The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1895-07-14
SEATTLE, SUNDAY, JULY IA.
BETTER THAN A DIAGRAM.

very good illustration OF the futility
OF laws not backed by the confidence Of
the people Is unconsciously offered by the
Tacoma Ledger. 1T is doubtful" says
the Ledger. whether a parallel can be
grecnbaclss on this Coast, while gold was
at a premium. so generally sustained
against the interest OF the people. To
pay a debt In greenbacks in California
and Oregon during the war was regarded
as a social and business offense. and the
debtor who had the temerity to do 1t was
hlacklistod as a business outlaw. The
Federal officers. whose salaries were
sometimes paid IN sreenbacks. had TO
convert the greenbacks into gold 10 get
currency to pay for their groceries. No
custom SO clearly In the interest of the
moneyed class was ever SO generally sus-
talned by popular sentiment"
Yet that Is just what will happen with
free and unlimited coinage OF silver. You
may pass a law making It "as good as
gold" but II the business sense of the
people is not behind II gold win be In
preferred demand-and so go TO a pre-
MUM.
paid in silver because they cannot help
themselves. but they viii have 10 pay in
gold or at gold prices
The only way to prevent this is to keep
the two coins on a parity. This the
United States cannot do alone. This gov
eminent tried It twice on a large scale.
Under the act OF 1878 tho United States
government bought the enormous guam
tity of sS0s 21a. 80 Cbulllon value) Of silver,
but the price. nevertheless. steadily de-
creased from sLaDiS per ounce In 1873 10
so.9sss In $500. In that year the passage
OF another law authorizing the purchase
OF 100000 ounces set a maximum price
Of 81 for SIT. grains Of pure silver. but.
Notwithstanding the purchase OF $i55 9si. =
oo2 In about three years. the average price
per ounce fell from s1.oiSi to so7si3 In
other words. the bullion value of a silver
dollar fell from so.sOS3 TO 50. $3.50: or, dis
earding the fractions for easier compre-
nenslon. from over sos cents TO 5s,s cents
per dollar.
We are told that free and unlimited
coinage vii advance the price. No doubt;
but how much, and for how long?
Under the stimulus OF heavy purchases
by the United States the ratio reoeded
from 1875 in July, 1873. TO f7ao in july.
100: bat IL gradually widensd again 20
=. - In August. 1885 and after a fractional
contraction remained at about 20. Under
the impetus OF the at OF IS0 IL shrunk
10 iT.Tl but by tho end OF lSse Il was "a %.
although BY that tine we had purchased,
under the act OF 1870. $40. Sss.i0S
In treating this point by itself we xiv.
facts merely: bat the question will natur-
ally be asked. II the United States. with
that limited supply-largs as 4, was
could not sustain the worlds price. how
could I. here TO 30 so with an unlimited
supply
The United States issued the manast.
''ene dollar or unit Is worth one hundred
cents or one-ffth OF nve-aouar gold
rleee.' bur the other great commercial
nations were governed by the market
price and II was act so In fact II. how
ever. those nations agree with us. then
the credit q; all combined 10 keep a ratio
would Be effective. Even all the nations
could not CO this ~ the coinage Of silver
became 50 extensive as 20 assume undue
proportions 90 the amount OF gcla.