Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1895-05-16
MORTON AND SILVER.
The Secretary Of Agriculture r.
sents Coloradoan Criticism.

ae Quotes History, Acts Of Congress and
Orders to Mint Directors In Rela-
tion to the Coinage of
silver Dollars-
WARRINGTON, May 8. - Secretary
Morton has written a letter to James
A. Cherry, of Denver, Col, in reply to
a letter from that gentleman criticising
some statements in the interview with
the secretary of agriculture, printed q
couple of weeks ago, which caused SO
much comment. It is as follows:
From your letter OF April q. 1898. it appears
that you and perfectly agree on the funda-
mental point. namely. that demand and sup
ply tnexorably regulate all values whatsoever,
at all times and In all places At what points
do we begin to separate from each other and
then so on to conclusions so utterly diverse?
These points are only two-the first historical
and the second logical
You assume certain propositions to be true
of silver, which are not historically true at all,
but quite the reverse of true. You say, for in
stance: Until 1873 the chief use Of silver was
for coinage. It had other uses, but the demand
for it for coinage purposes was steady and
constant
Son this point you have been monstrously
nisinformed The first federal coins Of silver
were minted in 1zs4. and Of gold in I7sa. Their
ratio. as recommended by Alexander Hamil-
ton. and fixed by an act of congress, was ISL.
1t was hoped thus to keep the two metals in
equilibrium in coinage. But they would not
come in equilibrium at that rate: still less
would they stay there.
Only 312 dollar pieces were coined at the
American mint in the entire year of 1905. be-
cause the silver was worth more out Of the
coinage than in it and worth more for export
than for domestic What W. m
ter with those silver dollars? Nothing, only
they were too valuable. May I. 1905. there
came an order from President Jefferson to the
director Of the mint at Philadelphia, "that all
the silver to be coined at mints shall be of
small denominations. so that the value Of the
largest pieces shall not exceed half a dollar
The reason given by the president for this
order was that considerable purchases have
been made Of dollars coined at the mint for the
purpose of exporting them and that it is prob
able that further purchases and expectations
will be made
THE coinage Of silver dollars, thus au-
thoritatively suspended at the American mint,
was not resumed there for thirty years. In
these few facts, which are official and unques-
SiOnablc. behold the beauties and advantages
of double standard; of the unlimited coinage
of both metals in an equal and constant ratio
with each other; of two yardstocks of different
lengths to measure cloth by in the same mar
ket.
Stantially put at to Is. But this going
too far in the opposite direction. Gold was
not worth Is in silver in the markets Of
Europe Consequently the international
current of the metals was for a time re-
versed. silver passing in preference abroad
to hquidate the balances of trade and gold
coming in small quantities TO the United
states, where it was more than per cent.
dearer in silver than in Europe. By 1853 the
immense disadvantages of a double standard
x,a ,Ioi,
congress wisely determined to abandon the ut
serly futile attempts to secure the parity of
the two metals, and to make gold the legal
tender for debts, except for sums Of FIVE dol
lars and under. In the second place. Mr.. Cher
~. as an instance OF a historical assumption
contrary to facts and natural inferences allow
me respectfully to call your attention to the
use, in common with many Of the bimetalliStS,
so-cailed. of the date 1873 as the time 'demone-
tization OF silver" Unless am mistaken the
Silveredoiiar is not mentioned at all, one way,
or the other. in the act of 1873 All the de-
monetization Of silver, as understand 1t, that
ever came about in this country. happened in
the law Of 1858, after open and full discussion,
and practically with unanimity, when congress
introduced the subsidiary silver coinage, of
which nominal dollars worth weighed SOL
Per cent. less than the silver dollar; and also
took away the legal-tender quality of all silver
in payment Of debts Of over 8 in amount.
You employ over and over again in your
that enter into the speech OF argumentative
men everywhere. namely, putting cause into
the place Of effect, and assuming that because
one thing happened after another in point Of
time. therefore it was the result OF that other.
Let us look candidly at the instances Of
these, known almost at random. You ask
What creates demandT and answer, use"
ask, in my turn, What creates useT and an
swer. demand Why is it that there is SO lit
tie use OF silver dollars in this country to-day.
h i1af r,aro yv,;II
lying idle? answer confidently because there
is no adequate demand for them. Have you
not innocently but badly mixed up cause and
effect in this case? Demand, in the common
sense. is nothing but desire for something on
the part OF one man. coupled with his willing
ness to pay something for it. satisfactory to
the other. who owns It..
o"USe of that thing. no matter what it is only
follows the demand for it. You have help
lessly put the cart before the horse. What is
the sense Of clamoring still for unlimited
coinage when the treasury can not get ria by
hook or crook, Of that already coined and ly-
ing in useless heaps' They are well minted,
of just weight, nine-tenths fine, are legal ten
der for all debts and bear the legend: In God
We Trust"
What ais them? Ianswer. and so must YOU
on reflection. there is no demand for them,
and therefore no use for them. What more
can the law do for them.
1T may be, my dear sir. that in your study of
part. the momentous fact that all but a more
fraction OF the worlds commerce is mediated
by instruments OF credit and not by metallic
money at all, whether OF gold or OF silver. and
that by far the most essential service of money
in this age Of the world is to furnish q steady
measure
Mr.. Eckels. the present comptroller of the
currency. has made it probable by careful in
QuirieS instituted through his department that
about 50 per cent of the retail business .of
this country is achieved by means of checks
drawn on local banks and cleared by the banks
with very little use OF coins The relative
employment OF these instruments of credit is
constantly increasing through the multiplied
ton OF banks and otherwise. and. of course
also the quantity Of coin money required to do
the business Of the world, or Of any advanced
country in the world, is steadily decreasing
relative to the business DONE"
Sent . Bullet Through His Head.
DENVER, Col, May 9.-Hugh Cahill, a
keeper of hotel on Larimer street.
committed suicide by sending a bullet
through his head. Worry over his
business depression is given as the
cause.
STAGE COACH HELD UP.
The Wells-FarGO Treasure Box Looted
OF Money and Jewelry.
CALIsroeA, CAL, May 9.-The stage
coach running between this place and
Clear Lake was held up and robbed
Tuesday afternoon by two masked
men who secured about 81, 200 cash and