The morning times., 1896-07-05
HOV THE PRODUCTION OF YELLOW METAL INCREASES
Startling Predictions of Increased Gold Mining-Has
Gold "Appreciated' or Products "Depreciated?"
TIMELY FACTS FOR THE APPROACHING CAMPAIGN

ministratOrs explain this by saying that
the Hindoos are inveterate hoarders Of
gold and silver, hiding It away in the
grouad or Under the floors OF buildings
TACT which l respectfully submit to the
attention OF Capt. kidds Treasure craBks.
However that may be, the fact that
one dollar in gold will buy about twice
as mueh OF tne great American staples
as 1t would in 1876 is the great fact upon
which the mining States rely In predict
Ing constant growth OF mining activity.
But II gold mining has become SO profit
aole--I have asked this Question OF any
number OF Hen hereabout-why Is 1t that
more people don't 60 into it? Why doesn't
the production OF gold increase by
nfty million dollars in a year, instead Of
by five or six or ten million dollars?
THIS question usually ELECTS u smile OF
superior wisdom and the e1planatiUn that
great movements are always slow oues;
and that II takes time, aud great deal Of
time, lor big mining and milling plants 10
be made ready for operation; that capital
Is conservative and tends to remain "A
liked channels, and, finally, that there Is
not IN all the world at any time idle capital
enough to develop gold mines or any Gtiac>
business 10 the extent of Which 1t is tEro-
reticaily capable. There's where the law
ol s1i'piyana demand comes IN. IfeYeryb body
were TO 20 gold mining, which everyh hody
can't, of course 1t would be gold that would
depreciaic and the prices OF hog and houiny
would go up ike a kite. But nobody antioi-
pates that Just yet.
AT least no one IN this country anticipates
It, The recent Kaffir craze in London was
due to prediction that the mines in South
Africa alone would produce within the
next I've years as much gold as the eatirs
product of the whole world for the last
hundred years II many investors really
anticipated such an increase. the craze to
get possession OF the shares OF Kaffir mines
is not inexplicabIe.
Our own mining experts are more Gun
servative. They Go not predict waatcrs
andpotents- They lookto see. in this country,
q steady increase in production where up
TO 1899. the industry had been nearly sta
ftonary aud had even tended slightly to de
crease since the opening of the Bonanza
silver mines. But they doa't anticipate
that the increase Will be sufficient to dis
turD the value of the precious metal for I.
long time to come If ever
There is another party, however. that
doesn't talk this way at all ! refer To
the gold stock kiters and shouters Thes,
are the fellows who don't care a cent
whether the production OF gold does or
does not increase or its value measured
in staple products appreciates or depre-
ciates. What they want to 10 IS 10 get
Z.
capitalize it for s 900 GOO on an actual
expenditure of few thousands and get
the shares scoOting up and down the to-
boggaD slides OF the market lists at few
cents share. There is money in this for
the spectators who are on the ground
floor. 1t need scarcely be added that.
for people at distance from the ruines
and unable TO get any accurate inforna-
ton OF their value. wildcat gold mining
stocks will fmpoverish a man lust as
surely and good deal more quickly than
backing race horses from the outside
The total gold coinage of the world is
estimated at about 81 900 900 .O0o How
much bullion there is besides no one
knows. The annual product now exceeds
500, 900. .0OO-a big sum, but only an
addition Of one-halr OF one per cent
to the worlds stock OF gold coin to say
nothing OF tie quantity absorbed by the
jewelers. These are the facts that arc
spread before the eyes of possible investors
as an inducement to purchase gold mine
stocks. Vast as is the worlds visible
supply of the yellow metal, there would
be considerably less than 50 each il il were
divided equally between the inhabitants of
the globe
There is no doubt. then, however tho
election may turn out this fall. that gold
win continue to be a s.loDg-feit want
And all this talk about it is acting upon
spectators with a kind of hypnotic eff
rect. When everybody is talking about
gold the idea is likely to occur to a good
many people at the same time that guld
shares are good things to own. And plenty
OF Denver folks have them to sell. 1t is
difficult for one in the East to appreciate
how energetically and with what hopeful
and admirable cheerfulness the pcople II
the mining States have turned to TIE moe
favored metal: but not all the hustle Of the
markets can blind one to the fact that these
are DUH da Us in the Rockies and that an
increase of $4,000 900 a year or so in
gold doesn't go far to ma ke up for a drep
of over six times as much in the value Of
the silver product.
There's n good deal more of nrospcct
than of perfornla nee about the thing so far.
But they say the performance is coming.
Nobody expects to see in New York or
III Denver or anywhere else such fighting
mobs OF investors as crowded the London
calling out of whole pla tooDs of police to
preserve order, after the London fashion
of year ago. Idle capital is not so pleDti-
full in this country as it is in England. and
after all is said it remains true that TIE
Yankee investor is q pretty shrewd fell
low. Yet gold is on the mend Just now.
and will be to Il greater extent. IL the
speculation in American gold shares which
everyone is predicting. and which Will he
stimu lated by British speculation in Brit
ish-Aunerican mines, does not quite equal
the Kaffir eraze, so much the better. It
will be big enough.