The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1896-07-24
MR.. LAME AND SILVER.

existence as money without results
which will prove destructive to mil
mions and disastrous to tens of thou
sands" This sentence is being quot
ed by the Populist free silver papers,
as being realized. If silver had been
S truck out of existence as money it is
probable that Mr.. Blaine's prediction
would have proved true, but it has
not been struck out Of existence as
money. 1t should be remembered
that the above statement was made
by Mr.. Blaine in a187S. At that time
silver was not coined, nor was it
legal tender in sums to exceed SIS.
But in that year the Bland-Allison
act was passed which provided for the
limited coinage of silver, and made it
full legal tender, so the story of the
Martin County Sentinel and all other
Populist papers to the effect that Mr..
Blaine's prediction has been realized
is false.
But why do our free silver friends
distort and garble Mr.. Blaine's
speech? Why do they try to put the
lie in his mouth? Why do they not
quote the real facts he has to say
about coming silver free even back in
1878, which are ogiven in that same
speech? Why! simply because it
would destroy the idea which they
wish to convey, by means Of his great
reputation. In the same speech,
which was made against the Bland
bill providing for the free coinage of
silver Mr.. Blaine said:
ITO remonetize silver now, as though essen
| tial conditions had not changed,is wilfully and
| lily to deceive ourselves. If our demone-
| tization were the only cause for the decline in
| the value of silver, then reconciliation would
| be its proper and etfectual cure. But other
causes, beyond our control, have been far more
potentially operative than the simple fact that
| congress prohibited its further coinage AS
| legislators, we are bound to take cognizance of
these causes"
Again he says: IF we coin a silver dollar of
fnll legal tender below the current value of the
gold dollar, we simply opening our doors
and inviting Europe to take our gold. With
our gold flowing out from US, we shall be forced
to the single silver standard, and our relations
with the leading commercial countries of the
world will be not only embarrassed but Grip
pied"
Again, the great statesman continued: Sat
current rates of silver, the free coinage of a
dollar containing 412h grains, worth in gold
about 81 cents NOW So cents, gives an ilegiti-
mate profit to the owner of the bullion, enab-
ling him to take 90 cents worth of it into the
mint and get it stamped as coin, and force his
neighbor to take it for full dollar. This is an
unfair advantage to give the owner of the sill
yer bullion and one which defaults the man
who is forced to take the dollar. 1t assuredly
follows that if we give free coinage to this dol
lar of inferior value, and put it in circulation
we do so at the expense of our better coinage
in gold and unless we expect the invariable
| experience of other nations to be in some mys-
terious way suspended for our own peculiar
benefit. we inevitably lose gold coin. 1t
will flow out from with the certainty and
with the force of the tides.
what gain therefore should we make for the
circulating medium, if on opening the gate for
silver to flow in we open a still wider gate for
gold to flow out? If l were to venture upon a
dictum the silver question l should declare
that until Europe remonetize silver we cannot
afford to coin dollar as low as 412h grains.
Assurances from empires and scientists in
finances that reconciliation of the former dol
lar will at once and permanently advance its
value to par with gold, are worth little in the
face of opposing and controlling facts"
If Mr.. Blaine opposed the free coin
age of silver IN 1878 when the silver in
the dollar was worth 90 cents how
much stronger would be his opposition
were he alive today when the silver
dollar is worth only So cents. His
remarks quoted above are the best
answer. But let us turn to the
garbled remarks which the Populists
are using.
Salver has not been driven ont of erist-
ence as money. In letter replying to
an inquiry of Congressman McCleary
last winter as to the amount of silver
money in existence, Director of the
Mint, r. E. Preston, says: "The val
ue of all silver coins used as money in
the world in 1873, l estimate to have
been 81 ,816, 565, 657, and in 1894 about
81, 100000. The amount Of gold
coin in the world in 1873 was estimat-
ed to have been SO, O44, 547, 800, and in
1894 about s4,25O,OOO,OOO." And in
commenting Mr. McCleary in his
| speech in the house said:
| And. the latest reports of the director of
| the mint shows (page 4D, of this vast amount of
| silver now used in the world as money So. 49,
3OO,OO has FULL LEGAL TENDER.
| That is, Mr. Chairman, there has been added
| to the FULL TENDER silver money of the world
in the last 22 years AN AMOUNT EQUALTo THE AC-
| CUMULATIoN OF ALL THE AGES UP TO THAT TIME.
This does not show that silver has
been driven out of existence, but the
very opposite. The idea which the
Populists seek to convey by the first
quotation from Mr.. Blaine is that
were he alive today he would advo-
cate the free coinage of silver. No
man knows what Mr.. Blaine would do
were he alive today. But when we