Custer weekly chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, S.D.) 1890-1931, 1895-06-01

legal tender money and Keep both in
circulation at the same time has bean
made by nearly every civilized nation
in The world and has failed In every one
Iof hem. 1t has failed because In every
instance II has been found Impossible
70 establish ard maintain a legal ratio
corresponding at all times with the IN
trinsic or commercial ratio between
the Two metals contained in the coin,
: and because wherever either of the met
ais was uudervalued relatively Ia the
other in the coinage laws III was AK
peied from the country. England per-
sisted in the attempt for nearly 800
years and, Notwithstanding the enact
ment ~ most sevsrs penal statutes
against the expectation Of coins or
bullion, vas at last forced 10 abandon
the effort and adopt the single STAN
darl. France, in her efforts To Keep the
COINS Of the two metals in circulation
Al me same time, changed the legal
ratio between them more than lao times
in 4 single century, and finally, in 1876,
finding tina gold was leaving her and
thlt IN ten years her net Imports II
silver had tn $3.50, 600, 00l.
stopped the coinage Of legal tender sill
v.r and for nineteen years the attempt
has seen bandoned in that country.
Many other nations in Europe and other
par'4 ~ the world have subjected their
ro.rIa 10 great loss and expense hv their
( aa1ereuce To monetary systems based
,nrou lie theory that "A double standard
could BE maintained, but I'm no case have
t-ag succeeded IN keeping the coins n
tsr r1vo metals in use AZ the same nme,
except for very short periods. our
| country Is not without experience upon
ts.s subject, and the results here were
fast the same "a they have been every
where else. BY the act 0f 1872, which
vas our first coinage law, the legal "a
TO herwepn gold and silver was fixed
at II ID I, when in fact the true COM
n~aercial ratio was or 500 became about
1874 to /, and The result of this very
small over valuation Of silver in the
coinage was tina gold went out of cir
culs and we had practically silv'r
uacs; ometaIlism uuul after the passage
II the act 81 1894 For the purpose
If restoring gold to the circulation, con-
gress In 1894, changed the ratio from 10
20 I % 10 to /. and as this was an ove-
valuation ~ gold in the coinage silver
left the country. and from that time on
antil 1873 We a practically gold mon0-
lieLdtilSI3s whenever We nau any met
allie basis at all for our currency.
The one thing that has been less af-
fected by the changes in the relation
between supply and demand, by i'm
-provements in the methods Of produc-
ton and distribution and by other infiu-
ences which produce fluctuations IN
prices Of commodities generally. ia La
Dor. and &c ia by far the most Important
single source Of incone possessed by
our people, a much larger amount being
expended every year in the payment Of
wages thar for any other one purpose
The cost Of labor in the manufacturing
n mechanical industries alone during
the census year Of 1889 was 81 :s3, 2l6, 529,
which was nearly two and one half
times h value Of all the wheat anA
cotton produced in th.s country; and II
we add 20 this the amounts paid for
farm labor. for clerical and other work
n mercantile establishments. for dOmes-
tic service and for work on railways Of
all kinds, on water craft, on streets and
other improvements in the cities, and
In the many other Occu pations which
give employment 10 our people. we
would have a sum almost, If not quite.
equal TO the value Of all our agricul-
turaI products. It is evident, therefore.
that II the alleged depreciation Of gold
alone has caused a reduction OF prices.
che wages Of labor, b greatest COM
modify in the market, hOuld have
fallen since 1879; but exactly the reverse
Ia true. The Investigations Of this sub
tect by the subcommittee covered a
period Of ffty-two years and embraced
the occupations in which our people
were engaged. and the fact. unanimous
" found. was that, although eighteen
years had elapsed since the silver legis-
lation, the wages Of labor were higher
than in 1879 or 1873 Wages were found
e. be nearly 81 per cent higher thar In
1850. which was thirteen years before
the silver legislation. and more han 8
per cent higher than in 1879. when that
legislation was adopted.
The Debtor Argument.
one Of the most effective
made By the advocates Of free coinage,
~ some parts of the country, at least.
is mat the people are In debt, and that Il
e the duty Of the government 10 relieve
them by such legislation as will enable
them 70 procure cheap money for the pur-
pose of dlscnarglng these obligations. and
n sHpport nF thls argument tne most ex-
aS<rFateg stdtements are maze as % the
Gepresse1 ana suHerlns condltlon of our
Farmers, wage Gamers ana otner Produc-
ING asses tbs ars9ment comedies that
nh!er the propGsed system OF free
co-HASs at the ratio OF 70 70 All the va
rious xmas pi currency IN use by the
pe'DiE including the SILVER dolIar Itself.
would De worm less tnan ~ ~ now. To
assert that the people are in debt Is SIM
ply 20 say That they nave traded with each
other On credit, that one part OF our fell
low citizens. relying. On the integrity and
financial standing OF their ntaghDors and
acq1alntances have lent them money on
time and sofa properly TO them Without
demanding immediate payment In cash,
and that In this way hey have enabled
many people 10 carry on a useful business
and I've n comfortable homes who other
wise would not have done 50. II IT Ia a
crime 10 lend money to a man who wants
10 borrow IT, or 10 sell property on credit
% a man who wants TO purchase II, and
has no ready money to pay for II, let the
perpetrators be properly punished. but let
us not involve the whole country In con-
fusion and disaster and immediate the IN
nocent and guilty NIX IN order to punish
the real II our people are In
debt. they W each other. and, conse-
quentIy. about as many would be actually
injured as wouI be apparently benefited
by sailing the obligations down 20 a sill
yer standard. The Indebtedness OF the
"a 100 xnaDhopfc~ onA nthAr IIa--