The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-06-01
AS TO THE BAD DOLLARS.
The New York Statesman
Would Not Circulate Any
Greenbacks.
SILVER ALSO WORRIES HIM.
Possibilities Of His Idea of a Ratio
He Says, Have Been Fairly
Tested.

ALBANY, N. Y, May Ex-senator Hill
was asked to-day whether he had read
Senator Sherman's speech on the monetary
question.
Yes said the Senator, ~ have care
fully perlsed Senator Sherman's speech
on silver. II an Ohio Democrat had made
the speech there would have been condem-
nation all along the Republican ranks.
The implication startled me that there are,
in a prosperous State like Ohio, Republi-
can voters who wish to degrade our dollar
standard, repudiate one-half our public
debt and pay their debts in cheaper money
than they promised to pay.
u have not met such voters in New
York 1t is difficult for me to believe that
a majority in any American State or in
any American Congress will vote to create
a new dollar merely that in order thereby
debtors may evade the payment of half
or a quarter of any percentage of what
they owe and have promised. That would
be worse and more indefensible than the
creation in 1861 by Senator Sherman's
party of full legal-tender dollar. Then
the country was in the agony of a
Civil War, but now there is profound
peace. Reputation of private contracts
had not been attempted in our history I'M
til 1862. Whether our standard dollar was
silver or gold or both it was from 1892 to
1862 an honest standard-an undegraded
standard.
Senator Sherman said at GAINESVILLE
what was new to me- that for fourteen
years after resumption of specie payments,
while the Republican party was in power,
we had gold, silver and paper money pass
ing current in all parts of the commercial
world. l had never known that from 1880
to 1884 our silver dollars and green
back dollars were exportable like our gold
dollars. One of my objections to our pres
ent Government making full legal tender
silver and greenback dollars is that they
are not exportable.
al would exterminate forever the green
bacl, dollars, which, by their endless re-
demption character, make the chiefest OF
our existing currency woes. I would. by
international bimetallism, and by com
age at a ratio Of 1871 and not
by Senator Sherman's bimetallism
exemplifed in his law of 1890, now
repealed, lift our standard silver
dollar into a world wide parity with our
gold dollar. | would thereby put an end
TO tine degradation of any coined dollar of
ours. would not have, as now, one ratio,
which is Is, for our silver dollars and
higher ratio, as now, for our mined silver
! object to Senator Sherman's misdescrip-
ton of the bimetallism of 1892, which, on
an international ratio of 1871 to to 1,
advocate.
I'VE have suspended the compulsory
purchase of silver and the coming of silver
Al j -
national bimetallism. The suspension is
steadily working in Europe to that end.
1t has pursuaded Bismarck. If I could
have my wish 1 would have the treasury
purchase not another ounce of silver or
coin another silver dollar under existing
conditions. The possibility of inter
national bimetallism on ratio of 15%
has been fairly tested by the whole power
of the United States, exerted earnestly and
in good faith by Congress, the President.
and Cabinet, the Secretary of State and the
country's diplomatic and consular agents
everywhere"