Mexico weekly ledger., 1895-08-01

largest use of silver consistent will
the integrity of the gold standard. ant
to this end, We would gladly supper
a law eliminating from our circulation
all money below the denomination O
$40 except silver and silver certih
Gates, which, we believe, would enabl,
the country to coin very soon all tn,
bullion piled up in the Treasury and
absorb it in our circulation.
lprefer the gold standard, because
it il only in the gold countries where
a sufficient volume of currency is t.
be found to answer the purposes O.
trade and commerce. Our PopuIist,
and free silver friends constantly
clamor for more money, and if there
is any one idea to which a Populist il
more welded than every other it il
the necessity of a large per capita cir.
culation. Yet the advocates of free
silver are pursuing a policy which, il
carried out, would Inevitably drive
| gold ont and reduce very largely oul
| PtA Astltliat ttiltttiotis luCf Ihtc III
idea that you must have a large vol.
ume of money before you can have
agricultural, industrial and CONNER
cial prosperity, when the truth is that
prosperity must precede, and not fol,
low, an increase in the volume of cur.
rency. The world, linked together by
railroads, steamships and telegraphy
is N great commercial beehive, anG
money seeks those localities where
it is most needed. 1t GIBBS and flows
like the tides of the sea. Where there
is thrift and enterprise there it goes
and it recedes from localities where
stagnation prevails.
Our W great country has a pei
capita circulation of about S24 and this
volume of money flows in the direc-
ton where there is the greatest need
of it. During q time of panic and
financial distress it goes into retire
ment and remains there until return
ing prosperity calls it forth from it,
hiding place. 1t is an automatic doe
trine with all sound political econo-
mists that commercial prosperity and
activity can only exist in a country
which is blessed with a safe, sound
and stable currency.
Prosperity prevails in no country
which depends on silver for its stand
ard, because silver itself is constantly
vacillating in value, and can only be
the basis of a vacillating and cheap
paper money. Hence it is there is not
to be found M silver country on the
globe which has as much as So per
capita of silver in circulation, while
our W country has more than SO. A
comparison of Mexico, the most pros
porous silver country, with our own.
teaches a most profitable lesson.
We had On Augest 10, 1898, in circu-
lation 1901 in gold, S9.1s in silver and
S6.15 in paper, making q total pei
capita circulation of S24.34, whereas
Mexico had 43 cents in gold, S4.31 in
silver and II cents in paper money,
making Il total per capita circulation
of Si.91, and of this the gold was not
used as money. An equally striking
comparison might be instituted be-
tween the other gold and silver coun-
tries, demonstrating that gold is the
standard wherever commerce flour
ishes and prosperity prevails.
| prefer the gold standard for an
other and Il greater reason. From the
hour that God decreed man should
earn his living by the sweat of his
brow labor has been the foundation
on which the superstructure of human
achievements has been builded. When
! look into the faces of the men who
hold the pillow, the ak and the hoe;
when | look into the faces of the men
| who mold the brick, carve the stone
and hammer the iron; when / look in
to the faces of the men who erect the
houses, build the ships and construct
the railroads; when | look into the
faces of the men who manipulate and
operate all the marvellous machinery
which man has invented for the pur-
poses of locomotion, for the transmits
sion of intelligence, and for the pro-
duction of the necessaries and luxuries
of life, / realize that they are the true
soldiers of civilization, keeping steI
in the grand march of progress a:
they toll for the sustenance and com.
fort for those dependent on them. Al
last a days work is the true unit o.
value. How much will it buy? How
much food? How much clothing
How much of all the necessaries ant
comforts of life? Show me that coun'
try where n days work will buy the
most, and / will show you that coun,
try where the greatest happiness ant
prosperity prevails and the highest
civilization has been attained.
So profoundly am l impressed will
this truth that some two months ago
went to the Department of State ant
requested the lamented Gresham tt
put experts to work on the consular
reports from all the countries of the
world, making up a statement show
ing the weekly wages paid labor in
each. l have that statement. Il
teaches a lesson which should go home
10 every laboring man. l assert, with
out fear of successful contradiction
that there is not a silver STANDARD
country on the globe where laborins
men are paid wages sufficient to sup
port them in comfort and independ
ence. The disparity between tn,
wages paid skilled labor is great, bu
the disparity between the wages pai'
unskilled labor Is greater, showing
that the poor are in a state of destitu
ton in the silver standard countrie
which is pitiable, and that it cuts OF
all opportunity for the improvement
of their condition. A laboring man /
the United States gets for a days worl
nearly twice as much in gold as
laboring man in Mexico gets in silver
and the purchasing power of Ameri
can money is nearly twice as great a
that of Mexico. Draw the compari
son between England and Russia, o
even between heather Turkey, whicI
is a gold country, and heather China
which is a silver country, and you wi
find the same result, all of which goe