The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1895-05-24
THEY ARE VERY
BADLY SCARED.
Continued from Page j.
Can Not Go 1t Alone.

/ OF any OLl6r government, snail pro
vide by law that all the silver bullion
or foreign silver coins, presented at tn
minis by individuals or corporations
foreign or domestic, shall be coined, a
] the public expense, into silver dollars
at the ratio of 16 to l with gold AM
that the coins so made at the publl
expense shall be delivered to the own
ers of the bullion, or foreign silve
coins, as the case may be, and all tn
people of the United States. but noIbod.
else, shall be compelled by law to re
ceive them as dollars Of full value, il
the payment of debts due to them from
their own fellow citizens and from tn
citizens or subjects of other countries
1t is not proposed that the citizens O.
subjects of other countries with whom
our people trade, shall be compelled Il
receive these silver dollars in thei
transactions with US, because that cal
be done only by international agree
ment, and our impatient free coinage
friends declare their determination Il
proceed at once independently Of al
other governments. All who are in
debted to US are, therefore, to have the
privilege Of paying in silver, while al
to whom we shall become indebted are
to have the privilege Of requiring US K
pay in gold.
His Own Opinion.
My own opinion is that after WE
have passed certain limit the more
silver dollars were coined the less they
would be worth, because the imitation
itself would still further diminish theft
purchasing power.
The attempt to coin the two metals
without limit as to amount into full
legal tender money and keep both In
circulation at the same time has been
made by nearly every civilized nation
in the world and has failed in every
one of them. England persisted in the
attempt for nearly 500 years and, not
WIthStanding severe penal statutes
against the expectation of coins or bull
lion, was at last forced to abandon the
effort and adopted the single standard
France, in her efforts to keep the coins
of the two metals in circulation at the
same time, changed the legal ratio be-
tween them more than $50 times in a
single century, and finally, in 1876, find
ing that gold was leaving her and that
in ten years her net imports Of silver
had amounted to $3.50, 1000, 900, stopped
the coinage Of legal tender silver, and
for nineteen years the attempt has
been abandoned in that country. Both
being legal tenders, the least valuable
coin will always be used in making
payments, and will become the meas
ure of value in the exchange of COM
valuable coin would be boarded or sent
out OF the country into a market where
their real value wig be recognized.
The free coinage of silver would not
for long time add anything whatever.
even nominally, to our stock of money:
on the contrary, the immediate effect
of such a policy would be a contrac-
ton to the extent of fully one-third of
our present volume of currency by the
expulsion of about S625, zoo, 900 in gold.
and 1t would take more than fifteen
years to supply it's place with silver
dollars, even If our minis coined moth
ing else.
Would Cause n Scare
While the act providing for the pur-
chase of silver bullion and the issue of
legal tender treasury notes in paymen
for it remained in force, United States
treasury notes were issued to the
amount Of S155, 931, 900, and there were
many people who believed that this
was making material end permanent
addition to the volume of currency; but
during the same time the net exports
or gold from this country amounted to
sos, AIS, 491, so that the real addition of
our circulation accomplished by the
issue of nearly $156, 900 900 Of new notes
was about $50, 100000 during a period Of
more than three years. The mere
would not be able to maintain the
parity of the two metals under the
policy inaugurated by that act, not
only discredited the new treasury notes
themselves, but the whole volume of
our currency, and gold went out about
as fast as the new ndses came in.
While, therefore, it is not at all GER
ain that free coinage would ultimately
make any considerable addition to our
circulation, it is absolutely certain thai
t would give US deprecated and
1uctuating currency, and the question
s whether the producers gf exportable
articles will be benefited or injured
by such result. The prices OF ex-
portable products are fixed in the
sold, in the currency Of that country
recording to its nominal value there.
The establishment of a silver standard
lere could not possibly increase the
price OF cotton or wheat or any other
American product in Liverpool, Paris
n Berlin, whatever effect it might
lave on the nominal price in this
ountry.. The only effect would be that
ne exchange would be doubled and
he pound sterling instead Of being
worth S4.S66 in our currency, as it is
low, would be worth SO. 1872. and when |
ur people wanted to make a remit |
ance to pay a debt abroad they would |
ave TO pay twice as much in our |
money for the same number of pounds
S they pay now, while the foreigner |
Vho wanted to make a remittance IN |
ay a debt here would only nav half
S much in his money for the same
lumber of dollars he pays now.
Look at the Risk.
In addition to the risk of a fall in the
rice of the products abroad, he must
ncur the risk of rise in the price of
liver between the time of his purchase
nd the time when he receives the pro-
eedS OF his sale, for If silver rises in
he meantime he may not get back as
many dollars as he paid out. When
liver is worth so cents per ounce. the
ull1on contained in a silver dollar is
Eorth asa cents; but if the price of sill
er should advance to 62 cents per
unce. the value of the bullion con-
aimed IN a silver dollar would be AS
ents-an increase of nearly Az per
ent. The price of cotton or wheat will
OF rise in proportion to the deprecia-
ion of the dollar in which it is to be
aid; that is, the purchaser for export
MI not pay for it at the rate of AZ
ents for each dollar when silver is
Torth 90 cents an ounce, because he l.
noWS that silver may rise to 81 or 81
sntS per ounce before he can sell the
roduct abroad and get his money foi
!, and he knows that if this happens.
ne gold he receives abroad cannot be
Schanged for as many dollars as he
aid the producer here.
The assertion that fall in prices has
ccurred since 1873. due to the appreci
ton of gold, is so inconsistent with |
ell-known economic and historical !
cts that it seems scarcely worth while
give ii a serious consideration |