Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1895-10-20

'tf StkENW
 Secretary John C. Carlisle
 ty. I am glad of the opportunity to talk on such theme in their presence, because I know they fully appreciate it's importance, and do not underestimate the efforts that have been made during the last two or three years to sus- tain the credit and honor of the government and prevent the depreciation of the currency in the hands of the people. In fact, they have rendered very material assistance to the public authorities in the accomplishment of this work and they are entitled to the thanks of the whole country for their patriotic course in sup porting the financial policy of an administra- tfon to which many of them were and are still pollucaiiy opposed. very well remember how. at most critical period in the business , affairs of the country, the banks of Boston almost emptied their vaults of gold by deposit- ing 94d00.000 in the treasury to replenish the vanishing reserve, and how, at @ later date, when the enemies of the public credit were denounelng the administration for it's conduct of our financial affairs, the Boston chamber of commerce, composed of gentlemen of both political parties. assembled at special meeting and unanimously called upon the senators and representatives from Massachusetts to lay aside all questions of party advantage and assist in the great work Of restoring public confidence. l assure you that these evidences of your sympathy and support were fully appreciated and not wholly unexpected for the conservatism and practical character Of your community is well under stood everywhere throughout the country,
 From the earliest times in our history the merchants, manufacturers, bankers and pro-
 
 for the industry and ability displayed in the conduct of their business, and for the honesty and fidelity with which they have met all their engagements. This has given them credit in the commercial world worth more to them in times of financial distrust than all the lands houses and goods, because well-established credit is always available to procure in the markets what is needed, while property can not always be immediately utilized.
 A depreciated and auctuating currency de- l stroys credit and thus robs the people of one 1 of their most valuable means Of carrying on l business. The mere apprehension that our 1 currency might be debased by the inability of 1 the government to continue the policy of re- 1 deening its obligations in gold has already | produced one of the greatest financial dis 1 turbanceS that ever occurred in our history 1 and resulted in the loss of thousands of mil l lions of dollars to our people. There were | doubtless other causes contributing to this re- | suit, but this was the most potent one in this | country and without 1t we would not have suf- | fered more than other parts of the world from the general depression What would have | been the consequences if these apprehensions had proved correct, if the government had, in | fact. been unable, or unwilling to maintain the equal exehangeable value of all forms of currency in the hands of the people, no man can tell; but that they would have been most disastrous nearly every wen-informed man | now comedies.
 Fortunately, one of the causes which con- tributed largely to produce feeling of dis trust and apprehension, and which very great- ly intensified that feeling at all stages of our l long financial struggle has substantially ceased to exert any influence over the minds of the people here or abroad. I mean the per sistent and aggressive agitation in favor of the free coinage of legal tender silver which for a long time seriously threatened to reyolutionize our monetary system and reduce our entire volume of currency to about half it's present value. l do not mean to assert that there was ever time when there was real danger that this would be done but there were times when the sentiment in it's favor was so strong and so aggressive in it's character that there were at least reasonable grounds for the fear that it might be accomplished and especially reason able grounds for such fear upon the part of investors abroad who could not be expected fully to understand the actual situa- ton here; but the free coinage move ment has lost it's momentum, and is no longer formidable or aggressive. 1t is on the defensive now. and when revolutionary movement is compelled to halt and defend it. self the end is not far of. It would not be cor rect to say that the contest is over, because the sentiment in favor of free coinage of silver is still quite strong in some parts of the coun- try but if is not strong enough to exert a con- trolling influence in the councils of either of the great political parties, and, without this, 1t can accomplish nothing in the form of legis- lation or in the determination of administra- tive policy. No well-informed man now be- leves that our standard of value will be changed, or thatsthe financial policy which has been steadily pursued by the present adminiS- tration will be abandoned. and foreign holders of our securities and foreign Investors in our industrial and commercial enterprises will make great mistake if they permit them selves to be influenced by the fear that our currency will be depreciated or that all our obligations will not be promptly and honestly discharged.
 The proposition tbat the United States alone shall adopt the policy of free coinage at a ratio which would make the,silver dollar intrinsieal- ly worth only about one-haf as much as the gold dollar, and declare both coins full legal tender ill the payment of debts, is so unreason- able upon it's face that it is difficult to under stand how it could have received the support Of so large part of our people. That two full legal tender coins of the same denomination, but of unequal intrinsic value, can not be kept in circulation at the same ttIne has been so often demonstrated by actual experience that the question is no longer open to serious dis cussion In fact, very few of the advocates of free coinage now contend that gold and silver would continue to circulate together under their policy but they insist that the gold standard ought to be abandoned even though gold coin should be banished from the country, because they say the prices Of eommodies. increase the burdens of what is called the debtor class and enrich the holders of capital in the form of mcney at the expense of the farmers and other producers. It must be adIEitted that these are serious al legations. and if they could be proved strong case for relief would be made; but they have not been and can not be proved. in order to show that the adoption and maintenance Of the gold standard of value has of itself re- duced the prices of commodities, 1t would be necessary to prove that 1t had produced a con- traction of currency. or that it had impaired credit, which is by far the most potent factor in trade. It has done neither. We have a much larger circulation in the aggregate, and much larger per capita, than we had ill lSs3, when the gold standard was legally adopted, and It is evident that the credit of the man who proposes to pay in good money is always better than the credit of the man who proposes to pay in bad money. In order to show that the adoption and maintenance of the gold standard has increased the burden or debtors, 1t would ing indebtedness was contracted under diff ferent monetary system, but also that the