Democratic Northwest and Henry County news. [volume] (Napoleon, O. [Ohio]) 1894-1905, 1895-12-12

branches In such localities as would |
serve the people. 90 regulated and re-
strained as TO secure their safe and |
conservative control and management. |
In the present stage of our difficulty |
4 Is not easy to understand how the /
amount OF our revenue receipts direct |
" Affects II. The important question |
% not the quantity Of money received |
In revenue payments but the kind Of |
money We maintain and our ability to |
continue In sound financial condition. |
We are considering the governments |
holdings of gold as related to the |
soundneSs OF our money and as Affect |
Ing our national credit and monetary |
strength.
In our present predlcament no gold |
Is received by the government in pay
ment OF revenue charges, nor would |
there be IL the revenues were increased. |
The receipts Of the treasury, when not |
in silver certificates. consist Of United |
States notes and treasury notes is
sued for silver purchases.
IL 1t Is said that the notes II held by |
the government can be used to obtain |
gold for our reserve, the answer is easy. |
The people draw gold from the treasury
on demand upon United States notes
ana treasury notes, but the proposition
that the treasury can draw gold from
the people upon them would be regard
ed In these days with wonder and
amusement. And even II this could be
done. there Is nothing to prevent those
thus parting with their gold from re-
gaining 1t the next day or the next
hour by the presentation of the notes
they received In exchange for 1t.
Private holders of gold unlike the
government, having no parity to main
tam, would not be restrained from
making the best bargain possible when
they furnished gold for the treasury;
but the moment the secretary of the
treasury bought gold on any terms
above par he would establish a general
and universal premium upon it, thus
breaking down the parity between gold
and silver which the government is
pledged to maintain and opening the
way to new and serious complications.
1t Is neither unfair nor unjust to
charge large share of our present
financial perplexities and dangers to
the operation of the laws of 1878 and
1880 compelling the purchase of silver
by the government, which not only
furnished a new treasury obligation
upon which its gold could be with
drawn, but so Increased the fear of an
overwhelming flood of silver and
forced descent to silver payments that
even the repeal Of these laws did not
entirely cure the evils of their exist
ence.
FREE SILVER COINAGE.
While have endeavored to make a
plain statement Of the disordered con-
dition OF our currency and the present
dangers mehacing our prosperity, and
to suggest a way which leads to a safer
financial system. have constantly had
In mind the fact that many of my
countrymen, whose sincerity I do not
doubt. insist that the cure for the
Ills now threatening us may be found
IN the single and simple remedy of
the free coinage of silver.
They. contend that our mints shall
be at once thrown open to the free,
unlimited and Independent coinage of
both gold and silver dollars of full
legal tender quality, regardless of the
action Of amy other government and
in full view of the fact that the ratio
between the metals which they suggest
calls for one hundred cents worth of
gold In the gold dollar at the present
standard and only fifty cents In in.
trinsic worth of silver in the silver
dollar.
Those who believe that our inde-
pendent free coinage of silver at an
artificial ratio with gold of 16 to /
would restore the parity between the
metals and consequently between the
coins oppose an unsupported and i'm
probable theory to the general belief
and practice of other nations, and to
the teaching of the wiseSt statesmen
an economists Of the world. both in
the past and present, and what is far
more conclusive, they run counter to
our own actual experiences. Every one
who receives fixed salary and every
worker for wages would find the dollar
in his hand ruthlessly scaled down to
the point OF bitter disappointment If
not to pinching privation. A change
In our standard to silver n.ono-metal-
lism would bring en- a, collapse Of the
entire system of credit All history
warns us against rash experiments
which threaten violent changes in our
monetary standard and the degrada-
ton Of our currency.
Concurrent circulation of both metals
in our coinage, are certainly reckoning
from cloudy standpoint. Our present
standard of value is the standard of the
civilized world and permits the only
btmetalllism row possible, or at least
that Is within the independent reach
of any single nation, however power
full that Latlon may be. Wnila the
standard of gold as g. standard is
steadied by almost universal CONNER
cial and business use, it does not des-
pise silver nor seek it's banishmant
there is ut its side in free and unaues-
toned circulation a volume of silver
currency sometimes equaling and some
times even exceeding it in amount. both
maintained at parity Notwithstanding
depreciation or fluctuat ton in the
intrinsic value of silver
There Is vast difference between a
standard; q value and currency for
monetary"~T The standard must nee
essary be fl and certain. The cur
rency may be in divers forms and of
various kinds. No silver standard
country has gold currency in circu-
lation; but an enlightened and wise
system of finance secures the benefits
of both gold and silver as currency and
circulating mediums by keeping the
standard stable and all other currency
at par with it.
/ have ventured to expires myself on
this subject with earnestnes and plain
ness of speech because l cannot rid
myself of the belief that there Turks
in the proposition for the free coinage
of silver, so strongly approved and so
enthusiastically advocated by a multi
tude of my countrymen, a serious
menace to our prosperity.
In conclusion 1 especially entreat the
peoples representatives in the Ioon-
gress, who are charged with the re-
sponsibilty Of inaugurating measures
for the saf ty and prosperity of our
common country, to promptly and eff
fectively consider the Ills of our crit
ical financial plight. have suggested
a remedy which my judgment ap-
proves.
desire, however, to assure the con-
gress that am prepared to cooperate
with them in perfecting any other
measure promising thorough and prac-
tical relief, and that I will gladly labor
with them In every patriotic endeavor
to further the interests and guard the
welfare of our countrymen, whom, in
our respective places Of duty we have
undertaken to serve.
GROVER CLEVELAND.