The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1896-05-17

Red Shirts On-Bankruptcy, Paralysis,
Ruin, Endless Suffering and Misery
Higher and Lower Civilizations as Re
lated to Monetary standard-over-
production and Under Consumption
Chicago, III. May 16.-The Auditorium
was flied this evening when Governor
Altgeld delivered his address on the
free silver question. He spoke in part,
as follows:
An American gold standard man re-
Gently declared that gold went with
the higher civilization and that silver
belonged to a lower civilization. Let
US look at this a moment. Until 1873
silver was the money that was chiefly
used by nearly all Of the great nations
of the world. Germany was on sill
yer basis up to that time. The foun-
dations of the great German empire
were laid and the entire fabric of Ger
man civilization and German achieve
ment and German greatness was rear
ed on the basis OF silver. Since she
adopted a gold standard she has not
advanced. Her industries are crippled
and there is stagnation and distress
throughout her entire borders. France,
generally considered the most highly
civilized country in the world was
great silver using country and her unit
Of value Is a silver coin. The great
ness of the United States of America
was achieved prior to 1873. Our insti-
buttons were reared, the rebellion was
crushed, the slaves were liberated
while the unite value in our country
was a silver dollar, provided by the
act of 1892. Look where you will you
find that the progress Of the world was
made while silver was the money that
was chiefly in use. And since the ma
lions of the earth have been trying to
get onto a gold basis there is universal
depression and stagnation. Instead OF
advancing civilization, gold Is causing
retrogression, because there is not
enough of 1t to do the worlds work.
OVFIRPRODUCTION THEORY.
Attempts have been made IN this
country to attribute the general fall
OF prices to cheapness of production
and to consequent overproduction. No
doubt cheapening production tends to
lower prices, but increased production
there is also increased consumption. It
issaid that three times as much wheat
is now sent to Liverpool as formerly,
therefore wheat must fall in price. I
ask: What is done with this wheat
at Liverpool? Is there only as much
sold and consumed as there formerly
was and is the rest poured into the sea?
Oh no, it is all sold and consumed. If
that is the case, then consumption has
increased as much as production. In
fact, wheat has not fallen in price much
more than the average fall Of all COM
modities.
AS Mr.. Griffin stated, from 1850 to
1873 there was relatively as great an
increase in production, taking 1t the
world over. as there has been since
that time; yet from 1850 to 1873 prices
the world over continued to rise while
since 1873 the have continuously
fallen. But the argument that improv-
ed methods of production and conse-
quently the cheapening of production
have been the cause of lower prices as
compared with gold, overreacheS itself,
because there have been more improve
ments in the methods of mining both
gold and silver than there have in al
most any other department of industry.
Consequently IL improved methods and
cheapening the cost of production are
TO be considered, gold should have de-
clined in purchasing power together
with other commodities and certainly
with silver. 1t is not over production,
it Is under-consumptio that ais us.
Furthermore, there has been no over
production of land; on the contrary the
struggle for land and for homes is more
fierce than ever. Years ago we had the
great west open TO settlers; yet lands
in the central and eastern states were
valuable and remunerative because
farm products brought a fair price. At
present there is scarcely any more pro
ductive land open to settlement but
lands instead of going up have fallen in
price the same as all other property
and commodities and there are thou
sands of farmers who have to lose their
farms because they cannot get living
prices for what they produce.
OVBRPRODUCTION OF SILVER.
The claim made that there is an over
production of silver since 1873 as COM
pared with gold, and that this is the
cause Of its fall in price, Is absolutely
without foundation. According TO the
tables issued by the treasury depart
ment August 16, 1898, showing the total
production of gold and silver in the
world at coinage value. il appears that
from the year 1892, when our monetary
system was founded TO the year 1852, be-
ing a period of sixty years. the total
production Of silver in the world, rating
1t at coinage value, was 81, 769, 1877, 600,
and the total production of gold during
that time, was $685., 236, 900. that is. there
was almost twice as silver produced as
gold. The production of each metal of
course varied greatly during the differ
ent years, and yet the market ratio be-
tween the two metals remained practi-
cally the same during al that time. The
tables show that during those sixty
years there was a variance Of only 40
Of one point or just about thecost OF
exchange. The same tables show that
from 1852 10 1873 the total gold produc-
ton OF the world was $2.5l6. 575. 00O while
the total silver production was $685.
81. 900: that IS there was two and one
half times as much gold produced as
silver. yet the market ratio remained
undistuTbed during those twenty-one
years, just as II had during the period
Of sixty years. when there was twice as
much silver a. gold.
Again. the same treasury tables show
that from 1873 10 1882. inclusive. the to-
tai gold production OF the world was 81
Ito. 5o5. 600. while the total silver produc-
ton OF gold was nearly equal 70 that OF
silver. During the first two periods sill
yer was money metal; during the last
period X was not. The fact that during
the first two periods covering over
eighty years. the market ratio remain
ed the same although the production OF
each metal varied greatly from time %
time, shows that the market price or
ratio was practically the same as the