The herald., 1896-08-09

"unredeemable" in anything but itself
| but exercising the function along will
| gold of redeeming the forms OF pape
| that stand for. the~money contemplated
| in the finality of all business transac
| tions. This would be bimetallism.
| BANKERS AS POLITICIANS
| When the bankers as a body enters
| the field of politics In support or the
! money system phheld by the aristocra-
| CIV of two continents, they present most
| inviting spectacle to an impartial critic
Their appearance recalls rather vividly
| their presence some years ago on some
what similar occasion as the proponents
of the money system of England and the
uncompromisng foe of the proposed
money system of America. Having pro-
cured the demonetization OF silver In
the interests of the creditor class, nat
urally the banks fight the restoration OF
| the metal with unabated bitterness. II
| II had not been for the great financial
institutions of New York independent
bimetallism might long ago have been
inaugurated in this country, without
causing a serious ripple on the surface
of affairs. In 1878 the banks showed
their hand in way to leave no doubt
as to what they meant.
THE HIGH PRIEST OF THE GOLD
- ss BUGS
Under the operation of the Bland act
the silver purchased and coined on ac-
count of the government was finding its
way into New York. How the bankers
received 1t is indicated by F. w. Taus-
sig. LID, professor of political econo-
my in Harvard University, and the high
priest of the gold bugs In quoting from
his recent monograph on The Silver Sit
uation In the United States, 1 cannot
be accused of seeking prejudiced source
for proof, Professor Taussig is, of
course, against the free coinage Of sill
yer. He would not be professor of polit-
ical economy in Harvard II the were
not. Harvard is where the millionaires
of our country educate their sons in
the way that they should go to become
true aristocrats. The New York Journal
of the 21st ultimo, noting the adoption
of a college glee at the University Of
Chicago which glorified trusts, went on
to say that "other colleges have refused
to call certain economic teachers lest
donations from Standard oil be thereby
endangered"
This shows the bias in our great seats
of learning Even the Fashionable
preachers are delivering sermons in New
York aginst silver. Professor Taussig
therefore only follows the lead of the
class which he serves when in his book
he upholds to the best of his splendid
ability the cruelty of the gold standard.
The entire preliminary chapters. how
ever, are devoted to a description of how
the banking interests fought the white
metal from the moment of it's appear
ance in the circulation. Here is the Ian
guage with which the second chapter
Is opened:
From the outset the banks, especial
ly in the large cities of the east, fought
shy of the silver money They We're un-
willing to use1arge quantities of 1t, and
still more unwilling to allow large guam
titles to accumulate on their hands. This
no doubt may be ascribed in
part to their close connection with the
creditor class, to whom a lowering of the
standard of value must always be oo-
jectiona ble.'
The objection to these dollars was not
because they were fifty cent dollars. for
silver at that time had only begun to
fall. The objection came primarily from
England. whose financial manipulations
are always in touch with the money
changers of Wall street
SILVER DOLLARS REJECTED
The New York clearing house, accord
ing to the same gold bug authority, re-
fused to receive silver dollars or silver
in settlement of balances.
The bankers did not want silver coined.
and they set out to defeat it's coinage.
Having done everything possible to de-
press the metal. they now point to the
depression as proof of the unsuitable
ness of the metal for monetary uses.
Professor Taussig is obliged to note
that only the banks Of New York and
the east opposed the. new money, those