Hot Springs weekly star. (Hot Springs, S.D.) 1892-1917, 1896-09-11
Foolishness Of the Declaration in
Favor Of Monetary 1n-
dependence
poPuLIsT IDEAS OF FINANCE.
Feeble Attempt to Invoke the Ma.
tons Fathers in Support Of
Free Coinage.

most foolish is the one that we can cre-
ate and maintain monetary system in
dependent of that of other nations. To
make this stroke of idiocy more prepos-
ferrous. the spirit and the example of the
fathers of the republic are invoked to
sustain it. The efforts of the fathers
to bringing the young republic within
the commercial brotherhood of nations,
and nothing was further from their
thoughts than the idea that the progress
Of the country could be facilitated by a
declaration of financial Independence.
mint act, English, French, Spanish and
Portuguese coins were freely circulated
in the United States, and were legal
tender for the payment of debts at GER
taln values fixed by net of Congress. In
ms celebrated Mint Report, Alexander
Hamilton endeavored to coordinate our
Im!onetery system with that of other ma
tionsInot to make any violent departure
from European practice. The only strik-
ing departure that was made in the legis-
latlon framed on Hamilton's recon-
ratio att between gold and silver at IS to I,
and the result of this quickly demon
strated what the Populistic Democrats
call our financial servitude." That is
to say, it showed that while the mints
OF OF France were open to the free coinage
- SyAN ~ tAc lullO VI 1Ozl u i, we COulu
not keep our gold from going where it
would have most value. The difference
was only about 1-3 per cent, but it
was sufficient to drive gold out of the
country. so that in the words of Senator
benton its extinction was complete.
III the establishment of ratio of their
own was strike for financial independ-
ence Of Europe OH the part of the "fa-
TIERS, it was a manifest failure, and
established for the first generation of
tn. the republic 2 regime of silver mono
least what they desired; in fact, so little
We're. they impressed by the necessity for
keeping silver as Il part of the circula-
ton that the coinage of silver dollars
was suspended by executive order in
least: never resumed. That is to say,
the fathers We're so determined to get
back the gold that for thirty years they
had been shunting into European mints
that they fixed Il new ratio, which of
fered : per p,, Gent. more to the possessor
France or Holland. That the bullion in
the silver dollar thus became more valua-
bic than the bullion in the gold dollar did
not. trouble them much. for they, appar-
emily. did not want the silver dollar
being sufficient for their wants-and all
the subsequent coinage of that much
talked-of but little known piece. 1.-THE
dollar of the fathers" was for export to
the East. Here. again, if monetary in
dependence was what they are aiming
at. the result was failure, for Europe
diverted into its own mints the silver
of the United States as peremptoriy as
it had done the gold, for the simple rea-
son that no law could compel the own
er of bullion not to take it where he
got most for it in returned coins.
But the Populists are determined to
have can economic and financial system
which shall make us masters of our own
affairs" Among the prelimnarics of
such a condition of things. they are Mt
least logical enough to recognize the ne
cessity of interfering with the freedom
of private contract. That was cure
for financial lameness not thought of by
the fathers of the republic, and is one
generally deemed to be contrary to the
letter and spirit of the constitution which
they framed. But the transformation of
the Democrat into the Populist seems,
among other changes, to work q surpris-
ing Indifference to the value of the safe
guards of the constitution. From old
habit. there is the customary profession
of allegiance to s'those great essential
which our institutions are founded" only
to be followed by series of propositions
destructive alike of the principles and
institutions. On whatever other points
the makers of the constitution may have
differed. they were entirely Mt one as to
the obligation both of nations and of in
dividuals to make an honest provision
for paying their debts.-Rochester Post.