The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1896-10-05
Gen. walker and Bimetallism.

To the Editor of the indianapolis Journal:
I was much interested in your editorial in
to-day's Journal upon the attitude of Hon.
Francis A. Walker in regard to the ques-
ton of the unlimited coinage of silver in
this country at the ratio of Is to 1. and
in addition / desire to call attention to his
great work on international Bimetallism."
issued last spring. His preface was writ
ten June 10, 1896, and after the issue of free
and unlimited coinage of silver was raised
in this campaign and in this preface he
makes the following pertinent remarks with
direct reference to said issue:
while this little work, as the account of
it's origin shows, was prepared without the
slightest reference to the impending polit-
ical contest in the United States, 1 shall be
glad if it proves to be in any degree IN
structive with reference to the question
which is to underlie that great struggle.
y . . For us to throw ourselves alone into
the breach, simply because We think silver
ought now to be restored. would be a piece
of Quixotism unworthy of the sound prac-
teal sense of our people
In his chapter on .Bimetallism in the
United States he shows that we never had
bimetaIlism under the coinage laws of 1892
and of 1884, for the reason that those laws
cid not provi1e for the coinage of gold and
silver at their true commercial ratios, and
as a bimetallist he criticises those two laws
for that reason. He shows conclusively,
by the experience of other nations, that
the two metals will not circulate together
unless they are coined on the commercial
ratio. He shows that under the coinage
law of 1892 the legal ratio was fixed at IL
to i, when, as a matter of fact, the COM
mercial ratio at that time was 151a to 1,
thus making our gold coin worth ln.rin5lc-
ally more than our silver coin, and that
the necessary and inevitable result was that
no gold was coined for domestic circula-
single silver standard and silver mono
metallism, and that condition continued
until the legal ratio was changed by the
legislation of 1884. He also shows that a
similar mistake was made in the act OF
1884, fixing the legal ratio at 16 to j, while
the commercial ratio was 151a to 1. Under
this law our silver coin was of greater in
trinsic value than our gold coin, and II
instantaneously resulted in a change to a
lism. Therefore Mr.. Walker complains of
our legislation on this subject, and says
mat the reason we old hot nave ollletal7
ism was because we violated the natural
law of finance, commonly known as the
Gresham law. Therefore, as a matter of
course, Mr.. Walker, as a true and sincere
bimetaIlist. is now opposed to free coinage
of gold and silver at the ratio of 16 to !
when the commercial ratio is 50 to /, for
the reason that this would, beyond all
doubt. at once place US upon a single silver
standard and give us silver recommendation.
This is proven by the history of all nations
in which gold and silver bimetallism has
been m Wherever the legal ratio
mas dl1oreQ materially from the CONNER
cial ratio it has uniformly resulted in q
single standard and the sole circulation of
the cheaper coin. l defy anybody to cite
a single historical example to the con-
trary. Mr.. Bryan and his followers pre-
tend to be bimetallists, yet. as a matter of
fact, they are advocating the single stilver
standard and silver monometallism. To
one who is acquainted with the workings of
the natural laws of france their speeches
are grotesque and incoherent. If you will
take the speeches of Mr.. Bryan and, where
the word bimetallism occurs, insert silver
recommendation they will read with some
coherency and reason.
In Senator Thomas II. Benton's great
work, Thirty Years View of United States
Government he discusses in full the his
tory of the legislation of 1884 to 1887. where
by the legal ratio was changed from Is to
l to is to l. In speaking of the beneficent
effect of that legislation ne says: Gold be-
gan to flow into circulation from all chan
nels of commerce. Old chests gave up
currency banished from the country for
thirty years oyerspread the land and gave
industry Therefore the real question in
this campaign is as to whether
or not we shall return to the
silver basis and silver recommendation,
and whether we shall Danish from
our circulation the currency, which our
forefathers welcomed back 50 gladly. Under
Republican legislation we have a financial
system under which, for the first time in
our history, we have an abundance of both
gold and silver money. of our own coinage,
in circulation. Under that system our stock
CT gold COINS has increased from practically
nothing in 1878 to over $500. 600. 900 at the
present time. and we have piled IN in the
government vaults much more of silver coin
than our people cen E~e. end to supplement-
iris we have an abundance of paper money,
and all these are circulating at a parity
of value. Under this system we have a
gre alter per capita circLlationethan we ever
had before, and greater than that of any
other nation in the world, except France.
1t is true that at the present time. on ac-
count of the free-Silyer scare, our gold
coinage is hid away in safety-deC osit vau is,
banks and other PAGES of safety, but when
the scare is over it will again circulate
freely, as ii did four years ago. 1t can do
its owners no good when not in circulation.
But. of course. if MIR. Bryan is elected gold
viii at once go fo a premium. and our gold
coinage will be exported and sold at its
bullion value. Again. I repeat that the
question now before our people ard to be
SC tiled at the next election is rs to whether
or not we shall retain this system of hi
metallism. or shall we substitute in its
place silver recommendation and the single
silver standard?
NEWTON NJ. TAYLOR.
Indianapolis. Oct. p