The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1895-05-26
Laid Down by Mr.. Carlisle in a
Speech in Kentucky.
WE CAN'T HAVE TWO STANDARDS
The Cheaper Money Has Always
Driven Ont the Dearer.
Every Free Coinage Country I'm the
World Is on a silver Basis-So sil-
yer Basis Country Has Gold I'm Cir
culation, and None Pays Fair Wages
TO Labor.

Bowling Green, KY. May &.-dIon. j.
q. Carlisle, secretary OF the treasury.
spoke here today in the opera house on
the currency question Ths seating ca
pactty OF the house is only about os)
and II VAS found necessary 20 exclude
women ard children. voters only being
admitted. When Mr.. Carlisle came upon
the stage he was greeted with loud ap-
plause. After a brief statement that ne
was there as a Democrat TO discuss pub
l3c questions and not Ia any way 20 apol-
oglze for the administration. which he
knew needed no apology. Mr.. Carlisle
commenced as follows:
The question is whether We shall con-
ttaue 20 preserve our present monetary
system under which all the dollars In use
by the people. whether gold. silver or
paper. are equal in purchasing power IN
all markets. The proposition Of our fei-
I0w-c8tizens in favor OF the free and IN
limited coinage OF legal tender silver Is
that the United States alone. without the
assistance and cooperation OF any other
government. shall legaiiZe the coinage Of
4i51e grains OF standard silver into doll
lars, and by law compel the people OF
the United States. but nobody else, 10
receive these dollars in payment OF debts
Of ali kinds, when. as a matter OF fact.
the silver contained in such coin IS worth
only about - cents. But the claim by
the free coinage men that free coinage
al 10 10 j HoAl4 apPItE4d &C SILVER anu
bring II 10 a parity wlth gold destroys
the argument that IL would furnish the
people with cheap currency with which 10
pay debts.
NO country can esta blish the free coin
age Of both metals, giving 10 each full
legal tender equality, and increase both al
the same time. England tried for 500
years. with strict laws against the expor-
tation OF coin. She lost all her gold and
was driven IA 1876 to the single standard.
Wherever IN the currency OF country
metal is overrated, In comparison with an
other metal, the undervalued metal is
driven out OF the country.
There are FIVE provisions which abso-
lutely cannot be avoided:
Il There is not a free coinage country
IN the world that is not on a silver basis.
- There is not a gold standard country
In the world today that does not use silver
for money along with gold.
% There is not a silver standard Coun-
try In the world that uses any gold as
money along with silver.
- There Is not a silver standard coun-
try in the world today that has more than
one-third of the circulation per capita of
the United States.
-. There is not a silver standard coun-
try in the world today where the laboTing
man receives fair pay for his days work
IF the United States could coin all the
silver In the world available Tor coinage,
the 37II4 grains of pure silver contained in
our dollar would not be worth in this
country as much as the silver dollar, but
the silver dollar itself would be depreci-
ated The Mexican dollar. with 377.i7
grains of silver. six grains more than the
American dollar, Is wort. only about 30
cents OF our money That would be exact
lv the effect on our silver doHar If We
coined for private account free all the sill
yer brought. II we can. by making the
ratio Is TO /, make a silver dollar pass as
100 cents when II Is only worth 30 cents.
why could IL not be done at a ratio of 10
to I
Before free coinage of silver can be
brought about another congress and
nSsident favorable to it would have TO
h, elected This would certainly take
three years, and before that time every
creditor In the country. seeing the com
Ing Of cheap money, would call on his
debtors to liuuidate before the cheap
money was in effect. This wonld bring
rpOn the country a panic compared with
which all former panics were nothing.
In 1876, when the Spanish dollar and the
French crown were made legal tender
and were slightly under weight. II drove
all the full-weight American silver dol
lars out OF the country. so that Mr. JEFF
ferson stopped the coinage OF the silver
dollar The subsidiary coin was also
driven out. because OF full fractional
weight. and the coins we're slightly re-
duced in weight IN order 10 hold them In
circulation"