The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1896-08-13
TIE FREE COINHGE
OF WHITE METHL

certificates to the amount of Sass, 000,-
900 will instantly be withdrawn from
circulation; the remainder, or 81, 023,-
100000, will surely fall in value to
the level of the silver dollar on which
1t would then be based. Hence the value
or this amount or currency would be
This is something startling; but if you
VIII examine my reasons, you must adj
nit it to be inevitable. There can be
no possible escape
This is an example of what happens
when inexperienced persons are al
lowed to deal with such delicate thing
as our money. Al great many perfectly
sincere men (who have no time to study
this question: probably favor the free
coinage Of silver at 16 to 1" on the
ground that it will make money more
plentiful. But the extent to which they
nave been misled by those who have
guided them is seen by the fact just
shown; instead of making our money
plentiful, it will in fact reduce it to
one-third of its present value. If 1T
is hard for a workingman to get dol
lar now when the circulation is 1921,
100000, how much harder will it be
to get one when the circulation is re-
duced to $511, 0e0, 900? Every man in
our land knows what that means.
But the worst is yet to be told. Since
free coinage of silver at 16 to 1" means
a circulation based solely on silver at
its own intrinsic value, we shall have
silver standard instead of our pres
emit gold standard Prices of all goods
wages, and contracts, will be expressed
in terms of silver, instead Of gold.
That is, it means an abrupt change
from a gold to silver standard for
all trade and industry. From 1884 down
to the present day, in law and in fact,
people of the United States have con-
Quoted all their dealings Except during
the deprecated paper-money period Of
1S62-1S79) on the gold basis. The whole
nation has grown in wealth and
strength on this standard; the whole
Western territory has been developed
and settled on this standard; our popu-
lation has multiplied many times, our
railways have spread everywhere, and
our manufactures have increased mar
ve1lous1y on this standard. Why,
change it? Would man abandon the
friend who has served him well in both
prosperity and adversely?
Is silver standard preferred because
it is more stable than gold? In 1876,
silver changed in value from 1924 to
in June to 1859 to / in July; and there
was no corresponding change in the
prices of goods. In August, 1890, sill
yer was 1875 to 1 and in January, 1895,
it was 34.53 to La fall in value of one
half; and nobody pretends that prices
have fallen proportionaHy since 1890.
Think of a lively standard like that,
Jumping about 25 per cent in a few
months, and so per cent in a few years.
How can anyone buy and sell on such
a changing standard as that? If you
were buying coal, or meat, would you
not wish to know whether the scales
were short or long of weight by 20 or
SO per cent? Imagine the amount of
buying there would be at grocer's,
whose scales were short of weight rs
per cent one month"; or so per cent an
other. Of course, just as you want
honest weight at the grocerS, you want
an honest standard in which your labor
is estimated. When paid, sthe Iaborer
should be paid in a standard that
keeps it's purchasing power one month
as we'll as another. A varying stand
ard, then, not only is of no advantage
in buying and selling, but it is ire
mendous disadvantage.
The case, however, is still worse than
this. If under a silver standard, the
dollar paid for labor varies in purchaS-
ing power, how about the chances to
earn even this varying dollar? Now
we come to the most important part
of the whole matter. This is something
which effects the entire business COM
munity from center to circumference.
IF the standard is to be suddenly
changed from gold to silver-or, worse
still, If the decision is to be long de-
layed,-what is the likelihood of activ-
ity in business, and of plenty of en-
ployment? Every man in the land
knows that insecurity as to the stand
ard paralyzes all enterprise. If I have
a car load of wheat now valued at $500
to sell, isn't it natural that 1 should
delay selling it, if I was not sure
whether the money was to be paid for
it would be worth $500, or only $3.50,
by the time it reached my hands? If
7 were manufacturing harvesters on
the present scale of prices and wages,
isn't it natural If feared the money
paid me six months hence by the pur-
chasers would be one-half it's present
value that I should shut down, and
await results?
Far better for the manufacturer to
lie idle, than produce at great loss in
the end. If dealers and manufacturers
are forced to stop operations for fear
of change in the standard, who is
to give employment to the operatives?
Nobody, of course. And who suffers
most? AS usual, the man who is poor
The manufacturer can hold over and
wait; the labor, without capital, can
not wait Why scheme, which inc
vitality changes the existing gold
standard ON which business has been
done since 1884, and which will cause
a stoppage Of trade and industry, and
destroy the very opportunity Of get
ting any kind of wages (either in sill
yer or gold) for labor, Is proposed by
intelligent persons anywhere passes
all rational comprehension. To walk
into such q situation as would be
created by free coinage, appears to an
economist to be Fuinous folly.
IF free coinage of silver at 16 to u
is such an advantageous thing, why
Is it that Great Britain does not adopt
It: why did Germany give up silver in
1873; why did Holland give up free
coinage of silver in 1875; why did the
Latin union Gncluding all the states
Of France, Belgium, Italy, Switzerland
and Greece close their mfnts entirely
to free coinage of silver in 1878; why
did Austria suspend the free coinage
of silver in 1879; why did italy resume
specie payments in gold In 1882; why
did India close its minis to free coinage
of silver in 1893; why is Russia getting
ready for gold standard? If all the
statesmen of all the great civilized
&C untries of Europe decline free coinage
Of silver, is 1t not suspicious that the
demand in this country comes from
those who have silver to sell and debts
to pay Into what ruin would they not
plunge the country, to serve their
private gain. j. Laurence Laughlin.