The Dalles times-mountaineer. [volume] (The Dalles, Or.) 1882-1904, 1896-08-29
CONDITIONS In MEXICO.
A Resident of That Country Shows How
Free Coinage Operates.

Some time since f. J. Toussaint, of
Sonora, Mexico, visited Spokane, and
on his return to Sonora, addressed the
following letter to DIR. J. M. Boyd, in
answer to request that he give his
opinion of free coinage in that country,
| its effect upon business, as compared
with business in the United States.
Mr.. Toussaint says:
"You wished me to tell you what
think of unlimited free coinage of sill
yer, and in answer 1 will say that I
will not say what I think, but state a
few facts as I know them to exist, and
let you do the thinking. Before the
appreciation of gold our Mexican dol
lar was worth within few cents as
much as your United States dollar.
Now one dollar of United States money
is worth 1872 cents of Mexican money.
On the face of it this looks like good
gold standard argument, and is often
resorted to by gold standard men. But
let me tell you what it has done for
Mexico. 1t has reduced the Mexican
national debts four fifths of its original
amount. Such thing as q business
failure is almost unknown, and the
country today is by long odds in better
shape than it ever was. And these
are the reasons: Up to the time
that goldeappreciated Mexico bought
one-half of its necessaries and luxuries
of life from the United States. The
other half it procured from its own re-
sources and from other countries. We
liked your woolen goods, we liked your
prints, your flour, your furniture, your
building materials, machinery and
hardware, but we could not afford to
pay 1S2 cents for every dollars worth
we wanted. For example, if we got
hat at SO, it meant three times S1.S2,
and an additional duty. amounting in
all to about 1915. We had to look to
other fields of production. We tried
the foreign countries, but could not
satisfy ourselves that that was the
best, so we commenced resorting to
MeXicO's unlimited resources, and now
we are producing our own wheat, rye,
ETC., and have put up mills to gaind
our own breadstuffs. We have our
own sheep, and raise our wool. which
we run through our own wooden mills.
We raise our own cotton, and have
cotton mills. We have eur own saw
mills and shingle mills, and if, in some
states we have no timber, we buy the
rough lumber in the United States
and work it up into sash, doors, blinds
and furniture in our country, giving
our people employment and depriving
your skilled labor of just so many days.
work, which means just so many dol
lars.
'That is not all nor the best we do. 1
We already, in many cases, turn out
a surplus which we put on the market
in other countries, and we sell in just
the same territory that you sell or
used to sell in. We can and do sell
some of our products to the United
States at profit after paying the duty.
"You have compelled Mexico to re-
sort to it's own resources. 1t has done |
so, and see the result of these few
years. Continue your gold standard |
for another 10 years and we will |
you.
"You may ask how can it,be stopped?
Free silver will stop it, by making the |
money worth as much in bull
ion value as yours. You would then |
have the advantage of superior skill |
and the greater productiYeness of |
American labor. Owing to certain
brought about mostly by |
influences, the Mexican peo-
pie are not as productive nor skilled |
xorkmen as the Americans"