The Kinsley graphic. [volume] (Kinsley, Kan.) 1890-1940, 1896-09-25

| yer, than it would for the whole British
empire to become bimetallic, with In.
dia making a demand for gold for
monetary purposes. This offer on the
part of England is the only practical
one yet made by any country, and,
though it may be true that England
blocks the way, it is equally true that
no other country has made any offer
to be compared with this one.''
"Do you think that the United States
would do we'll to return to free silver
coinage, without regard to what any
other country may do or may not do?''
1 asked.
II do, most earnestly" said Mr..
Grenfell IF 1 were a citizen of the
United States l should go about with
sixteen to one badges all over me. ]
am a pretty good nuisance to my
over there l should be avoided like a
pestience. 1 believe that if the sys.
tenn were given fair play the United
States is big enough, rich enough and
strong enough to maintain the par Of
exchange alone and to settle the ratio
for the world. Besides, believe that
other countries would soon follow her
example. Anyhow, gold has been
drawn from the country for some
time, and it does not seem a logical
way to keep ones gold by increasing
ones gold indie btedneSs, which is ap
parently the sound money panacea.
Supposing that on the passage of a
free coinage act in-the United States
there was panic, and gold left the
country in large quantities, and there
was a gold premium in New York,
what would naturally happen? The
gold would come to Europe; there
would be great stimulus to the ex,
ports of the United States in conse
quence of the higher gold prices and
the gold would flow back naturally in
the course of trade. 1 would much
rather try to keep gold in the United
States by going on to silver than by
raising gold loans"
Don't you believe that there would
be a great fall in the price of railway
stocks and other American securities
held in Europe?"
We'll, there might certainly be
panic at first. but if the question were
settled on bimetallic basis 1 believe
there would be a certain rise, and thar
there would be a period of general
prosperity. The great fall in American
securities took place, as l know to my
cost, after the closing of the Indian
minis, and my London brokers told me
that when President Cleveland re.
pealed the silver purchase act conf.
dence would be restored and prices
I'll I'll,
purchase act was repealed, and the
only consequence seemed to be that
large proportion of the railways went
into the hands of receivers. If the
United States went on to the free coin
age of silver my advice would be to in
vest largely in Americans
But would there not be a fear OF
Europe unloading her silver in Amer
lea if the United States adopted free
coinage?'
Il do not think so. In the first place,
as the silver of France, Germany and
the Latin Union is coined at 1511 tc
one. it would not go to the United
States, where, at sixteen to one, if
would be worth three per cent. less.
In the second place, owing to the de-
hioho III oiASSt LII ihisCClidhSouo PuI~
poses, there is very little loose silver to
go. And, in the third place, the dele
gates from Germany, France, Austria,
Denmark, Belgium, Russia and En-
gland, assem- bled at the Brussels BIZ
metallic conference, signed a resolu-
ton in which they stated that in their
opinion, if the United States adopted
the bimetallic system. an arrangement
could be arrived at which would pre-
vent the silver from European coun-
tries and their colonies being thrown
upon the minis of the United States.
''As regards the 5O-cent dollar, I
think, socially and economically, a So
cent dollar is preferable to a 15O=eent
dollar, and if am paid a dollar and
can pay my debts with it. l do not care
whether it is 5O-cent dollar or not.
But there would be no 50-cent dollar
about it. AS soon as the minis were
freely opened to silver there would be
a great rise in it's value as compared
with gold. There would be rise in
the general levy and prices, no doubt,
but, the population and trade of the
world having increased SO much since
1873, it is extremely unlikely that the
prices would reach the level of 1878,
even if silver were again freely
coined"