Omaha daily bee., 1896-12-26

out. In the article Just cited that the popula
| tion OF Russia, which is largely rural, hat
| been habituated for so long to the use OF
paper money that It is almost certain that
| the greater part OF the circulation OF 1,0l4,-
! O00,0 900 credit rubles will remain In the hands
OF the public. and will not be presented for
redemption In gold. There are only 420,-
| 900 credit rubles Cs2l0, 900 ,000 In notes
OF rubles or less $3.50 and 500 900 00O
rubles Gl250). Even II half OF these should
be presented for redemption, Prof. Leroy
| Beaulleu points out the gold reserve OF the
| bank and the treasury would remain above
$500, 600, 900, or as large as the great reserve
OF the Bank OF France.
THE GAIN IN GOLD.
Turning to the question OF the loss OF gold
by export, IT is pointed out that Russia has
lad no difficulty as a large exporter of
merchandise and as a producer OF the
precious metals in steadily increasing her
gtock OF gold during the past ten years. The
Bulletin Russo de Statistique" for May
and June gives an official table showing that
the excess of imports of gold for the nine
years ending with 1895 was 962 csc. 800
| francs Sl90,000,0 ,000) and that a production
slightly larger than this made the total
gain OF gold for nine years 2059 i76, 500
flames G4O0, ,0OO, ,000). The production of gold
has rapidly increased in recent years, and
amounted in 1895 to 81. 100000 rubles (s29, !
OOOOOO. The opening of the Transsiberian
railway and the operation of French COM
panieS In the Lena Delta are expected to
largely Increase this production in the near
future Russia Is attracting foreign loans
for the development other agricultural and
manufacturing interests, and these loans
are likely to increase with the adoption OF
the gold standard and the resumption of
specie payments by the Bank of Russia
The expectations of the country exceeded
the importations for the three years ending
with 1895 by an average of 140, 900, 900 credit
rubles $50, 600 ,000)
The essential question to be determined In
the restoration Of specie payments in Russia
was whether silver or gold should be the
standard and whether resumption should take
place upon the basis OF the nominal value
of the credit ruble or it's actual value for a
series of years on the Bourses of Paris, OF
Berlin and Vienna. The imperial govern
ment. not being disturbed by the existence
OF Bryan party or demand for the free
and unlimited coinage of silver independent
of the action of any other nation" promptly
decided TO adopt the standard of other civil
lied states and to bring it's paper notes into
fixed relations with gold. A plausible argu-
ment might have been made for silver, from
the fact that this was the metallic standard
OF Russia when she had standard and that
the credit rubles had never been at par with
gold, unless at time when gold was de-
preciated In relation to silver. This state
Of affairs led the government to adopt the
actual rate of exchange value for the credit
ruble in gold rather than to undertake to
raise the credit ruble to the value of the old
gold ruble. 1t could not be said that this in
volved the reputation of a gold obligation,
since gold was never the standard of the en-
pire until made so by the recent measures
10 restore specie payments The Russian en-
pire, in accepting the existing rate of eX-
change as the basis for the new coinage, fol-
lows the example of the government of
Austria-Hungary in 1892 and the more recent
example OF the government of Chilli in Great
ing new gold coinage based upon the actual
value of the circulating paper Russia has
been cclning silver FOR subsidiary coinage
which is considerably below the quoted value
of the paper ruble, and large quantities of
these new silver coins are now reaching St.
Petersburg and being put into circulation.
The smaller paper notes are being withdrawn
somewhat to the disgust Of some of the people
who have become accustomed to them, and
small silver coins are being put in their
place. The adoption Of coinage based upon
the existing rate of exchange will not involve
any impairment OF obligations held abroad
because these are stipulated in the old gold
rubles, worth exactly francs, and interest
and principal will be discharged upon this
basis Russia, whose government has been
taking so many steps in recent years to
bring her within the circle of modern COM
mercial and civilized states, thus plants her
SELF firmly alongside the countries of western
Europe and the United States in the adoption
OF the single and fixed standard OF gold.