People's voice. [volume] (Wellington, Sumner County, Kansas) 1890-1917, 1895-07-25
HOrr-Harvey Debate.
IContinned from third maze. ]


the size of the rooms do not permit o
a large audience, the officers of tn
club are compelled every day to re
fuse many applicants for seats.
The contention of MesSrS. HOrr ant
Harvey over the silver question wa
resumed this afternoon, The tall
was opened ty Harvey. He said TIT
debate of the last session was Of val
ue as showing that during the pas
forty years silver had been steadll!
coined, in spite of the assertion to TIT
contrary that, by table copied from
the reports of the minis, the CONNER
cial ratio between gold and silver haC
been maintained at about the French
coinage ratio Of 15t to l for 200 years
that during the twenty-five years since
1873, as a result of characterization
the commercial ratio had declined tC
% to l; and that during that time the
commercial ratio had chung close to
The legal ratio. During all that time
the commercial prices of silver bullion
had remaided steady. Since 1873 it
had steadily and rapidly decreased.
1t was the dominating influence of
London exchange to all parts of the
world which led to gold being recOg-
niIed by the world as the standard in
all commercial transactions.
HOrr then proceeded to call atten-
ton to what he called misleading
statements in Harvey'S book. For
instance he declared to be untrue the
statement that it was believed that
the cost of producing all of the gold
in the world was about 81 per ounce
while some put it much higher HOrr
pointed out that there had beer vast
iy increased production at greatly re-
duced prices. If it cost what Harvey
sphOke of, the silver mines in three
years would have lost over 100000
900. Harvey had said that the debts
of the United States amount to S4O,-
000,000000 That was an abSurdity.
The statement of the amount of in.
terest which the United States paid
annually to Europe was also untrue.
Mr.. Harvey said that the amount Of
silver referred to by him in his book
was the amount available for coinage.
For the rest he proposed to pursue
the order of discussion and answer
the questions when he came to them.
Mr.. Harvey then distributed a table
showing the production of gold and
silver from 1872 to 1892 and proceeded
to argue that IN spite of wide relative
fluctuations in production there had
been no fluctuations in the relative
value till after the demonstration
act in 1873. He then proceeded to
argue that except in the legal ratio of
weight there should be no difference
in The treatment of silver and gold.
He said that the creator of money
had the right to regulate the thing
created to the extent of fixing rela-
tive ratios but it had no right to take
from the legal tender quality of any
money created.
Mr.. Horr continued his objections
to Mr.. Haryey'S statements in his
book. He took up the suppositiop
that the government wanted 100000
horses: that its competition would in
crease the value of horses; that free
coinage of silver would increase the
value Of the bullion. Mr.. Horn said
that all the government did to silver
was to put stamp on the bullion and
return it to the owner. Suppose
the government should call for 1901
horses for the purpose of affixing a
brand on them and having done so
should return them to the owner.
would that increase the value of the
horses of the country. The horse
argument Mr.. Horn declared was a
fraud. The speaker then took up the
matter Of the elements which govern
the price of wheat, arguing that Mr..
Haryey's deductions were fallacious.
Mr.. Harvey said that this govern
ment had fixed the price of gold and
all the friends Of silver wanted was
for it to fix the price of silver, in the
belief that the nation could better
keep out of the hands Of pawnbrOkers
with two metals than one.
Returning to his argument on BIZ
metallism, Mr.. Harvey said that the
option of the debtor to pay in the
cheaper metal should not be impair
ed. This would always maintain a
parity. If the creditor were given
the option of the money in which he
should be paid he would demand the
dearer money, therefore increasing
the demand for that metal and de-
creasing the other, thereby widening
the disparity.
Continuing Mr.. Harvey declared
that all nature was bimetallic. Men
had two legs. two arms, two ears, two
800, III doolorad tbot tbara ,rono