The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1896-10-02
The Financial News
e.,.ss ss1'sas1 ss '.ess Ct q 5.tss As'1".eH
ruoLasg RRp TIE SILVER oursrlah

tH0las1 BHD TIE SILVER QUESTION:
In rlstteTa Of international policy neither this
nor any othey country dares to act In deliberat5
entagonism TO its neighbours. Tho conty Of
paticps requires thet no Power should follow o
courae damaging, directly or indirectly, TO the
Interest OF. Q country with which il is at poace.
at bho same tiroo, wo seorn TO be shaping towards
aeoursowllich may bring us into awkward confiicb
wibh tho pcpolarsentimOnt,i ifnot with thegovern.
ing. powers Of countries. with whom We hold
politically friendly relations. In another column,
wo print extracts from speech mode In tho
American Senate the. other day by Err Don
Cameron, who represents Pennsylvania. Tho
gist u Llr. Camerop,s contention was thab
the ED8lish policy on the al-absorbire
monetary question Is directly antagonistio
to American interests, and that Che United
States rnust throw Off the influence OF English
ideas If sho means to maintain the stendy morcs
Of her prosperity. There have not been wanting,
OF late, indications Of growing irritation with this
country foritsdogin the gorattituce towards
e1noation THAT is convulsing two continents, and
gravoly compromising the future Of the pooroh
States in Europe, This feeling has besn voiced
in America by Senator Lodge, whose proposal
to virtually shut out British goods from tho,
United States until wo should assent TO q
bimetallin convention, though extrome and
absurd, indicates the trend OF sentiment on the
other side Of the Atlantic Mr.. CameroD iS
much Mi!aer, and makes war rather on those
who aeclirnatise English ideas in America than,
on this country but the sentiment has tho sapa
origin in both cases.
Senator Lodge Is not o oliver man In thelsuaI
sense, being opposed outnnd-out to free coinage
in tho United States under existing conditions
and, therefore, his views, though tinged With
strong feeling, may attract moro attention hero
than those Of tho pronounced siiverites. Mr.
Lodge s, very bitter about the-faure Of tho
Brussels conference Of last year, where. the attf'
.udeoftlo British official delegates was" scarcely
" lessthan discourteous "tothe United States, and
lie believes that nino tenths OF the American
people regard it in that light. A feeling OK this
kind is not to be lightly ignored. We havS
frequent Diplomatic differences with the UnitcB
States; but, as o rule, thero is seldom asao'
Ciated with these any sense Of animus between
tho peoples OF tho two countries, and such
aqunbbles pass over and are forgotten, But now
we nre encouraging tho growth Of feeling
that on n question which Affects the prosperity
Of millions Of individual Americans this
country is inclined to entertain views unfriendly
to the States. We know, Of course, that the
unfriendliness is accidental, and that our none
tsry policy is controlled by purely selfish con.
sdsrations---so purely solfsh that we do not
mind soeing Iniia suffering from ouS action
much moro than America does. The Americans
are sufficiently old-fashioned to believe that
it is the part of friend to show himself friendly
and whom this country turns deaf ear 20 the
plant Of half the world, including ell the New
World, thoy, not unnsturally, take itrnkihdly. II
is not FOX us to gay whether the feeling OF irri,
tation is wholly justified or not; itexists, and
that Is the main point, Moreover, 1t 10 taking
n shape that may entail very awkward conso;
quencss on ns. Ihe recent proposal to coin
Mexican dollars in San Francisco was o bid
towards giving us an object lesson by ousting
u5 from our commanding position in Eastern
tradG.
Senator Cameron points q plain moral when
Id remarks that II the United States would
vonturo to cut herself adrift from Europe and
take outright to silver, she would have all
America and Asia at her back, and would conf
mand tho markets OF both Continents. "The
barrier OF gold would be more fatal than any
"barlior OF custom-houso. Tho bond of silver
"would be stronger than any bond Of free
trado" There can be no doubt about it, theg
Il tho United States wero to adopt silvou
basis tomorrow, DriLish trade would be ruined
before the year.. was out. Every American )
industry would be protected, not only nj homo!
but In every other market. OF course, tho
States would suffer to q certain extent through
having to pay hor obligations abroad Ia gold
but the loss ON exchange under this head would
DO q mere drop in the bucket compared with the
profits to bo reaped from the markets Of South
Ameries and Asia. to say nothing Of Europe
Tho marvel is that tho United States hes not
long ago seized tho opportunity, and but for tho
belief that the way Of England is necessarily tho
way to commercial success and prosperity, un-
doubtedlyit would have been done long ago. Now,
Americans arc awakening 10 tbs fact that
$50 long as they narrow their ambition to be-
"eoning aiarger England" they cannot beat
u.s. II has been o piece Of luck for us
chat 10 has never before occurred to tho
Americans to scoop us oi. Of the worlds
markets BY going on o silver basis, and ID
might scrve us wight IL, iyritated by the con-
tsliptuods apathy Of our udvespment To- the
gravity Of the silver problem; Che Americans
retaliato by freezing out gold. IT could easily
le done. and we propose shortly TO show, by
evidence collected from perfectly nnprcludiced
sources. that even ncw tho process has begun,
and Is proceeding at rate that will astonish
most people, and probably make this country
regrct that it did not at earlier stage fashion
its monetary policy ca principles OF friendnoS
70 other nations, instead Of on basis Of short
sighted .sel6shness. II :