The Corvallis gazette. [volume] (Corvallis, Or.) 1862-1899, 1896-10-02
PERKINS ON SILVER
The Only Eli Tells the Hollow
Tale Of Free
Silver.
HE SIZES UP THE SITUATION.
Good Reasons Advanced for Being
on the Side of
Gold.

Are you III 1dfOT VI DOtA oiNSA anu
gold?" asked Populist of Eli Perkins.
Certainly" said Eli, ''every civilized
nation uses the two metals-.gold and
nation that has coined as much silver
as gold. We have been rank bimetal-
lists. We have stood by silver too long.
We have coined $625. 100000 worth of
silver and S626, 600, 900 worth of gold"
What have the other great nations
coined?' asked the Populist.
"Why. they have coined less than half
as much as we have. England (the
United Kingdom) has coined and has on
hand $112000,OO0 worth of silver and
$3.50, 100000 in gold; France has $493,-
100000 in silver and $S25,OOO,OO0 in
silver and $625, 100000 in gold; Russia
has only $4,000. 900 in silver and $455,-
100000 in gold"
rhen we have coined about as much
silver as all of them togetherY
"Net quite; These four g great nations
have on hand Ss76, 100000 in silver:
while we, with sc, OOO, 600 people, have
$625. 100000 in silver"
'fWhere is our silver now?' asked the
why. s5os, 900, 900 lies piled up in
paying no interest, and dropping. in
value Carlisle is begging the people to
take it, freight free, but he can only get
$56,000,000 in circulation. The people
the banks, and then the free silver men
jump up and cry, We want more silver!
They say, The poor people are dying
for silver. Coin morev
"And how much of our gold is in cir
culation?"
e-'sWhy. every solitary dollar-s626 0OO,-
900 worth of it. The banks only hold
S122.OOO, ,6OO.''
at all?"
$2OO.00O.OO0 from a few Americans at
government-and we've got to pay it
back. Then Cleveland borrowed &c.,
100000 more from the Rothschilds and
the English at 4 per cent. while our own
and that We've. got to return in gold.
To tell you the honest truth, this nation
has got just $90.0O0OOO. worth of bor-
rowed gold in the treasury. 1t isn't
ours. 1t is borrowed to prevent run
on the treasury, with $100,000,000 in
had bought gold when we coined that
S5OS.000,0O0 worth of silver now lying
idle in the treasury, as England, France,
Germany and Russia did. we. would be
on top today. We wouldn't be the
ibid England and the other nations
stop coming silver?" asked the Popu-
list.
''Of course they did. They rang the
bell and put out the red light against
silver years ago. Since 1890 England
has coined S146, 900, 900 in gold and only
$14000.000 in silver; France has coined
S1S.OO0.000 in gold and not cent of sill
yer. and Germany has coined $4,000
900 in gold and only $4.500.OO0 in silver.
They have been hugging the shore, while
our miners and Pepulists have piloted us
Into deep water.
"How much silver Is there for each
a,erson in the big nations?'
I'VE have SO in silver for each person
in this country. but the people only take
20 cents. They kick IS hack into the
treasury. England has $2.SS per person,
Germany has 4:35 and France S12. but
50 of it lies idle and all silver coinage is
stopped. and their red lantern hangs
OUT
Some nations have free coinage" sug
gested the Populist
''Certainly-and look at their condi-
tion! They are bankrupt. Our silver
dollar is still worth 100 cents in gold
anywhere on earth. But in the free coin
age nations, like Mexico, Japan, China
and India, where free coinage has bank
rupted those nations their dollars are
worth so cents. They have no gold.
Gold fled with free coinage. 1t will do
so again."
'China has no gold at all you say?'
None at all. China has $75O,OOO, 600
worth of 50-cent silver, but no gold:
India has $15O.OOO,OOO in silver, and no
gold: Spain, wrecked by too free coin
age of silver. has S166, 100000 in silver
and S40,OOO,OO0 in gold, and Mexico has
$50o0O,OOO in silver and $5,OOO,o 600 in
.sHow much money to the person cir
.pnlatQS thnSn fron 49,,
sChina has $s.2s, while the United
States has $25; Mexico has SIS; India
1888, and Japan 81. This is poverty for
your
Who suffers from free coinage
thereY'
Everyone. Every man has lost half
his wealth. A man in Japan, Mexico,
China or India who was worth $1,000
thirty years ago is. worth $500 today.
changed, but man who gets 10 cents a
gets 5;
MT MI. ePe Per6ins, my letter Of credit called
got there I found $4,000 to my credit
in Mexican or Japanese dollars, Now
who has ever lost anything by the Amer
lean dollar? Not man. 1t is as GOOD
as gold. Our good government has put
break the cameps back. 1t would bring
us to the level of Mexico and India
What would be the first result of
free coinage?
Cali gold would hide away. Then we
are now exporting annually $4,000. 600
worth of commercial silver and selling
enough to make dollar for 30 cents.
That is 80 to l. The free silyerites
want their silver coined like our coined
silver, 16 to 1, and handed back to them.
With the government paying a double
value for silver expectation would cease,
and the government would pay the min
ers $8O,000,OOO for what they are
tSs 1ow oatDnf senf f0e Would 100000 T1sa
mined $S2,O000OO worth of silver
in 1892. In 1896 we would mine
$4,000 900, with the price dou-
bled. We would have to take 1t and