New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1896-08-03
THE SOPHISTRY ABOUT INDIA.

II is one of the most painful duties OF this year
to give silver documents the attention which
they do not deserve The most prctcntious ar
gumcnt for free coinage is based Oh the sup
posed influence of silver depreciation upon
prccs of wheat and cotton in India AMI conse-
oupntly here If silver were remoneiized, IL
is said II would advance TO a parity with goii'
so that rupees would nearly double i'll value,
and consequently the prices which Europe mas
to pay in gold for the products OF lndIa
would advance correspondingly. 1t is true
that gold buys more rupees now than Tor
merly but not true that the same rupees Duy
the same quantity Of wheat There is ample
and fresh testimony as to this, from English
officials. from American consuls ana travellers.
The country is vast. and records necessary Tor
exact statements of the advance in prices are
lacking but It is contrary 10 all known fac's
10 assume that there has been no advance III
the rupee price of wheat
When an entire party bases its argument in
part upon one demonstrated untruth. ii Is nat
ural to infer that its other statements are tii-
reliable. The assumption that the small guam
tity OF wheat which Europe receives from
India has all the time controlled and VIII con-
troll the price Of The far greater quantity when
Europe has 10 buy from the United States is so
absurd that it scarcely needs facts to prove lis
untr,ltb Granted that If all wheat from India
were withdrawn from European markets the
price would rise, it is equally true that II all
American wheat were withdrawn prices would
be affected incomparably more. Railroads III
India have done far more to lower the Euro
pcan cost of wheat from that country. 1t can
easily be proved. than the decline In silver.
and railroads in Russia have also brought INTO
the worlds producing territory vast area on
which but recently wheat could not be grown
with profit, and railroads In Argentina nave
done the same in that country. The world mas
added enormously to its wheat farm, ana
meanwhile has reduced more than half the cost
of transporting from distant farms to Europe
The records show that neither the production
in India nor the shipments to Europe have ma
tcraly increased during recent years when the
price of wheat has been depressed.
Those who are so deaf TO reason that they do
not grant the natural effect Of great increase
in whcat-producing area. and great decrease
in cost Of transportation. let out the truth tnat
they are not looking for legitimate and honest
conclusions, but for pretexts TO help the cause
of the silver millionaires. That the mine-own-
crs. and the men they hire greatly desire
10 force people to buy more silver and to pay
more for it is quite natural. But they
are much too anxious, and so fail to keep
within reach Of the plain common sense
of the millions they wish to influence Ordi-
nary men know that n harvester which does
the work Of many hands can be bought for less
than half the price charged a few years ago,
and that freight from farm 10 ship has been
reduced more than half. and that such changes
must of necessity reduce the cost and price OF
wheat, silver or no silver They know that
demagogue is lying to them who prctends that
these cheapening processes have had no In
fuencc and that silver has done it all.
But of all the false pretences the most impu-
dent is that the price Of silver would be raised
throughout the world by free coinage In this
country and that at the same time our farmers
would get double the present price for their
wheat because paid in cheaper money. One
hardly knows whether to admire the stupen-
dous impudcncc Of the men who set up such a
pretence. or to despise their stupidity in mag
lining that the people will believe 1t. Either the
current dollar will he cheapened, its purchas
ing power cut in half by becoming redeelnabe
in silver only. or it will not If not, the farmer
will get no more for wheat. II cheapened. the
silver which the dollar would then represent
would not be lifted TO parity with gold. The
documents sent out by the silver millionares
assert that silver would go up 10 about 81 20
per ounce and stay there. and also that every
silver mine Of promise would be worked At
all events this silver mine Of promise Is
worked almost 10 death