The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1895-11-13
WHAT THE ENGLISH SAY.
m the Minneapolis Penny Press.

the COHuIlIOuS OIL uuduCc anu lTdue
throughout the world, and the policy of
carrying that entire business upon "a
single gold-standard," that the majority
of foreign countries and particularly
in the belief that it was impossible to
maintain the "bi-mettalic standard" any
lOnger,-that it was out of the question
for the nations of the world to still con-
tinue to use gold and silver freely, inter-
changeably, based upon a substantial
ratio of about 16 to 1; and that it was
absolutely desira ble-in fact absolutely
necessary-to repudiate one or the other
of these metals, and adopt only single
primary money standard.
1t has been the universal opinion of
every business man who has given this
subject thought, or consideration that
the b;-metalljc" doctrine, is the only
true monetary doctrine to be advocated
in this country Eevery business man
has felt, while perhaps he was compelled
to close his lips so far as his own per-
sonal interests went-for fear his bank
ers would jump upon his neck at the
wrong time-nevertheless, that there
has always been an underlying feeling
that there was something terribly rot
ten in Denmark" when the facts were
fully understood relative to the adoption
and maintenance of "a single gold
standard"
Patrick Henry,-the great Virginian
patriOt-was the father of that famous
maxim which proclaimed to the world
that che knew of no light by which to
guide his feet except the lamp of expert
ence." That spirit found an echo in the
heart of every patriot of revolutionary
time, and it's application brought the
grandest results to this nation. If that
principle was good an hundred years
ago, and if the doctrine was based upon
solid principles how does it happen that
it is not safe when applied to our none
tary systems? The civilized world for
two thousand years prior to 1873, recog-
niZed and treated gold and silver pre-.
cisely alike,-both as to their uses as
money and in the arts. The single gold
standard is an experiment in theory of
only twenty-five years standing, and in
actual practice" of less than five years.
All history confirms the principle of
Patrick Henry when applied to "bi-met-
allism;" while less than quarter of a
century condemns both the theory and
the practical application of the single
gold standard
In order that the readers of this paper
may understand how an English bust
ness man looks upon this question, we
quote the following dialogue, supposed
to have taken place between an English
man and his son, concerning the demon
itization of silver. We commend it's SEN
timents to the honest consideration of
every business man:
Say dad, w'Ot's this ere bloody row
about free silver coinage them blarsted
Yankees are 'avin?" said young Johnny
Calf to his father, John Bull
cav, son. said J. B., don't e see it?
This 'eres the way of it. We British
coin hall of India's money. It's hall sill
yer. We coin New Zealands money. It's
hall silver halso. We don't produce sill
yer, so we ave to buy it. We 'ad to pay
one dollar and thirty cents, or somethink
over five shillings and four pence, per
ounce for silver SO long as the blarsted
donkeys ad free coinage. This was ard
on us, cause we couldn't make nothink
on midas wheat, We know, nor we could
MT make nothink on Australian and
New Zealand gold; but we knocked 'em,
son, we knocked 'em!'
COW. dad? 'Ow'd We knock emp"
"Well, son, we sent Britisher hover
there hamong the bloody traitors in the
blarsted Yankee congress, and e fixed
EN-" e got the ole lot of bank presi-
dents and railroad presidents an law
yers these ere presidents ave fred to
serve 'em, to demonetize silver, cause.
We see, these ere fellers, being money
men, wanted money scarce, We know, so
they could loan Ugh and buy low. Liv-
ing cost less and money brought more,
don't We see? Yell always ear them
fellers a 'arpin' about Sound money, and
the like, but they're hold set, don't We
know. They believe in dividin' hup.
The sounds fer the dumb fools at does
the votin, but the moneys for the viii
lains as does the 'owlin'; but they don't
see it, the voters don't so let 'em vote
same's ever. and later hon they'll do some
'owlin' too"
But dad, did they demonetize silver,
sure?"
did they? 'Well should say they
did. And silver did just what we wanted
It went down, down, down, and now,
don't We see. we buy the Yank's silver at
60 cents an ounce coin it into money,
send it to Australia and New Zealand and
get one dollar and thirty cents worth of
gold for it, and we halso coin it into ru-
pees and send it to India, and get over
twice as much wheat and cotton for the
same money as we did before So now
we buy wheat and cotton of India, and
the blarsted fool Yankees is a squealin'
cause prices is low. That's 'ow the row
comes"
But say, dad, if the Yanks was to ave
free coinage again wouldn't silver come
hup?"
Eyes, my boy, it would; cause when a
man can take is silver to the mint an
ave it coined into dollars free, ed be a
bigger fool yet AN the Yanks are if he
didn't see the silver IN dollar was worth
dollar, an an ounce of silver was worth
one dollar and twenty-nine cents'
"But, dad, that would be ard on us,
wouldn't it,"
eyes, my boy, it would Why, we'd
ave to buy wheat an cotton of the Yanks
again same's we did before, cause freights
from India, added to cost of wheat same's
in America, would make it 'igher, an we'd
sure ave to go to the Yanks fer wheat an
cotton"
But, dad, I'd think they'd remonitize
silver an ave free coinage again. Why
don't they, dad?"
''Well, my boy, I'll tell We, but don't ye
blow it. They are blarsted fools. They
amt more'n half civilized. They never
were as smart as Britisher, anyway.
Why, boy, the United States is the only
country as claims to be civilized at don't
own its own telegraph system an run it
for the people. A Yank named Pinckney
once said: "MilliOnS for defense hnt not