The News-Herald. [volume] (Hillsboro, Highland Co., Ohio) 1886-1973, 1896-08-27
TO spite Wan stsst.

cuoct Ou your own earnings anu OOmess
tic economy of the establishment of free
coinage Of silver ?"
"Oh, stuff It won't make any differ.
ence to me. Not bit Of difference.
Here was an intelligent man, bright
man q man who earns his s., 500 year.
He didn't know that the establish.
ment of free coinage would affect him
personally.
what is free coinage ?' asked.
"Means that the Government will
coin all the silver that's taken to the
mint free Of CHARGE"
II suppose you noticed that provision
in the Chicago platform in regard to the
ratio of 16 to L."
"Oh, yes"
"What does that mean ?"
"Means that 16 times as much silver,
by weight, shall go into dollar as of
$50 that all man need do is to take
certain quantity OF silver to the mint
regardless of its market value, and get
81 for it?"
81 suppose So"
$50 If q man can buy as much silver
as goes into 81 for Scents, he can sell it
to the Government for $1?'
"Why, yes; I suppose so."
| "Now, do you mean to say that it
would not affect you personally II the
dollar of today, the 100 cent dollar,
should be superseded BY 5S'cents dol.
lar ?"
"But it won't"
"Why not 2"
"Hang it all, dollar is dollar. It's
| the stamp of the Government that
makes the dollar. Isn't this silver dol.
lar I've got in my hand as good as a
gold dollar P''
"For present use it Is. It's worth q
dollar today, because practically it bears
on it's face the promise of the United
States to redeem it in gold, But if you
should keep that dollar and unlimited
free coinage should be established in
this cuntry, you would see the time
when you couldn't exchange it for gold
"a time when its value would be simply
the value Of the silver that's in it, just
as to day the value of gold dollar is
the value of the gold that's in it. You
say the stamp of the Government makes
value Really you don't believe that,
"Certainly; where ever the stamp
goes, the value goes. Isn't that true 2"
"Not bit of It. The stamp on the
piece is simply q certificate of the quan.
lty of gold it contains. We are ship.
ping gold to Europe all the time. Europ.
cans take our gold coin at it's actua !
bullion value. If there was more gold
in q five dollar piece it would bring
more abroad if less, the price would be
lower.
''So it is in our own country. The
gold coin is taken for what it actually is
worth. It stands on its merits. There
| &. -oAov,,,tiov, bocl nf IL II ia Orv
standard of value. If a man has horse
to sell, he names the price-so many
dollars-and expects payment in dol
lars that come up to the standard.
"Not 80 with silver. The SO cent dol.
lar YOU have in your hand stands pre-
cisely in the position Of the paper dol
lar. 1t is practically only promise tc
pay gold. It would circulate as freely
if there were but 10 cents worth of silver
in it. It is taken now in the trades o
all kinds without question because no
body doubts the ability of the Govern
ment to redeem it in gold.
English free coinage and the silver
dollar will have nothing behind it. Il
must 90 for what it is actually worth
There would be no redemption. In the
first place, it is not proposed to back il
with Government promise of redemp
ton; in the second place, the Govern
ment could not keep such promise
good if it should make it.
"Free coinage means the substitu
ton of the silver dollar for the gold dol
lar as the standard OF value.
"Can't you see how it would affec
you personally 2" I demanded of my
friend.
"I'd get my salary in silver" hi
answered frankly, mot necessarily silvel
coin, but in dollars redeemable in silver
> Is that what you mean ?"
{ "That's part OF it. You don't enter
tain any expectation, do you, that you
salary would be raised as the value o
: the money standard should fall 2"
| "Do L? OF course l don't. I've seel
too much of the world to expect tn,
like of that"
"How about your expenses TAX
rent, for example. You pay $35
} month for your fiat, yon say. Viii
. your landlard continue to rent that fla
, Tor S35 when dollars shall be worth so
go, 40 cents? What do, you thinl
about it 2"
"I wouldn't If was he?'
a "How about clothing, food and tn,
other necessaries of life? Would you
salary 20 as far after the scaling dowI
!, by free coinage as 1t does now? Yol
paid about thirty dollars for that suit,
8 judge-$3O in gold. You don't suppos
80 5Ocent dollars would buy such
suit of clothes do you?
"Another thing. Is your life insur
, ed ?"
8 "Yes, for S6OOO."
, "Comfort to you to think that if yo,
should die your wife would get tina
I, $1,000? You needn't say yes, I knoy
it. Now, how would you feel if this $6
. 600 should be scaled down about
!, per cent 2"
"That would be devilish."
"That's what free coinage proposes
!. 1t promises, too, that every dollar yo
). and your wife, by dint of economy, eel
!. denial and hard work. have put into tn
savings bank, shall be cut in two abou
in the middle.
Q Now, my advice to you, said in con
0 clusion, 'is to study this question lii
, tle.- Let Wall street 60 to thunder
Wall street will take care of itself il
| anv circu m stancea LoOk Out for vouI