Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1896-07-23
PRACTICAL TALKS ABOUT SILVER,
Free Coinage and Wages.

70 get IN a lick at Wall street. Devil take
Don't you care anything about your
| SELF / asked.
| What do you mean?'
| Don't you care anything about the eff
| feet on your own earnings and domestic
economy OF the establishment of free
| coinage Of silver?"
oh: stuff It won't make any differ
| ence to me. Not a bit of difference"
| Here was an intelligent man. a bright
man. a man who earns his $500 year.
| He didn't know that the establishments of
| free coinage would affect him DersonaII1J
What is free coinage?' l asked
Means that the government will coin
all the gold and silver that's taken to the
mint free of charge"
Il suppose you noticed that provision in
the Chicago platform in regard to the ratio
of Is to L.
oh yes
What's that mean?"
Means that sixteen times as much Sill
Yer, BY weight. shall go into a dollar as
of gold"
so that all man need do is to take
a certain quantity of silver to the mint
regardless OF its market value. and get a
dollar for ito?
y suppose So"
so If man can buy as much silver as
goes into dollar for 81 cents. he can sell
II TO. the government for a dollar?''
Why. yes: | suppose So
Now, do you mean to say that ii would
moi affect you personally if the dollar of
today. the northumberland dollar should
be superseded by a fifty hree-cent dol
lar?''
But it won't"
why not"
Hang it all. dollars a dollar. It's
the stamp of the government that makes
the dollar. Isn't this silver dollar that I've
got in my hand as good as a gold dollar"
For present use it is. It's worth a dol
lar today. because practically ii bears on
its face the promise of the United States
to redeem it in gold But if you should
keep that dollar, and unlimited free coin
age should be established in this coun-
try. you would see the time when you
when its value would be simply the value
of the silver that's in it. just as today
the value of a gold dollar is the value
of the gold that's in it. You say the
stamp of the government makes value?
Really. You don't believe that, do you?'
Certainly; wherever the stamp goes.
the value goes. Isn't that true?"
Not bit of it. The stamp on the gold
piece is simply Il certificate of the guam
tity of gold it contains. We are shipping
gold TO Europe all the time, Europeans
value. If there was more gold in a five
dollar piece it would bring more abroad;
if less. the price would be lower.
$50 il is in our own country. The gold
coin is taken for what it actually is worth.
1t stands on its merits. There is no re-
demption back of it. 1t is our standard
of value. If man has a horse to sell. he
names the price-so many dolars-and
expects payment in dollars that come up
to the standard.
cent dollar you have in your hand stands
precisely in the position of the paper dol
lar. 1t is practically only promise 70
pay gold. 1t would circulate as freely II
there was but ten cents worth of silver
in ii. 1t is taken now in trades OF all
kinds without question because nobody
doubts the ability of the government to
Establish free coinage and the silver
dollar will have nothing behndit. 1t must
go for what it actually Is worth. There
would be no redemption. In the first place.
ernment promise of redemption; in the
second place. the government could not
keep such u promise good if it should
make ii.
Free coinage means the subtitution
of the silver dollar for the gold dollar as
the standard of value.
Won personality" l demanded of my
friend.
I'D get my salary in silver" he an
coin, but in dollars redeemable in silver.
Is that what you mean"
That's part of it. You don't entertain
any expectation. do you. that your SALARY
Dol? OF course ! don't. I've seen too
much Of the world to expect the like OF
that Men who work for wages. big or
little would keep on working at the same
wages. I've no doubt of that
''IOW about YOUR expenses? TAKE rent,
for example. You pay 49, a month now
for your fiat you say. Will your landlord
continue to rent that fiat for $35 when
dollars shall be worth 80 Co. 40 cents?
What do you think about it?"
II wouldn't if l was he"
How about clothing. food, and the
other necessaries of life? Would your sal
airy go as far after the scaling down by
free coinage as it does now? You paid
about $50 for that suit. l judge-$S0 In
gold. You don't suppose thirty ffty-cent
dollars would buy such suit of clothes,
do you?
Another thing. Is your life insured"'
Eyes. for $1,000"
Comfort to you to think that II var
should die your wife would get that 5000?
You needn't say yes. | know it, Nov.
how would you feel if this $600o should be
scaled down about 80 per cent?"
THAT would be devilish."
That's what free coinage proposes. "
proposes. too, that every dollar YOU and
and hard work. have put into the SAVINGS
bank shall be cut in two about In the
middle.
Now. my advice to you.'' said I. in
lis to study into this question
u little. Let Wall street go to thunder
Wall street will take care of itself In any
Look out for yourself.
maintain that a man who works for a liv
ing as you and do wants a stable mona-
tary system. Certainly we don't want to
vote to cut our own wages down 30 par
cent without first satisfying ourselves
that we should get some great compfnsa-
ting advantage out of free coinage
WAGE GARNER in NY. Times.