A Cuban laborer gets hotter wages than a Mexican Turkey