Herald and tribune. [volume] (Jonesborough, Tenn.) 1869-current, 1896-10-14

now with a silver dollar as l can with
a gold dollarY
Why won't silver dollars be just as
good under free coinage as they are
now?
These are samplas Of the inquiries
that men are asking all over the coun
try, and these and similar queries have
poured 10 upon Secretary Carlisle in
such quantities that he has deemed it
advisable to answer them by means of
an open letter, which contains a clear,
frank and convincing explanation Of
this matter.
Summed up in a single word, it may
be said that FAITH is at the basis of the
Governments ability to maintain each
of the silver dollars on a par with gold.
The people have faith that each silver
dollar issued by the Government will
purchase exactly as much as a gold dol
lar will. Remove that faith, destroy
that confidence, upset that belief, and
the Government, strong and powerful
as it is, will find itself unable to main
tain the parity between the silver and
the gold dollar, with the inevitable re-
suit that the silver dollar will sink to
its commercial value Of about 90 cents,
while, on the principle that a poor dol.
lar drives out a good one, the gold dol
lar will disappear entirely from circu.
lation.
The people of this country have free
ly received silver dollars because the
faith, the honor and the integrity of
the nation are pledged to keep the sill
yer dollar OF an equality with the gold
dollar, For this reason the silver dol
lar, in spite of its commercial shrink
age, has been readily accepted at its
face value by the people. But if any
doubt arises in the public mind as to
the Governments ability to keep its
pledge, there is at once a sudden with
drawal of gold from circulation either
by foreign creditors or by domestic
hoarders. Such a condition was crea-
ted in 1898 and was responsible for the
panic of that year, which was further
due to the additional fact that the
Government was issuing too many sill
yer dollars under the Bland law, and
too many paper dollars in payment for
silver bars under the Sherman law.
Congress was obliged, therefore, to
stop the issue of this money. But al
ready nearly 5000, 000, 900 in silver dol.
lars and silver notes had been created,
and the Government naturally found
considerable trouble in keeping this
mass of silver, together with $346, 00O,.
900 in greenbacks, on a parity with
gold. AS a result it obliged at times to
purchase gold to keep up the equality
by the issue of bonds.
Now, if the Government had had SO
much difficulty in keeping its silver
and gold dollars exchangeable, with a
comparatively limited issue of silver
dollars and notes, how can it possibly
hope to maintain this parity when oul
minis are open to all the silver of the
world, when the citizens of any nation
on the globe car come to our mintl
and have SO cents worth of silver
metal coined into a silver dollar? Tit
Government would no longer be abl'
to redeem its obligations in gold, be
cause a point would o o be reached
where it would be impossible to ex
change gold for silver dollars ant
their paper representatives, the part.
between the gold and silver dollar
would soon be removed, the equalit,
in the exchangeable value of the coin
would be destroyed, and the countr,
would descend to a silver basis, witt
the result that a silver dollar would
be worth its commercial value an,
nothing more.
This commercial value now amount
to about 90 cents, and, reckoning O.
that basis, the enactment of a law TO
the free and unlimited coinage of 81,
yer at the ratio of 10 to / would be
violation of the explicit obligations Q
the nation, which by an act of Cor
gress has declared it to be 1.-The estat
lished policy of the United States t
maintain the two metals on a part
with each other" 1t would be q cor
fession that the people had lost fait
in the ability and integrity of the Gov
eminent to redeem its promises. ]
would be "a violation of the nipple
and expressed pledges on the faith O
which the people have accepted hur
dreds of millions of these silver dollar
in payment for goods and service q
their full gold value. 1t would be
wholesale reputation on the part c
the Government against its own cit
zens, and the dollars, being full legs
tender, would compel all debtors I
repudiate half their obligations, C,
down pensions, wages, salaries, sa'
ings bank deposits and insurance pol
cies n half, and whelm the who
country in disaster"
These are, in brief, some of the re
SONS why the silver dollar today pass
equal and current with its gold cor
panion, and why the silver dollar wi
sink to its own intrinsic value if o,
mints are opened to the free and u
limited coinage of silver.
Had Him There.