The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1896-09-06

coin. The adoption of that act, known
as the eption-clause act, created
a demand for metallic money. Gold
and silver had been withdrawn from
circulation, and for years after the
Civil War were known as money only
i'm the resorts of the money-changers.
Shortly after the ending of the Civil
War the resumption of specie pay
ments began to be agitated, and if
that should come to pass, with gold
and silver standing on the same
ground of equality which they had
occupied from the founding of the
government the bond-holder would
have to accept the interest accruing
on his bonds in coin of either metal.
A bill to revise the laws relating to
the minis was adopted by Congress
early in 1878, and in it was concealed
the clause which demonetized the sill
yer dollar and gave the gold the mo-
nopoly. Then came the Resumption
Act of January "a, 1878, and from that
time forward the interest on the pub
+ lie debt must be paid in gold. The
public debt at the time the Demone-
| tization Act was passed was $2,234,-
49,, 993.20. The Resumption Act did
| not intend that those who earned mon
| ey through labor should be paid in spe-
| Gle; its intent was to pay the bond
holder a different kind of money from
| that in which he purchased his bonds,
and as the principal and interest of
| that debt must be paid by labor or not
| at all, it will be seen that the burden
| has fallen upon the shoulders of those
who labor in the United States. The
| difference of half billion of dollars
| ON the principal, and the interest on
| the whole ever since 1878, coming from
the sweat of the mechanic and the
laborer, ought to cause him to take an
interest in the free coinage of silver.
The term "free and unlimited coin
| age of silver" is misunderstood. Many
| believe it to mean that everything in
| the shape of silver, bullion or other
| wise, will at once be coined in unlimit-
| ed quantities and thrown on the street.
! ONLY those who have silver to coin
! will take it to the mint and only those
| who earn it will or should legally be
| permitted TO possess it. But then for
| eigners Will send their silver here to
be coined if it is free, and that win
| give us too much money" is another
| cry. If dollars worth of silver comes
from across the water, a dollars worth
| of some American product will be ex-
changed for it, unless the foreigner is
| reckless enough to send his bullion for
/ nothing. If he does, we are the gain
/ ers. If he desires to coin his silver
| into American dollars, they must cir
| culate here and pay for labor and COM
modities here; for as soon as they GO
| abroad they must 60 through the cru
chile and appear in another FORM as
/ the money of another nation; and
gold must do exactly the same. Every
| argument that has been or will be
/ used against silver can with equal force
| be directed against gold, for there is
| no such thing as money of the world"
| in circulation here. There is no
| American coin in circulation in any
other country.
The cry that ''we will have too much
money if silver is remonetized and
made the equal of gold'' is unworthy
of consideration. No nation ever vet
complained of having too much money
or suffered through that cause. Hard
| times and panics are due to contrac-
| tons and not expansions of the cur
reney. Contraction of the currency is
not possible where the government it.
self, acting under it's constitutional
right, issues the currency directly to
! the people without the Intervention of
! individuals or corporations. There
will be more money in the hands of the
people, in bona fide circulation, if free
coinage of silver is restored to where
| it was up to 1873.We are warned against
/ interfering with vested rights to those
| who object TO free coinage. From
| 1892 up to 1873, period of eighty-one
| years, silver stood side by side with
| gold as the constitutional money of
the United States. The right of silver
was vested right in 1873. No party
platform or demand from the people
called for its debasement by Congress.
! 1t was not because silver was less val
liable than gold that it was demone-
tiled, for at the passage of that act
| IS was worth three cents more than
| gold. All legal decisions and pre-
cedents are against that act of Con-
| gress; it was not demanded by the
people, has never been approved by
| them and cannot be defended from any
other standpoint than as an act
stealthily perpetrated in the interest OF
/ the power that controlled gold, or
| that hoped to control the nation
| through the use of gold It was to
make money scarce that the act was
passed, and it succeeded. If anything
in existing circumstances warranted
the belief even that the volume of gold
| would be sufficient to transact the
4 business of the nation, there would
have been an excuse for the action of
| Congress, but such was not the case.
1t is necessary that we have a basis
or measure of values, and if gold is to
| perform that function, those who are
wealthy enough to corner gold may
corner the nation itself if they desire.
The workman's home may be worth
from one to five thousand dollars; but
the moment the gold gamblers begin
to call in the money made of that
metal, the mines or workshops will
shut down or go on short time, and
he has TO mortgage his home in order
to live. This could not be done with
the currency of the nation composed
of gold, silver and paper based upon
lAV- L