Delaware gazette and state journal., 1896-07-23
EFFECTS OF FREE SILVER.


oring man and the clerks
Il am asked to say, first, what free
silver of full legal tender at the ration
OF l6 parts silver TO one part OF gold
would mean to the farmer; second. to
the laboring man and the industrial
employe, and. third. to the clerk or
other employe In commercial estab.
lishment. -
The payments which are now made
to these three classes, farmers for their
products, laboring men for their work
and clerks for their services, are on
gold basis that is to say, they are paid
10 representative money, which through
the right execrise of the power Of the
Treasury under the mandatory pro.
visions Of existing laws is kept at par
with gold. IN
The purpose of the financial plank
In the Chicago platform is TO pass
force bill coupled with a coinage act.
Under the latter II is proposed to give
Western mine owners, who now produce
silver bullion and sell IL at a profit,
at the ratio Of 80 to 80 pounds Of silver
to one pound OF gold, the privilege OF
coming 1t free Of expense into silver
dollars weighing at the ratio of l6
pounds of silver TO one of gold. Bankers
engaged in the foreign traffic, in place
OF drawing bills OF exchange for the
$3.50, 000, 600 in gold coin each year
which European States have for the
past 10 years owed us annually for their
purchases Of grain, provisions, cotton,
&C., 10 excess of our purchases OF goods
from them, may spend this balance OF
our European credit on behalf OF who
ever is entitled to draw the bills,
bankers or Others in the purchase OF
silver bullion at the rate Of so to 80
pounds of silver bullion to one Of gold,
bring II to the United States Mint,
have 1t coined into dollars at the ratio
OF l6 to |, and force those dollars upon
farmers and Others.
A coinage act is merely an act sor
the manufacture Of coins. That
exhausts the word. Free coinage
would be perfectly safe without force
bill! or legal tender act In addition, be-
cause no man who had any common
sense would accept bad dollar. intrin.
sically worth 80 cents or thereahouts
in place of good dollar, unless forced
to. An act OF legal tender Is an act OF
force. The purpose Of the silver party
ia TO deprive the mass of the people OF
their free choice by acts OF legislation
forcing bad money upon thom when of
their own choice they would always
desire and choose good money.
What will be the effect Of free sill
Yer, 16 to l, upon laborers? They will
be cheated in two directions. The
first effect of such an act Of force,
coupled with free coinage, would be
general trade paralysis and widespread
bankruptcy. corresponding to the con-
ditions which the danger of mere
threat of free coinage brought about In
1888, only a great deal worse Vast
numbers of workmen would he reduced
to compulsory idleness, while wages
would be reduced, Ere long prices OF
domestic products would slowly rise,
The prices of foreign products, sugar,
tea, coffee and the like would be
doubled at once. Thus the laborer
would be cheated both out Of his
work, out OF bis wages, and out of his
goods. He would be oppressed at every
point.
The farmer might slowly secure
higher price for bis crops, but 1t
would become necessary for railway
managers to advance their rates or to
stop their traffic. The goods which the
farmer buys especially those Of foreign
origin--tea, coffoe and sugar-would be
rapidly advanced or doubled In price,
because after the product or Import
had first heen cut down by the bank,
ruptcy OF the ownera it would be but
slowly increased, and the price would
be advanced in respect to what the
farmer buys, while the farmer N ust 10
on cultiyating full crops whather be
can sell them or not at an advance.
CLERKS and employees Of com mmsrcial
establishments would, In the first
instance, be discharged from bank
rupt establishments. Others would be
thankful ro retain their places at what
ever could be offered. Rents would be
among the first subjects to be advanced
with the price OF land; Ii would be
difficult to forecast whether clerks and
employees would be subjected to greater
loss than the lahorers. One thing
may be remembered, laborer car
always find something to do II be is
willing to, do iii; clerk or employe
may often be wholly deprived of work
for long period. The proposed silver
lection OF the most obnoxious kind of
two classes, the miners OF the West and
the bankers of London, Paris and Ber.
lin, through affording those two classes
the power to force bad money upon the
people OF this country, and even to de-
prive the whole community of the
right to make contracts in terms OF
gold. proposed measure being one
forbidding any contract except In the
terms of the bad money to bs forced
into circulation.
Bearing IN mind that low prices
when brought about by way Of science
and invention are always coupled with
increasing rates Of wages, which was
true down to the silver panic OF 1893
since the resumption OF specie pay ment
in 1879, one cannot help wondering
how the advocates OF special protection
to silver miners and foreign bankers
expect to persuade laborers and EN-.
ployes that they will be benefited by
a forced advance in the prices OF the
necessaries Of life
at may not be so difficult for them
to persuade farmers that they may get
some benefit out of higher prices, even
il these higher prices are forced by
the circulation OF bad money. No
class has suffered so much as the far
mers from the depression and check TO
enterprise which was brought about by
the silver panic Of 1898; yet when the
case is fairly presented to farmers they
will presently detect the fraud.
"The capacity of the farm lands now
under intelligent cultivation In this
country has gone far beyond the con-
"a