The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-10-13
neal Fairly win the People.


/ Picayune. to the effect that the wild
speeches on the free coinage Of silver in
Mississippi and Georgia have not infiu-
enced the price Of cotton. says:
/ And il may be asserted with equal con-
1 fidence that the rise in the price Of cotton
owes nothing whatever to the gold stand
/ ard. or the reputed better times. We want
| to see high priced cotton, and we want 10
/ see better times, but il g. well always to
| deal fairly with the people The price Of
cotton owes nothing whatever to the gold
| standard, and has not been brought about
I by any talk Of prosperity and good times
/ Cotton has brought high price Just for
| the same reason that gold does. that there
Is not enough of it TO go around, or II Is
feared that such is the case.
VIII the Augusta Chronicle kindly in
form its readers whether it knows Of any
body who has said that the rise in the
price of cotton owes something TO the gold
standard? If It does know such a person
will it give his name? If it doesn't know
any such person will it please explain what
it means by its assertion that the rise
in the price of cotton owes nothing what
ever to the gold standard?" We can hard
ly believe that the Chronicle is trying to
build up a reputation for wisdom by de-
nying something that, so far as we know,
nobody has ever asserted. Those who IA
vor the gold standard have not asserted,
and do not assert, that the gold standard
has anything to do with the price of cot
ton. They have always contended, and still
contend. that the rise in the price is due
to the prospective short supply. Prices
are regulated by the demand and supply.
But what was the contention of the sill
verites when cotton was bringing only 3
cents a pound? Was Il not that the low
price was caused by the fact that our
mints were closed to the free and unlimited
coinage of silver and that the only way
to bring about an increase in the price
was to make the coinage of silver free
and unlimited? That was their contention,
and now that they see they were wrong
they are trying to break the force of their
mistake by declaring that the gold stand
ard has had nothing to do with the rise
in the price of cotton-sOmething that no
body ever asserted.
The Chronicle says sit is we'll always to
deal fairly with the people," We would
like to ask il If it thinks what it says
about the gold standard having nothing
to do with the price of cotton is dealing
fairly with the people" To our way of
thinking it looks like an effort to hide a
stupendous blunder.
There is another thing the Chronicle
says to which we would like to direct at
tention. 1t says: Cotton has brought a
high price just for the same reason that
gold does, that there is not enough of it
to go around or it is feared that such is
the case" Where does the Chronicle get
its information that there is any scarcity
or prospective scarcity of gold? 1t is easy
enough to make an assertion. but what
we want are facts. The market value of
cotton is measured in gold. and the price
of cotton has advanced. Does that indicate
that the price of gold is higher than It
was when cotton was cents a pound?
we hardly think it does.
Does the Chronicle mean to say that the
production of gold is decreasing? What
are the facts? Since 1887 the production of
gold has been steadily increasing. In that
year it was $1O5 74.OOO. Last year
it was S179 s65, 800. and this year
it is likely to reach $780,
OOO,O 900. The director of the mint, in his last
annual report, says that the output of
gold for 1895 will equal the annual output
Of both gold and silver for the years inn
mediately preceding the beginning of the
depreciation of silver. Does this look as
if gold was becoming scarcer and dearer?
If the Chronicle is anxious to treat the
people fairly it ought to deal more in facts
and less in assertions.
1t seems to us that the Chronicle is not
yet ready to admit that the low price of
silver is due to the overproduction of that
metal But why shouldn't 1t admit 1t? In
speaking of cotton it says that the price
| of that article is controlled by the sup
ply, the price falling in proportion as the
supply exceeds the demand. The same
rule applies in the case of silver In 1881
the total output of silver in the world was
sc, 124 900 ounces, and in 1898 it reached the
enormous amount of 16l.77e,OOO ounces
Here is the explanation of the low price
of silver-over production.
If the Chronicle wants to be entirely
| fair with the people 1t will tell them that
there is no authority for the statement
that there has been falling off IN the
| production of gold, and hence an advance
in the commercial value of it, and it will
also tell them that there is authority fol
the statement that there has been an over
production of silver and consequently 6
decline in the commercial value of 1t.
If the agitators will let the silver ques
ton alone 1t will gradually settle itself
The output of gold is steadily increasing
and the output of silver is decreasing, and
consequently the price of silver is rising
In the course of time 16 ounces of silver
will approximate in value 1 ounce of gold
but the time will never come when fol
any considerable period 16 ounces of sill
yer will have the same commercial value
as one ounce of gold.