The record-union., 1896-12-17

greatly aid the Cuban cause It re-
mains to be seen whethey this can be
done.
The Superintendent Of the United
States Mint announces that a large
number cf spurious silver dollars are
in circulation, of recent make. They
contain within 5 cents as much silver
as the legal tender dollar, and so closely
resemble the legal coin that 1t is with
the utmost difficulty that experts can
distinguish them from genuine dollars.
They have the necessary weight, color,
milling and size, and the impressions
are perfect copies Of the faces of the
true dollar. We have no disposition
whatever to stir a question of the late
campaign at this time, but it cannot
be ignored that here is a case Of inter-
est where the intrinsic value of coin
cuts a. most important figure. Who
ever discovers that he has one Of the
bogus dollars, and is honest enough
to refuse to pass it, can get out of it
just 4S cents of pure silver, though
it cost him 100 cents. But If he has
genuine dollar which contains only
5 cents more Of pure silver, it is worth
to the holder 100 cents. If gold
coin Is initiated, however, so closely as
is the silver dollar, the counterfeiter
will make nothing, and hence the liabil-
ity of the gold coin to imitation is very
small. For if the maker Of the spurt-
Gus gold coin puts into it as much Of
gold in proportion as he does Of
pure silver into the bogus silver
coin, he makes too small a profit to
warrant the risk he takes and the
labor he puts into his illegal business.
If he puts so much less gold into the
bogus coin as will insure him good
profit. then the cheat Is easily detect
ed, because gold is heavier than any
metal he can profitably use to make
a good imitation In color and weight.
It is now suggested that some sort Of
device be stamped upon the original
dollar that will be known only to the
thus enable them to protect the United
States from imposition. But what Of
the innocent holders? They have, it is
admitted, no easy way at hand of dis
tinguishing the bogus from the genuine
coin. When they take their silver at
the last to the Government, SO much
as is bogus they must suffer dead loss
upon. Here is a case, then, in which
the average citizen is placed at a de-
oided disadvantage and at present no
way can be found out Of it for him.
On all sides the Record Unions 81 ex-
pose Of the sQuandering Of the peoples
money ds commended. Our contempo-
raries all concede that the figures and
facts We have presented are a.Stound-
ing. Here it is, plain before them, but
about it? Is 1t all to end in taIk2 Is
there to be nothing come Of it all but
the Record Union's'' exposure? We
have shown that while in other States
Of the Union with three and five times
the population Of California, and larger
Legislatures, too, the percentage of at
taches to legislators is from n to 90
per cent; in California, with 12O leg
islators, there are 31S attaches, or 265
per cent Is it any wonder that amaze
ment is written alongside of protest in
the columns Of our contemporaries?
The citrus fair now open at Fresno
proves anew that the cultivation of cit
rus fruits is not confined to very circuIn-
scribed districts in California, but that
very much larger areas more widely
distributed than was once supposed are
adapted to this order Of horticulture.
We congratulate the people Of the
Fresno section on the demonstration
made of the capacity Of the more south
ern sections Of the San Joaquin Valley
and foothil region for the successful
raising Of the orange, the lemon and
kindred products.
AHucrNuNTc