The copper country evening news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 18??-1907, 1896-10-10
IN A SILVER COUNTRY
Condition of the Laborer and
Business in a Land Where
Free Coinage Exists.
WHAT THE MExICANS SAY
. Ren,e,eotatiye Of the St LOUIS
Globe-Oemocrat Tells What
He Saw

a., IN Mexico us an ideal country
- tho free coinage of silver had
- cvcryonc happy. con,ented and pros
n,rons. there has been much written D!
mo, who had lived there and others
rrbc reports, which were not hatterihs
% tho country, were denied 10y the sil-
,cr advocates and branded as lies. The
slvcrites stoutly maintained that II Ia
bor was as well employed here rs III
Mexico the great question OF Wha' 10 uo
,Yi,b The moor would he solved as there
,,onld he no poor. They claimed that
I'm thot country there was no Wall street
that food, clothing and the neecssitics
of lno were cheaper; that the nation
was prospering as never hnu pciorc,
and An on account Of the free coinage
of silver.
The ST. Louis Globe Democrat. wish
ing 10 be Just la the matter. decided
10 send representative there VINO WOULD
reoort what he saw and learned. with
out regard as TO how the reports would
affect the political situation. The man
was one on whom the paper couiu uc-
pend TO tell the truth.
Extracts from some of the letters
which throw some light on the subject
Of free silvcr and its effects are printed
below:
Prices uepend on Foreign tschange.
Pirates on the high seas could hard
I, be- more dangerous menace 10 com
nCrcc between -natiOnS than TINS nnr'ua-
,ion OF exchange between countries on
Inherent standards. Outside of II few
,noney-changerS at coast ports. business
mon Of tho states hardly notice from
week 10 week tl,c variations in exchange
between their country and Europe. But
in tho business relations between tue
Emitted states and Mexico the changing
difference between the STANDARDS Is
matter of hourly concern.
"What's exchange today: goes with
every mornings salutation between her-
chants I'm Monterey.
"Silypr's M or ',siycr's down Is the
commercial news of FIRST importancc.
The shrewd representative OF Gan
Antonio (TeX.) jobbing house on his way
back 10 the states from his midsummer
round of the cities of Mexico said:
"IIere's variation of sc between the
cold standard Of the states and the silver
standard OF Mexico within two weeks
How is n man going 10 sell goods or tic
any business between the countries whei
he has got to make allowances for such
fluctuations. When | sell bill OF goods
TO a Mexican merchant OH SIX months
time I've got to figure the prices higl
enough 20 save my house in the EVEN
that silver drops by one of those violcn
fluctuations before the day of settlement
comes The merchant has got 10 mari
the retail prices on a margin suihclch
10 protect him against possible change
And so American goods must Toe sold u
Mexico at two margins above iegitlinat
profits in order to protect the American
iobber and the Mexican storckecpe
against these rapid up and down move
mcnts of the standards. The conditio,,,
is simply ruinous to trade. People VII
not buy when prices are raised on them
My house may make Il tremendous prom
or barely save itself in sale OF goods o.
six months time. That isn't the way I
do business. You might as well have
Chinese wall between two countries Il
these fluctuations. And this is what W
will have on vastly greater scale
the United States goes 10 a silver stand
ard and Great Britain and the Europea
nations continue the gold standard.
know what this thing Of two standard
means between Mexico and the state;
and ! don't want TO see il in our TRAD
with Great Britain and Europe
A Dollars worth of Labor.
\ dollar worth 30 cents commands III
same labor in Mexico now that dollo
worth a dollar did ten or twenty yeai
ago. Right there is the cornerstone
which prosperity in this silver country
building. That is what makes 1t no
profitable to work mines with ores wort
81 and IS. Mexican money. ton. Tn;
condition of labor brings the cost of mil
ing and carrying out the ore down TO
ton. That kind OF labor built an
operates the cables. which take the pla'
of thousands of burro trains, at q fra
ton Of the cost for like construction al
operation in the States. Gables have T
duccd the cost OF conveying ore from u
mine to the railroad. two miles down ii
mountain, 10 ~ cents and 30 cents n Ia
This labor enables railroads to haul or
nj from 30 cents to 81 u ton. IL hgur
a
coke from the gulf and the coal from q
border. And. finally. IL enables 81
shelters TO make an unrrccedentcdly 10
rate of 81 a ton for treatment of OF
~ every step, from the first blow
the pick in the mine to the landing Of q
base bullion into molds at the furnac
thls hNity of wages on the basis Of
dollar deprecated 60 onchalf its value
The chief factor which insures the prot
What matters IL If silver goes down If
commands just as much labor rs ev,
and II the lead IN the bullion can 81
be sold for gold? The smeltcrs of Mc'
60 buy ore from the mine owners. al
pay a Mexican dollar an ounce for q
silver they get out of IL. They paid Vi
several years ago. when silver was wor
more than il * now. They still pay
Eeccntly, under the importation of col
petition, while silver was dropping
rapidly In the United States. some
the shelters of Mexico advanced (
price they allowed the mine owners {
silver. They are now paying under sol
contracts S1.OG in Mexican money
every ounce Of silver found in the ore
Today the matchmaking plant +,
miles out Of Monterey. on the Miner
railroad, is shipping 100000 paving bri
10 San Antonio. In Texas. II does Il
and pays the nd valorcm duty Of - \
d. cent. which the Wilson tariff leyics
brick importations. The contract
this brick shipment was obtained
San Antonio because this company y
m the lowest aud best Of twcnty-cie
bids. The Monterey company cnjo
me possession of excellent clay. but III
isn't what enables il 10 send brick 10 I
United States at profit. II outbid I
twenty-scven American brick-maki
companies because il sells brick
American money. worth 100 cents
gold. and hires good labor for Mcxic
money. worth 80 cents in gold III
company Is paving three miles Of Mon
rey streets with brick. displacing
cobblcstones of time immemoral.
put down a block Of the brick paving
nm object lesson. and the governor. q,
bernardo Reyes. with keen pcrcepti