The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1896-07-30
THE SILVER STANDARD.
How Colombia Haa suffered Because
of It's Adoption.

Bogota tcolombia) Special to Pittsburg
Dispatch.
Luther f. Mckinney. United States min
lister 10 Colombia. has dictated for the Dis
patch the following statement:
the money question seems TO be the
important question in the present politi-
cal contest in the United States. I thought
it might be of interest to many readers TO
know what effect silver legislation has had
upon the people OF Colombia.
Twenty years ago. I'm 1876. gold and
silver were coined in the nints of CO.
lombia. both being legal ender for all
debts. and at that time. owing to the scar
city of the white metal. silver was at a
premium over gold Of about 3 per cent.
About 1850 gold was at a premium, be-
cause the imports exceeded the exports.
it required a small premium to get the
gold for the purpose. Up to 1855 the gov
rnmen continued 10 coin gold and sill
yer. and at that time gold was at a pre-
MUM over silver of about 20 per cent.
I'm 1885 Congress passed a law that made
paper money a legal tender for all debts.
at the option of the government, this being
oil III ~ iAdhC olihtl ob n par WIN
gold.
This was an impossibihty. for at once
the gold all went out of the country and
the government was on a silver basis In
spite of it's effort by legislation to keep
gold and silver at a parity. From thar
time to this there has been no gold i'm
circulation in Colombia. The effect OF this
was TO raise the premium on gold from ~
per cent. in 1885 to 100 per cent. in 1885
AT the present time exchange on New
York is $40. the price of exchange depend
ing wholly upon the number OF drafts upSs
the coffee crop is being shipped at this
time and the merchants for certain rea-
sons are not importing largely, the price
of exchange is low.
I'm the Department of Panama. paper
money is not used. silver being the only
that silver in the other departments has
entirely gone out of circulation, and paper
is the only money in use.
IF one goes to market in Bogota and
offers silver for his dinner. il is refused,
as exchange IS lower In Panama than In
other parts of the country. Spectators
buy all the silver they can find at a pre-
MUM of from 8 TO 10 per cent. and send II
TO Panama and make a profit.
Now, to show the effect of this upon the
people Of Colombia. ! will give certain
facts tina are well authenticated: In 1885.
when gold was at a premium or 70 per
cent, wages of workingmen on the plains
of Bogota were 40 cents a day; and in the
hot country. so cents a day. At the pres
ent time wages are 90 and 20 cents, re.
spectively. an advance OF so per cent. All
provisions have increased in cost about 2o
per cent. Meats at that time were selling
for from Il TO 10 cents a pound. AT pres
ent they sell for 40 and 30 cents.
House rents have increased from 100 70
200 per cent. Small tenements, such as poor
people occupy. could be had In 1885 at 81 a
month. Now the same bring -
In 1884 and 1895 the Protestant, minister OF
Bogota occupied a house for which he paid
$50 n month At present the same house
brings $500 a month.
In 1885, table board could be had in the
best hotels for 81 per day Now ii is y a
day. and the DroDrietors all say there is
much less money i'm the business than when
they received 81 Wearing apparel has not
increased in price in proportion TO DrONls-
ions, but this is because the people are too
poor to buy the goods they were in the hab-
it of wearing before. and the merchants
have placed uDon the market the poorest
quality Of goods made in Europe for the
market. The reason that the merchants
give for not buying more goods In the
United States is that the goods are too
good and the people cannot AFFORD to buy
them.
1T seems to me that if the workingmen
of the United States will study this object
lesson the will readily see that what they
want is an honest dollar that will buy as
much in the markets abroad as the dollar
OF any other nation. If silver is coined In
the United States at the ratio of 16 TO i.
while the gold in a dollar Is worth 100 cents
in any country in the world. and the silver
in a silver dollar is only worth 30 cents. is
Ii not plain that the experiment of Colon
bia. and, in fact. all South American coun-
tries. where it has been tried. will be the
experience of us?
The gold will all leave the country
and it will require 81 of silver to buy 81
worth of goods in the markets OF the world
where gold is the standard.
1.-The next question is. will the wages OF
labor be increased in proportion to the in
crease of the cost of living? The price OF
labor will also be governed by III" law OF
supply and Demand while the &C living
will be governed by the value OF iollar
that the laborer receives for his
Silver legislation in every coun where
an effort has been made to make = silver
dollar equal to a gold dollar has resulted
in poverty to the man who labors. and the
attempt in the United States can but give
the same results. Three years in this coun-
try has given me some practical knowledge
of the effect of a silver and a paper cur
rency, and I send you the above facts. as
they are well known to the people here"