Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1896-09-17
c.IeF JUSTICE eIaELows VIEWS.
b.vada's Great Jurist Says Free Coinage
VIII Injure Silver Miners, Pensioners
and All but o Few Debtors

bevada8 Great Jurlst says free tonnage
VIII Injure Silver Miners, Pensioners
and All but Few Debtors
Chief Justice r. r. Bigelow of the
supreme court OF Nevada had letter III
a recent issue Of the Reno New. GA
zette which states some of the effects Of
IS to free coinage very clearly, Here
is part of his letter:
1t is not to be denied that the RepuS.
licans Of this state are hard hit by the
action of the st. Louis convention upon
the monetary question. The free coinage
Of silver is believed to be so much to
the advantage of Nevada as silver
producer, and We have for SO many
years heard nothing but free coinage
"at 10 to - arguments, that we have
almost come to the conclusion that no
one can think otherwise who is not
scOundrcl bought with British gold,
But there is another side to the question
that is believed in sincerely by millions
Of rs pure patriots as any who believe
III free coinage Of silver Any man who
says that this country can alone double
the value Of al the silver Of the world
and bring it and gold to par is either
ignorant Of the lessons of the past OF he
willfully shuts his eyes to them If the
free silverites carry the election this fall
on their 1G to l platform, it will not
only paralyze busincss-it will utterly
destroy it. There will be scarcely a
bank or business house in the land that
will not go down before the storm 1t
will send gold to almost 100 per cent
premium, and, as measured with silver,
everything else will go up in value with
it, but as it will take twice as many
dollars as now to buy the same article
it will be of NO earthly advantage to
any one except to the man who owes
debts that he has not promised to pay
in gold. His silver dollars will pay such
u debt just as during the war green
backs would pay one, although worth
but 33 cents on the dollar, but they
will only buy half as much flour or
clothing or groceries as now.
But if he owes money to banks or
money Understand whodocs not?-who
have all protected themselves by gold
ilt Will IlttNt w NtthN WV VI
his silver dollars to buy one III gold, and
at the same time, owing to the general
Stagnation i'll business they will be
harder to get hold of than gold dollars
are now 1t will be of no advantage to
the silver states, because their silver will
be just as hard to get from the ground as
now, and a pound of it will buy no moro
steel or powdclsor any of the neccssaries
of life than now.
But tho laboring man will be the one
who will suffer the most. The Comstock
miner will still get 81 per day, the la
horcr So and the clerk $50 to $40 per
month, but it will be III silver, and, as
it is now in Mexico, it will only buy
for his family or himself onc-half what
it will today. Tho same will be the
case with tho crippled veterans, their
widows and orphans, who arc now get
ting pensions. Its effect will be to scale
their pensions. Its effect will DO to scale
their pensions down onc-half.
There is not one of the arguments of
the silvcritcs that cannot be completely
and successfully refuted. Free coinage
at 16 to 1 by this country alone cannot
possibly benefit any one, but it can bring
fearful distress upon all