The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1896-08-28
puncturing q Fallacy.

functurln& q FalIaCy.
One of the principal fallacies which
have given birth to the free silver move
| ment is thus worded by Colorado
gentleman who imagines that his prop
osition is perfectly honorable and hon
est:
You speak of dishonesty, reputation
and morals. You speak of paying debts
with 53-cent dollars, and nothing about
| exacting payment in lOO-cent dollars. Il
| not one as bad as the other? Let me il
lustrate: Fourteen years ago you loaned
Mr.. Il. $1,000. Silver was worth Sl2O IN
ounce, wheat 81 per bushe, hay $l2 ton.
You people destroyed the last prop of sill
Yer in '93, absolutely made a commodity
of every ounce of silver that did not bear
the stamp of the United States mint, de-
stroyed one of the money metals of re-
demption that has been in existence since
the earliest knowledge of the human race.
Now that Mr.. b. has to pay, his wheat
will fetch 80 cents a bushel and his hay So
a ton. If you get Sl,5OO for your $1,000 you
can buy with 1t more than in "a you could
with the latter sum. AS you money lend
ers forced this condition upon the people
are you not bound in honesty and in NOR
ais to remit one e-half of the debt or return
to the condition of finance which you de-
stroyed?
To these fallacious questions the
Philadelphia Press makes dignifed but
effective reply by saying that silver has
fallen and wheat has fallen in recent
years from like but independent causes.
the chief of which is over-production.
Since 1873 the production of silver has
been continually increasing and it's price
as steadily declining. One country af-
ter another has been obliged to protect
by closing its mints to that metal. Even
India, that ancient sink of silver had
to stop taking it, and now not a coun-
try in the world which uses any gold
in its currency allows the free coinage
of silver. Nevertheless. the production
Of silver is kept up in increasing guam
titles, last years product being larger
than it ever was before in any year in
the worlds history. The Rocky Noun
tain system seems to contain inexhaus-
tible stores of the white metal, and the
improved processes of mining it make it
possible to keep the mines running at a
profit, even with silver at sixty-six
cents an ounce. This does not pay all
the mines, and some have had to close.
If it were otherwise we would be over
whelmed with a supply of metal al
for it.
1t Is the same way with wheat. Our
farmers have been producing too much
of it and it has become a drug in the
market. There is no mystery about this
and no reason in it for revolution or re-
pudiation. In 1875 there were 26,3Sl. .5l2
acres of wheat cultivated in this coun-
try; in 1891 there were 1896, S97, an in
crease of so per cent. The yield in 1875
was 292 10000 bushels, a heavy increase
over preceding years. In 1891 the yield
was Gil. 100000. Last year, with a greatly
reduced acreage and partial crop fall
ure, the yield was 467 100000 bushels. In
dia, Argentina, Russia and Australia
have simultaneously largely increased
their wheat production. The total wheat
crop of the world was 1.50O. 1000, 900 bu-
shells in 1876. In 1889 it had grown to
2.194 900. 600 bushels. In 1894 it was g.
522, 900, 900 bushels and considerably larg-
er in 1895.
The official table showing the varia-
tions in the price of silver and wheat
proves that they have no relation to
each other as the silverites assume.
Wheat rose in price in 1879, 1881, 1887.
1888 and in 1891, Notwithstanding silver
fell in those years. Wheat was S0ih
cents a bushel in 1884, when an ounce
of silver brought $1.11. In 1888 wheat