The herald., 1896-05-10
NOT AN HONEST PLATFORM

The free silver Democrats of Nebras-
| ka were a long ways from meeting can
dor and frankness'' with an exhibition
| of similar qualities when they sarcas-
tically extended congratulations to the
Democrats of Massachusetts for avoid
| ing bubbles over a ratio, and refraining
| from holding. out the 'delusive hope of
| international bimetallism." and con-
| senting to submit to the people the
| question whether the United States
should have monometallism or bimet-
| allism; whether the American people
should deliberately adopt the English
system of finance or restore the gold
and silver coinage of the constitution y
The Massachusetts Democrats were
honest enough to declare unequivocally
for the maintenance of the gold stand
ard. The Nebraska free silver Demo-
Gratis readopted their misleading and
dishonest declaration in favor of an inn
possible bimetallism. The free coinage
of silver and gold at the ratio of l0 to
would no more give the United States
bimetallism than would the coinage OF
silver and copper at the ratio or 1 TO 4.
In the one case silver, and in the other
copper, would constitute the sole stand
ard of values and the sole money of ul-
innate redemption.
The advocates of the gold standard
have very much more right than the
16-to-1 free silverites to be called bimet-
allists. With gold standard and
limited coinage of over-valued silver.
such as has prevailed in this country
for more than forty years, it is prac-
ticable to use both gold and silver as
money and to keep them in circulation
on a parity with one another, and they
are so used today. With the mints
open to the free coinage of the stand
ard silver dollar it would be impossible
to keep a single gold coin in use as
p,opay alopoSiIe of silver The silver
dollar would be worth so much less
than the gold dollar that silver would
be used exclusively, except in the case
of special contracts based on gold. En-
tirely different values would attach to
the two dollars and no law could force
them to circulate together.
The Nebraska free silverites are equal
ly unfair in striving to arouse prejudice
against the existing standard of values
by denomnating II the English sys-
tenn" England has not dollar of full
legal tender silver in circulation. while
this country has $500 900 of 1t. That
is one very important point of dissimi-
larity between the two systems. There
is as little sense in objecting to the gold
standard on account of its use in Eng
land as there would be in dscardinC the
bushel because it is an English unit of
measurement. or in refusing to eat
wheat because England imports more
of it than any other nation.
AS for the demand for the ''reStora-
tion of the gold and silver coinage of the
constitution" that is chiefly important
as an exhibition of the ignorance or the
demagogy of the men who make it. The
constitution nowhere says anything
about gold and silver coinage" 1t
gives congress power to 'coin money
and regulate the value thereof" and
prohibits states from making anything
but gold and silver coin legal tender In
payment of debts" There is not word
about the sacredness and inviolability
of the 16 to ratio: not word about re-
quiring congress to leave the mints open
for the free coinage of both metals at
ratio which is entirely out of line with
the actual relative value of the metals
in the worlds markets.-Kansas City
Star,