The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1895-01-16
The DEMOCRATIC PRESS.
Ravenna, Wednesday, Jan. 10. 1898

ANDREW CARNEGIE says in letter to the
Trade Review, that it seems to him that 1895
will be better year for the iron and steel
trade than its predecessors. " But the sword
of Damocles,' he adds, hangs over every
phase of business in the United States. That
sword is of silver. Until the country plants
itself firmly and forever upon the platform
of money of the highest value, no forecast is
worth much. Wenever can have permanent
and genuine prosperity without first settling
the standard of value. When one act of
Congress, or the failure to pass an act may
reduce the value of every dollar invested by
one-half, it is in vain we seek prosperity"
To which his friend Edward Atkinson added
''All the material conditions of this country
conducive to a period of great prosperity
were never greater; nothing stands in the
way but the threat of the degradation of the
standard of value"
While we are no admirers of the Scotch
money maker who has amassed his millions
at the expense of labor and the public gen.
orally, we are of the opinion that truer
words than the above were never uttered.
Stability is an indispensable factor in the
abiding efficacy of any plan or system. 1t
must be based on solid foundation to en-
dure throughout the emergencies and vary
ing conditions that come in a greater or less
degree with each returning year. 1t is safe
to avoid extremes. 1t is plainly apparent
and know to every intelligent person that
the business of the country cannot be done
with gold alone. But is it not also equally
plain that gold is the recognized standard of
L., : &C.
counted the chief of the precious metals
adapted for monetary utility it will remain
SO in accordance with the general law OF
supply and demand? Is it not true that gold
is the least liable to fiuctuation and for this
reason the safest standard? Take the rela-
tive production of gold and silver and it is
readily seen that the commercial values of
the two meals are so widely separated that
an enormous proportionate amount of silver
metal is required to make it the commercial
peer of an ounce of the superior metal. The
use of silver is proper and necessary up to a
certain point beyond that it deranges val
ues, because of its increased ratio in the
comparative amounts of coinage, just as
would follow if the business of the country
was conducted by the use of wheat and pota-
toes as the medium OF exchange, with Wheat
as the basis of values. If under that system
the legitimate market relations of the two
mediums was two to one in favor of wheat
what kind of policy or business sense would
it be to enact law declaring the two medi-
ums to he on par, or even to fix the legal
values between them at one to one and one
half? The business world demands gold as
the prime factor in its monetary system.
Manifestly then, the use of other metals is
legitimate only so far and in such way
as not to interfere with the fixed primal
value of the basic metal that underlies the
system. Men cannot successfully legislate
against the laws of nature or overcome the
instincts of the human mind that leads to the
adoption of basis of values found to be the
most immutable and therefore the safest.