Hopkinsville Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1889-1918, 1896-05-15
Mr.. Carlisle and Mr.. Tandy.

We publish elsewhere to-day a 10.
cal bankers defense of Secretary Car
isles refusal to pay greenbacks in
coin" on hand, as directed by law,
instead of issuing bonds to buy gold
from the spectators who have cor
nered that metal Mr.. Tandy treats
his subject from the usual stand
point of capital, but his arguments
have all been answered and ably
answered by Mr.. Carlisle himself.
he very candidly acknowledges that
the country is suffering from "many
ills" under the present system, but
resists any idea Of financial reform
by making two metals do the present
work of one as redemption money.
Silver is now merely commodity
and gold must carry it as token
money as well as all the paper. In
other words the government is at.
tempting to conduct $1,600,0O0,000
business on $100000O00 of borrowed
gold, that is taking wings at the rate
of $5,S00,O00 week. Secretary Man.
ming, wiser predecessor of Carlisle,
stopped similar raid of money
grabbers" by telling them plainly
that he would redeem paper money
in equal amounts of silver and gold
whenever the surplus fell below the
danger line. The raids were not made
and no bonds were issued during
Cleveland's first term and Mr.. Man
ming was not investigated for shady
transactions. The feed baskets"
would not be needed if Carlisle would
do as Manning did. Finding that
the gold would be protected, the raid
ers would not present the greenbacks
for redemption, since for all money
purposes they are as good as gold.
The decision of the Supreme Court
in the Legal Tender Case years ago
has settled that point.
The threat that the banks would
refuse to receive silver at par, en-
phasizes the growing necessity
for such legislation as will get
the governments finances further
away from the control of banks. The
banks would no doubt attempt to de-
stroy the credit of the government, as
the esta blished policy of the money
power is to rule or ruin, but the ex-
perience of so years has showed that
the government can maintain the par
ity of the two metals, whether the
banks are willing to assist in circu-
lating it among the people or not.
Mr.. Tandy asks why silver dollars
did not circulate prior to 1873. Sim
ply because silver was at premium
and sought European markets where
the ratio was Is to l. What we could
get hold Of was needed for fractional
coins and was not coined into dollars.
Mr.. Carlisle explained this in 1878:
whenever the market value of the
metal becomes greater than the legal
value fixed by one statue, we will
witness precisely the same thing that
occurred under the act of 1S37-silver
will leave the country and go where
it is justly and equally valued by law.
Like every other article, if left free
to follow the natural laws of trade
it will always find the best market"
Mr.. Carlisle also refutes Mr.. Tan
dy's claim that jackson destroyed
silver in 1884, and explains why it
was not circulated in 1878:
Except during a period of II
years from 1917, to 1884, silver
has always been undervalued in
its relation to gold by the coin
age laws Of this country. Such
was the case continually from 1884
Tr>rIr 1rC DENtoNrn11 .n1oNy ,~y 1919
apd the inevitable consequence was
that the silver of full legal weight
and fneness had entirely disappeared
from our circulation for at least 20
years before the suspension of specie
payments liz 1861-62. At the very
time of it's demonstration it was
worth from 3 to 81 per cent MORE
THAN GOLD, and therefore could not
have been kept in circulation with
gold even if specie payments had
been resumed on the double stand
ard"
The bankers are now the defenders
of the man who uttered these truths
and who closed his patriotic before
taking a-cabinet- address in
these ringing words:
"The struggle now going on cannot
cease, and ought not to cease, until
all the industrial interests of this
country are fully and finally enamel
pated from the heartless domination
of syndicates, stock exchanges and
other great combinations of money
grabbers in this country and in Eu-
rope"