Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1896-10-01
in the world. having the use of both

in the world, having the use of both
gold and silver money?
5. Is there gold standard country
in the world that does not have the
use of both gold and silver money?
6. Is there free-cOinage country
in the world that has ] as much silver
money per capita as the United States?
z. Is there free-coinage country
where labor is paid } as much as it is
in the United States?
s. Is there free-coinage country
in the world that is not two centuries
behind the United States in civiliza-
ton.
To the first question, we reply that,
according to the New York World. a
gold standard authority. there is no
free coinage country in the world. If
this is true, the Reverend Steel's fabric
falls to the ground for want of foun-
dation.
I'd. If there is no free coinage
country in the world, how can there be
one ON a silver basis? We might stop
here and leave the New York World
and the Reverend George Steel to fight
it out.
1t is apparent, from his list of ques-
tions. however, that he has no clear
conception of bimetalism.
For bis Information, as we'll as 9TH
ers of his way of thinking, we state
that it is a matter of Indifference to
bimetalists whether silver and gold
circulate concurrently or not.
The present contention is to fix the
unit in silver, and open the minis to
silver and gold on the same terms, so
that any attempt on the part of the
creditor classes to corner gold or sill
yer, and to thereby enhance the value
of either metal, will prove futile.
| Under such circumstances we will
have the same conditions we had prior
to 1873. The unit will be the 3714-
grain silver dollar, from which all our
monetary calculations will start.
A promise to pay a dollar will be a.
promise to pay 3714 grains of pure
silver, with certain amount of alloy.
and the governments stamp affixed.
Gold will also be coined to any amount
that may be offered in conformity to
this silver unit. From this it will be
seen that bimetalism is joint right of
two metals to- be coined into a money
of final account at fixed ratio and on
the same terms, the coins of each
metal to have the same debt-paying
capacity and the same treatment under
the law.
| Under such conditions, if gold should
appreciate, silver would flow in to
take its place; if silver should appre-
ciate, gold would flow in to fill the
vacuum; so that the creditor classes
could only increase the value of the
debts owing to them by cornering both
metals. This was the condition we
had prior to 1873. and one which the
creditor classes had been trying in one
way or another down to that time
to get rid of, when they succeeded.
Bimetalism is a bar to greed.
We call the attention of the Rever-
end George Steel to the fact that silver
is not treated in any gold standard
country as money of final account;
that gold Is supposed to be back of
each silver piece; If this were not
true there would be no gold standard
country where silver circulates. Gen.
uiue money is money Of final account.
Credit money is not money, but a rep
resentative of it. What gold standard
country is there in which paper money
could not as well perform every func-
ton that silver now performs? The
actual cash per capita of Mexico is
greater to-day than the actual cash
per capita of the United States. We
say this with the treasury reports be-
fore our eyes. Credit money is not
cash.
Labor in Mexico is better paid than
in the United States.
Take the whole wage fund ard the
whole number of our laborers employ
ed on full time, employed on half
time, and not employed at all, and
divide it by that number, and it will
be found that we are not doing so we'll
by our working men as the Mexicans
are by theirs. This becomes more APP
parent when we consider the capacity
of the Mexican as compared with that
of our own working man.
There is no gold standard country
that is not retrograding in the scale of
civilization. There is no silver stan
dard country that is not advancing in
the scale of civilization.
Was the United States behind any
country on earth in civilization and
Christianity at any time prior to 1873
the date of the adoDtiou here of the