The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1896-03-17


The STAR of this city, made the follow
ing editorial remark upon Our article o.
few days back, showing low the free
coinage Of silver in Mexico had reduced
.deyico to The condition OF a silver mono
metallic country and how the wages OF
workingmen had remained the same that
they were before silver declined IN value,
though what they are now paid for their
wages Is worth only half as much as II
was worth twenty-five years ago. The
Stars article is as follows:
'The Times. in discussing the relative
values OF gold and silver money in Mexico
Yesterday, neglected TO tell the whole
story. The Times evidently knows very
little of the pracaeai wants OF the work
jngman when IL tells us that the price
OF the products of Mexico have remained
the same and that wages have been UNI
changed, while the NOTTINGHAM Is COM
pe.ioc 10 pay two prices for colo, he tells
the workingman something that he Is
pleased 10 hear. Gold is about the only
thing that the nottingham has no need
10 buy. 1t Is the one thing that he has
never owned, either I'm this country or IN
Mexico. But The Times did not tell that
creasing demand for labor. and that the
product Of labor is in demand IN every
Mexican market, ana that involuntary
idieness is unknown in that country
The Times did not tell that there is a
constantly increasing demand Tor labor
in Mexico, because The Times confines
i,sef 10 facts. and that is not fact.
,Thor. H. .o,,,o lft+lo a.4ftlf.. a.. ,sf.ffa
but not much in Mexico. but hce manu-
features amount 90 nothing. and all tie
rest OF her labor is agricultural. This Is
not on the increase at all, ana those eH-
gagged In Il, though n0minaAy free nien.
are practically slaves. their wages O.
l2l-2 10 Is cents a day IN our money
contributing essentially 10 their dc,dor-
able condition. and We say to the Star
that gold is the very thing the working
man wants to buy with his labor. WheL
a Mexican laborer is paid a Mexican sill
Yer dollar for his work 81 will only buy
him one-half the shoes and blankets and
coats that the gold dollar paid an Amcri-
can laborer viii buy him. Every dollar
lar. or a dollar that can be converted by
him into gold dollar. But If he were
paid Mexican silver dollars though they
contain more silver than American silver
dollars. still, as Mexico refuses to ex-
change gold dollars for them he could
buy only half as much with them as be
IAN with the American money that IS
paid him, because all the American money
Is kept up TO the par with gold
che point OF the article We published a
Jew days ago was that Mexico is a coun-
Try that has free coinage OF silver: that
tiis free coinage has driven all sold out
OF circulation in Mexico. that the entire
money Of the country is silver money.
that the silver dollar there Is worth only
fifty cents In gold; that whom country's
money is debased everything rises in
value except labor. and that rises very
little. II any. when the money Of a coIn-
Try Is debased-m no sort OF proportion
10 the rise IN the price OF everything the
laborcr must buy.
On the 18th OF last June we published
conclusive proof OF this from tho cxpo-
rience We had with Confederate money.
but the facts of the ease are so perfectly
opposite In the present discussion ;hat NC
reprint our article OF that date. as fol-
lows:
We have repeatedly called the atten-
ton OF men who live upon wages or sala-
ries 70 the perfectly well~knOHn fact
that whenever the money OF country Is
deprecated the prices OF ali commodities
rise at once and In perfect keeping with
the depreciation OF the money while
wages and salaries rise very slowly. and
never ;n anything IKE a due proportion
~ tho riso OF what working men and
sslaried men have 20 buy. We are able
this morning 10 publish very remarka.
be Illustration OF this wcll-known fact
80 well known that 1t Is accepted az an
axiom by all writer's on political economy.
A wcll-known gentleman OF this city
has preserved In his scrspsbook a re-
ceipted bin for March iS65. for a Con-
fcderato hospital. situated ON what s.
now chimborazo Park. Richmond. OF
which we publish a copy below. Here
u u. and We ask every working aud