Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1896-10-03
SOUND ARGUMENT.
\ Leading Railway Mans Talk for Honest


The great Auditorium a Oh icago was
crowded to the doors on the evening
IF Saturday, the Goth, by entEusi-
astic audience which assembled TO hear
Melville E. Ingalls, talk on tie moi.Ty
question After being duly introduce
and warmly received by the railway
olen present Mr.. ingalls, said-
There are many questions involved In
this campaign, but the one burning question
Is this Shall this government of ours. re-
Eardiess of any other government, estab-
Iish the free coinage of silver at the ratio
Of sixteen to one, which means that six
teen ounces of silver shall be made equal
to one ounce of gold. SO far as the gov
eminent can make it. and 1T means that the
owner of silver bullion. whether 1t has
been dug out of the mines of Colorado or
in the dark retreats of Siberia OF in South
America, or. perhaps. may have been
bought in the markets of New York or Lon
don, shall have the right to take the sill
yer bullion, which he can purchase for IS
Eents the dollar, or which costs him
that to produce. to the mints of the United
States and receive therefrom silver dol
ars which shall be stamped as good for
100 cents the dollar in the payment OF
all dues to the United States and in the
settlement OF all debts between you and
me?
when Mr.. Bryan first started on his
canvass he undertook to say that free
coinage would raise the price of silver from
- cents an ounce, its present price. to
Sig, or from 50 cents on the dollar 70 100
rents the dollar That was his Madison
Square speech, but as he began to go west
and catch the populist brother he soon left
that and dropped down to his 53-cent dol
lar He might just as well. because there
Is no more chance of raising silver to 100
rents by the establishment of free coinage
in this country than there is in turning
the hand back on the dial What is coin
age? I am going into some of these ele-
tnentary truths tonight to get the ideas
all before you in consecutive thought
THE question of making a coin legal ten
n has M IF
where the law was enacted When people
talk about raising the price to par. they for
get about the immense production of sill
YER 1t has grown in % years from g.
DGo. 600 ounces to I75.O00.OC0 ounces. and at
the same time the use of 1t for commercial
transactions has decreased: and this in
crease of us, OO0, 600 ounces has gone on
in spite of this low price. and will any of
you gentlemen who are familiar with bust
ness methods tell me what would be the
production it, instead of selling at Go cents
an ounce. it sold at s1-29 ounce?
For the last hundred years In the coin
age of Europe the ratio CT silver and gold
was about one to fifteen and one-half, that
is that one ounce of gold should equal
fifteen and one-half ounces of silver In
value 1t rarely was less than one to
fourteen, never greater than one to six
teen; and the demands of silver and gold
for commerce work were so great that
their commercial values were Kept al about
that price There never was a government
In the last two centuries who attempted
to coin silver and gold at ratio different
from their cOCrDerc1al RATIO Inc nrSt at
tempt at the experiment is the one Mr.
Bryan wants US to make in this country.
~Other civilized nations of Europe. fol-
lowing England's example. adopted the
yer until 1871, when Germany after the war
with France concluded she could take the
large subsidiary she had received. put the
country on gold, and establish her com
inercial integrity with the gold standard
This produced SO much silver for sale that
the Latin union found themselves being
6-6 n nd GOLD ri
out In 1871 the Latin union. which was
stronger than the American nation of
to-day, found themselves being flooded
with silver. which was driving out gold,
although silver was then a trifie under
the value OF gold. The minis of France
were so full Of silver that they couldn't
coin It in two years. and the result of 1t
was in 1873 they limited the coinage of /
fve-franc pieces. and in 1876 the Latin |
union entirely suspended the free coinage |
Of silver
This statement IS important that I |
beg your attention while repeat it, The
81 van populistS claim that if this nation !
Of TO OK. oCe people establish the free COIN |
age of silver at sixteen to one. it will have |
the effect at once Of raising its price to |
par. regardless of the fact that its COM |
nerCial ratio is thirty-two to one There /
Is no better way of disproving as 1
sertion of This kind than by pointing out g n /
exact instance of the kind in the past. |
and fortunately in this case we have it. |
In 1872 and 1873 the Latin union was friend |
" TO silver, and was anxious to maintain its |
the ratio of fifteen and one-half to one
In the Latin union were France. Swift |
zerland. italy and Belgiun-uations con- /
tanning about a., o-oO9 of people. or more !
than our present population The CONNER |
-ial value of silver at that time was about /
seventeen to one, compared with gold. and !
get. with this small difference. and with /
the friendly feeling of these great nations, /
with this immense population behind them. |
they found their minis clogged with sill 1
yer, gold leaving their countries. and they |
were forced in 1873 TO limit the free coinage |
of the fve-fraEc pieces
Does anyone know of anything that has |
trauspired since 1873 that would render /
successful any attempt to do now what /
failed then especially when we consider /
further that IL failed in 1873 with the COM i
nercial value OF silver at about seventeen /
TO one, and now II is thirty-two to one? L
The production of gold has increased so \
much since the discovery in California. /
the growth OF credits has been great /
L was. and the commercial world has /
found that the great transactions and ex- i
changes have to be conducted with gold, /
with silver as a subsidiary coin Such is i
the history CT the use of silver in Europe,
which country to-day has gold stand 1
ard. but still uses silver in large quantities i
Tor domestic transactions. but without free 1
coinage and with its legal tender quail 1
les limited In other words. the standard i
IF value of Europe is the same that of 4
he United States
Now. consider this. Alexander Hamil-
.cn overvaIued silver at three per cent 1
Thomas H Benton overyalued gold at about L
four per cent, and yet unerring was
he law of trade that in the first place IL
trove ont gold. and in the next place it
lrove out silver Can you tell me by Il
xilat process our popuiist friends think
hey VIII keep their gold and silver in |
,ircula ton side by side. ssfter they estab-
o one. when the commercial ratio is thir-
y-c~o thirty-three to one?