The daily morning Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Oregon) 1883-1899, 1896-05-02
UNLIMITED SILVER COINAGE
wha, tho Result Would ue.


Let vs. suppose that tho congress which
conNcnvs Ia proemSsr. iNi, together
with tho ncNiy-cloc,,d ,d president. should
favor free silver" rhcy assemble and
pass an act for unlimited coinage. az
tho ratio OF Is 10 l. TO take OBJECT, say.
January !. iSS This - Just what tho
advocates or unlimited silvvr mistakenly
think would inaugurtto goncral pros
pcri,y Let US see what would he the
real result
rhc moment that such an enactment
became even probable, there would DO
such dclugo OF American securities and
stocks, corporate. municipal state ana
national. returned from tho Old World.
that prices would rapidly approximate
toward onr.half of prcsrnt values be-
sides, all stocks ahd bonds that ara mar,
exclusively hSid IN thss country would
sympethcticalD decline with them In
abon, Tho same proportion.
The $50 0oo. 90 OF gold coln tmor' or
icss) now In the country would at once
lose It's function as money. and COM
mand n high premium II would rapidly
leave the country, and for the time be.
ing thcrc would be a contraction OF tho
monetary medium to hat amount. No
matter how much subscqlCnt imitation
might come after a few years OF free
coinage. the immediate effect would bo
a general collapse and universal puraly-
sis The panic OF 1879 was puny ana
iufanUlc when compared with the ono
that would come In iNS There would
De- an Immediate and tremendous 81 rink.
age OF all values. and II labor the most
VI all Few who werc In debt cut
pay, but when things really got TO tho
worst the opportunity for the wealthy
to purchase at great bargains would be
immense. Thus the already rich would
become vastly richer. and the present
inequality b. grvatly Increased, There
would be u general bankruptcy. and for
few years labor would be druS Sc
yerc as was the panic OF lNd, II was
comparatively but mere step land then
arrested in the direction Indicated, AZ
ter weary months tni years business
would slowly emerge from the wreck
and chaos
Hut In the meantime another current
would have started. Tho silver OF the
world would hc dumped upon the United
States. and with greatly Increased mint
service. In perhaps three or four years.
an initiation would begin 90 make itself
felt But even thea, the Increase In
values would only be- seeming and noml-
nal. for the basis would be silver For
eign exchange would be- about 100 per
cent premium. and all the rise would be
only apparent and deceptive.
The final effect OF this imitation would
De stiil again to make the rich ,chcr and
the poor poorer. All kinds OF commodities
would nomlnally rise, out what OF the
man who had no commodtics7 The
property OF the millionaire would be
doubled Cnominally) and the man who
before had nothing would have twice
nothing
Wages. In time. would apparently
double. like everything else. hut they
are always last OF the procession. Long
before that time. every commodity that
the labOring man necds would have
doubled. and. therefore. he would bo not
only relatively. but positively. worse on
than before.
Both by the pani, and by the subse-
quent Imitation. therefore, the present
inequality would be terribly intensified.
The interruptions AnRncirr. the wreckcr
and the shrewd operator would fnttcn,
for they always can take advantage OF
violent fluctuations, whether upward or
downward
All wage earners. people on salaries.
and every producer. as well rs all legitl-
mate business would suffer both during
the great depression and the Anal lnfln-
tlon. Unsettled conditions, Of whatever
nature. always lodge more OF the fixed
wealth OF the country In the nands OF
those who already have the advantage
We already have u practical hlmetal-
lism. II that b. construed as meaning
the two metals In liberal supply This
Is only possible when the dearer metal
Il made the standard and then GER
tain amount OF the inferior metal can
be fioated at n parity.
A FINANCIAL SEER.