Hopkinsville Kentuckian., 1895-05-14
NOR MUCH.


We Need.
The single standard Journals that
have blindly claimed that the silver
craze" was dying out, are now forced
to face it as the leading issue Some
of them hasten to declare themselves
in favor of bimetallism so far as gold
and silver dollars are maintained at
a parity and will exchange at par and
command respect in all countries.
That is very amusing. Doubtless some
of those journals understand what
rank nonsense 1t is and many of them
don't. American gold and silver dol
lars do not circulate at par as money
in foreign countries, and never could
except under an international mon
etary system not likely to materialize.
There Is no International money, and
and when American gold is accepted in
settlement of international balances it
is taken by weight, as commodity.
The bulk and weight of silver preclude
its use to any great extent in interna-
tional transactions.
No civilized country wants the coin
age of another mixed in its circulation,
and therefore the business men of each
country discount the coinage of the
other, to keep it out of circulation.
The United States and Canada, prac-
tically the same country, with the same
standard and coinage system, each inn
pose heavy discounts on the silver coin
of the other, and have done so ever
since the resumption of specie pay
ments. The regular discount on Amer
lean silver in Canada has rarely been
less than 20 per cent. 1t was simply
arranged by the business men of each
community. In Mexico the American
silver dollar does we'll if accepted on q
par with the Mexican dollar.
The American monetary system has
not commanded the respect of foreign
ers since 1878, but has, on the contrary,
been fit subject for ridicule and con-
tempt. Shortly after the demonetiza-
tion act was smuggled through con-
gress, Mr.. David Watney, testifying
before the royal commission, delivered
himself of the following British sneer:
II cannot suppose that everybody is
wise. The idea of those Americans
adopting the gold standard, and they a
debtor nation! They could not see
that it would increase their debt enor-
mously. They know nothing of cur
renoy matters"
Had Mr. Watney known that the
crime of 1873 was perpetrated for the
purpose of doubling the debt, he could
not have found words to express his
contempt. The Americans, in follow
ing the dictation of the Lombard street
bankers in bonding the war debt. using
the bonds as banking basis, and de-
monetizing silver for the benefit of the
British and American bondholders,
richly earned all the obloquy that
could be heaped on them.
The inhabitants of Adamawa, who
refuse to accept the money of any civil
lized country but demand cowrie
shells for their exports, are entitled
and receive more respect than the
Americans. They are respected be-
cause they maintain their own none
tary system against the world, and the
world must conform to it by purchas-
ing cowrie shells when it wants to
trade with Adamawa. They prosper
on the cowrie shell standard, and don't
OoiO nhCGhCl Az oh1Uo UhC VI
not.
What the Americans want is some of
the horse sense, independence, and
sturdy self-reliance of the untutored
Adamawans. They want money to
suit themselves, and not to suit foreign-
ers. They want it for their own in
ternal trade and development, and not
for foreign trade. No system provid-
ing the money for these urgent needs
can impair the power to pay out the
gold commodity on foreign account, to
the extent that it is now impaired.
The sooner the single standard jour
nails recognize these facts, and cease to
talk the stereotyped twaddle about
parity, par, and respect in foreign
countries, the sooner they can earn
some respect for themselves .-Aransas
Pass Herald.