The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1896-08-20

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not by redemption in gold because the
standard silver dollars are not now re-
deemable In gold either in law or by adj
ministrntive policy.
We contend that free and unlimited
coinage by the United States alone will
raise the bullion value Of silver to its coin
worth s1.25 per ounce I'm gold throughout
the world. This proposition Is In keeping
with natural laws, not in defiance Of
them. The best known law of commerce
Is the law of supply and demand We rec
ognize this law and build our argument
upon 1t. We apply this law to money. when
we say that n reduction In the value of
money will raise the purchasing power Of
the uoIlar; wa also apply tne Iaw n sup
ply and demand to silver when we say that
a new demand for silver created by law
will raise the price OF silver bullion. Gold
and silver are different from other COM
modities in that they are limited In guam
tity. Corn, wheat, manufactured prod
ucts, etc, can be produced almost without
limit, provided they can be sold at price
sufficient to stimulate production, but gold
and silver are called precious metals, be-
cause they are found, not produced. These
metals have been the object of anxious
search as far back as history runs, yet, ac-
cording to Mr.. Harvey's calculation, ALI the
gold coin of the world Gun be melted into
o 22-foot cube and all the silver coin in the
world into G6-foot cubs. Because gold
and silver are limited, both in the quantity
now in hand and in annual production, II
follows that legislation can fix the ratio
between them. Any purchaser who stards
ready to take the entire supply of any
given article at q certain price can prevent
thet article from falling below that price
So the government can fix price for gold
and silver by creating demand greater
than the supply International bimetal-
lists believe that several nttion, by enter
ing into an agreement to coin at fixed
ratio all the gold and silver presented, can
maintain the bullion value OF the metals
at the mint ratio. When mint price Is
thus established 1t regulates the bullion
price, because any person desiring coin
may have the bullion converted into coin
at that price, and any person desiring bull
ION can secure it by melting the coin.
International bimetallsts cannot com
plain that free coinage gives a benefit to
the mine owner, because international BIZ
metallism gives to the owner of silver all
the advantages offered by independent bi-
metallism at the same ratio. lnterEa-
tional bimetallists cannot accuse the advo-
Gates of free silver of being bullion own
ers who desire to raise the value of their
bullion;" or "debtors who desire to pay
their debts in cheap dollars" or 'dema-
gogues who desire to carry favor with the
people" They must rest their opposition
upon one ground only, namely: That the
supply of silver available for coinage is too
large to be utilized by the United States
In discussing this question we must co.,
slider the capacity of our people to us,
silver and the quantity of silver which ca,
come to our mints. 1t must be remem
bered that we live in country only pal
TALLY developed, and that our people far
surpass any number Of people in the world
in their power to consume and produce
Our extensive railroad development and
enormous internal commerce must also be
taken into consideration. Now, how much
silver can come here? Not the coined
silver of the world, because almost all Of
II is more valuable at this time in other
lands than it will be at our mints under
free coinage. II our mints are opened to
free and unlimited coinage at the present
ratio, merchandise silver cannot come
here, because the labor applied to 1t has
made 1t worth more in the form of mer-
chandise than it will be worth at our
mints. We cannot even expect all of the
annual product of silver, because India,
China, Japan, Mexico, and all the other
silver using countries must satisfy their
annual needs from The annual product;
Tho arts will require large amount, and
the gold standard countries will need
considerable quantity for subsidiary coin
age. We will be required to coin only that
which Is not needed elsewhere; but, If we
stand ready to take and utilize all of it,
pther nations will be compelled to buy at
The price which we fix. Many fear that
the opening of our mints will be followed
by the enormous increase in the annual
production of silver. This is conjecture.
Silver has been used as money for thou
sands Of years, and during all of that
time the world has never suffered from an
overproductien. III, for any reason, the
supply Of gold or silver in the future ever
exceeds the requirements of the arts and
needs of commerce we confidently hope
that the intelligence of the people will be
sufficient to devise and enact any legisla-
tion necessary for the protection of the
public. 1t Is folly to refuse to the people
the money which they now need. am
firmly convinced that by opening our
mints to free and unlimited coinage at the
present ratio we can create demand for
silver which will keep the price of silver
bullion ut Sl.29 per ounce, measured by
gold.
Our opponents ignore the fact that gold
Is now going abroad In spite Of all leg
islation intended to prevent it, and no sill
yer is being coined to take it's place. Not
only is gold going abroad now, but 1t
must continue to go abroad as long as
the present financial policy is adhered to,
the ocean, and even then we postpone the
evil, because the amount borrowed, to-
gether with interest upon 1t, must be re-
paid in approaching dollars.
Perhaps the most persistent misrepre-
sentation that we have to meet is the
charge that we are advocating the pay
ment of debts in 50-cent dollars. At the
present time and under present laws a sill
yer dollar, when melted, loses nearly half
it's value, but that will not be true when
we again establish o mint price for silver
and leave no surplus for silver upon the
market to drag down the price of bullion.
Under bimetallism silver bullion will be
worth as much us silver coin, just as gold
bullion Is now worth as much as gold
coin, and we believe that silver dollar
will be worth as much as gold dollar
In answer to the charge that gold will
go abroad, 1t must be remembered that no
gold can leave this country until the
owner of the gold receives something in
return for it which he would rather have.
In other words, when gold leaves the
country those who formerly owned 1t will
be benefited.
Those who deny the ability of the
United States TO maintain the parity be-
tween gold and silver at the present legal
ratio without foreign aid point to Mexico
and assert that the opening of our mints
will reduce us to silver basis and raise
gold to a premium. 1t Is no reflection
upon our sister republic to remind our peo
pie that the United States Is much greater
than Mexico in area, in population and
In commercial strength.
1t is also argued that, since number
of the nations have demonetized silver
nothing can be done until all of those
nations restore bimetallism. This Is alsC
illogical 1t Is immaterial how many OF
how few nations have open mints, pro
vided there are sufficient open mints tc
furnish a monetary demand for all the
gold and silver available for coinage.
In reply to the argument that improved
machinery has lessened the cost of produo
ing silver, 1t is sufficient to say that tn,
same is true of the production Of gold, ant