Hutchinson gazette. [volume] (Hutchinson, Kan.) 1895-1902, 1896-02-13
BUYING GOLD.

Gold is Q commodity, and like AL
other commodities its prices IS regu-
lated by the law of supply and demand,
If the supply Of gold was as as great
as that Of iron and the demand for it
no greater than the demand for iron
its price would not exceed that of
iron; if the demand should be greater
its price would rise.
The United States government dur
ing the last two years has purchased
$2600OO,OOO worth of gold. The gov
eminent has demanded probably ten to
fifty times as much gold as all its citi.
zens in their private capacity nave de-
manded during the last two years. The
effect OF this immense purchase or de-
mand by the government, has been to
more than double the price of gold. Of
course it does not double its price in
dollars and cents, but it doubles the
price Of the dollars and cents. One
dollar now will buy from two to three
times as much Of all other cOmmodi.
ties as it would haYe done ten years
ago. TRis rise in the price of gold is
not caused by less supply of the
metal but by a greater demand, and
The demand for consumption has not
ben increased, but the demand by the
government has been greater. The
purchasing Of so much gold by the COY
eminent is the price that the people of
this country pay to keep up the parity
between the two metals.
IT Cleveland had purchased $780,
OOO, 900 worth Of anything else it would
have caused rise in its price, and the
scarcer the article the greater would
have been the rise. Suppose he had
purchased $3.50 900, 900 worth of asses
the price Of asses would have risen tn
two or three times what are now; sup
pose he bad purchased that value of |
wheat it would now be worth more
than dollar bushel; suppose he had |
tried to purchase that value of hickory
nuts, they would probably now be held |
at $40 per bushei.
Gold is high priced because Of the
g treat demand for 1t is by the president
Of the United States. If gold had been
de monitized before the government be-
gun to buy it, and silver had been
ma de The only measure of value, as It
Is called, does anyone doubt that the
purchase OF $3.50, 100000 worth of gold
than would have caused rise In its
pricep Does anyone doubt that gold
would then raise aud fall like any
other GommOdityp
Thus it is evident that the financial
wills now confronting us are caused
BY the use of cOmmodltymoney. II we
had demonetized gold and silver ten
years age and put in circulation ia
place Oft the same number of paper
dollars and II we had taken means to
Keep the number of paper dollars per
capita always the same, and If we had
printed on the face of these dollars the
I'VE the people Of the United States
)f America agree to accept this paper
As one dollar in payment of all debts
and exchange of all commodities.
GROVER CLEVELAND,
President"
If then any citizen wanted gold he
could go and buy it at its market price,
aud go off on trip to Europe with it
IT he wished, The value of the paper
money would always be the same so
ENG as we maintained the same NUN.
Der Of dollars per capita.
But some one will say, what would
The paper dollar be worth under such
a system? What is a gold dollar worth
now? Iii 25,S grains of gold. But
that does not tell you what it is worth.
The value Of gold is no more uniform