Democratic Northwest and Henry County news. [volume] (Napoleon, O. [Ohio]) 1894-1905, 1896-10-15
M nNernrolincftnn-

Of Mr.. Schurz Is based upon the theory Of
overproductiOn. He insists that there Is q
fall In the price of silver and that this Is
due to oyerproductiOn; that there was so
much more silver produced than formerly
that it had tO fall in price. You will readi-
ly see that If there was the same increase
In the production of both metals then
there was no reasOn why the relations
which they bore 20 each other, or the mar-
ket ratio which they bore to each other,
should change Mr.. SchurZ knew this.
Why didn't he state II that way Because
he knew the facts were against him. He
wanted to make an impression which he
could not make without suppression Of
part of the case. Fortunately this Is not a
matter that we need TO speculate about.
We have history, experience and accurate
dnta upon this subject. According TO the
tables issued by the treasury department
Aug 1o, 1898, showing the total produc-
ton of gold and silver in the world atcoin-
age value, 1t appears that from the year
1792, when our monetary system was
founded, to the year 1852, the time Of the
great gold discoyerieS-beinga period of GO
years-the total production of silver In the
world, rating it at coinage value, was
Y
gold in the world during that time was
1860, 236, 00O-that Is on the average there
was Just about twice as much silver pro-
duced as gold during that time The pro-
duction of each metal varied of course dur
ing the different years, and yet the market
ratio between the two metals remained
practically the same during all that time.
The tables giving the market prices show
that during those 60 years there was a va
rance of only seyen-tenths Of one point,
or Just about the cost of exchange. The
same tables show that from 1852 to 1873
the total gold production of the world was
81, 5l6, SIS, 900, while the total silver pro-
duction was only 1889, 225, ,000-that is,
there was az times as much gold pro-
duced as silver, yet the market ratio re-
mained unchanged during these 81 years,
just as 1t had during the period of 60 years
when there was twice as much silver as
gold produced. Again, the same tables
show that from 1878 to 1899, inclusive,
the total gold production of the world was
81, l76, 800, 900, while the total silver pro-
duction was 81, S4T, ,OS7, ,000-that Is, the |
production of gold was nearly equal to |
that of silver. During the first two peri |
odS silver was money metal. During the |
last period 1t was not Inasmuch rs silver
did not fall In value, as measured In gold |
during the 60 years In which there was
twice as much silver produced as there
was gold, 1t is clear that had silver not |
been demonetized 1t would not have fall |
en- when the gold production was nearly |
equal to that of silver after 1878
Silver Has Not Fallen.
Again, silver has not fallen in compari- '
son with other property. By taking the +,
average price Of all commodities known to |
the market it is found that d pound Of sill
yer will buy as great an amount of COM
modities as ever. Silver occupies the same
relation to the products of the earth and to
labor today that 1t did before. 1t Is gold |
that has gone up. The law, by striking
down the competition, has given gold
monopoly. 1t protects gold against compe-
tition. Practically the gold dollar is BOO +
cent dollar. Nominally it still has only
100 cents In it, but it takes 200 cents
worth of commodities to get one when
measured by bimetallic prices. Conse-
quently we find first, that there has been
no increase in the production of silver
when compared with the increase In the
production of gold, and, secondly, we find
that silver has not fallen when compared
with property and the products of labor
therefore the entire 1anrlc OF MT ochurz' s
argument must lall TO the ground.
Fall of Wages.
Mr. Cob,,rz ,ov+ +r,o,, r., c,,r,.o,- +ho IN,
,,ross,or tbo+ ,rr,,ros horo r,o+ fo,Ior, o,,d
trore tharefore NOT affoctad br tho dornono'
tigotion of silver and he says that uares
have risen more than 90 nor cont si6co
Ive0 coo tbo i,co,uitr of b,eond -
yourselves Ubetber tbic iee foir yro1 of
thot ,,,,o.+4o,, An tho ,,-cuI5
l. Lno,,-e +bot r,o,roe hovo poorI,- do,,blod
-i,,oo ,SeO The r,,,oe+io,, ie il -
,y,or,os beon offooted br the foot tb,. tb,s
oo,tI,+r,- ord Enroro do-,orotIzod e;11,a,
nd roSncat, the voinmn of nono1- IN tho
yvor,d bot1venn 1s73 and ts7Qr Had bo
boon cand,d ba vonld have coInnored tho
uo f,os for cav - vaare nrior tn the ,,onerai
With 1raoas for 10 ,-oors
of+or thot r,o,,orol dononottzotion rros oc
Tbio snhie,t of 1vaoes v,es oaroP,,,1r In
,uirod into in the vaor 1so1 hv 81 commit
ten onnointad hv the I-nita6 States eonata
Tbie non,,i+toe n,ado O thoron,,b in,oe+i-
r.ation Iobn e Carlisle the rrasoTt sac-
rotorr of tba traasnr1 ras a mem har of
that committee, II made a hong and fnll
ronort ard II showed that between 1870
and 1s78 pacps had inst ahont donhled
and tben the rnnort SAYS "A f+er 1874 there
was q marked falling Off" The report
goes on and shows that toward 1880 there
was slight rise in wages above the point
they had recently fallen to, but they never
reached the point they had occupied be-
fore, and soon thereafter q decline set In
which continued
Mr.. SchurZ was once member of the
United States senate, and the investiga-
tion by this COMMITTEES on the subject OF
wages must have attracted his attention.
If he was thorough In his Investigation,
he must have seen this report. Had he
been thoroughly candid he would not have
tried to make the impression that because