The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-05-13
VAN HORNE ON FREE COINAGE.
what Would Occur if 16 to L Were
AdOpted.
From the chicago Times-Herald.

From the Chicago Times-Herald
] thought l had presented every view
Of the free-coinage fallacy in my different
articles and in my book on coinage, but
day or two ago Sir William Van Horne,
the president Of the Canadian Pacific rail-
road, shed a new and novel light on the
subject. / met him in Montreal. Speak
ing of American money, l told Mr.. Van
Horne that many free-coiners in the states
think that the S525 600, 600 of silver coined
by the United States is really demOnetiZed.
They think that our silver will not be
taken all over the world. Now, l said,
your system of railroads and ships extend
from Halifax across the continent to Van
eouver, and over the ocean to Japan and
China.
Yes" said the president. land we sell
tickets around the world"
DO you take our silver all over your
system the same as gold?' / asked.
Certainly. We take American silver the
same as gold or British silver all over
Canada and in Yokohama and Hong
Kong. A man can buy a ticket or pay for
any freight with Amsterdam silver the
same as with gold"
DO you take Indiana, japanese or
Mexican silver2'
YES, but at half price. The silver these
nations have coined is demOnetized. They
have free coinage. They have not ,guaran-
iced it as England, France and America
have guaranteed their silver"
But we have no real gold under our sill
ver," I said.
"Neither have you gold under any Of
your greenbacks, silver certncates or
treasury notes. You actually owe $S50,00O-
900 for borrowed gold"
But still our guaranty is good?'
Yes, America is a rich country. You
have a tariff for revenue, or should have,
and you have side assets;
But suppose we should have free coin
age?' l asked.
7'You mean, suppose the United States,
with $780, 900 of silver lying idle in your
treasury, should agree to pay double the
market price for all silver brought to your
minis and go on coming ad ininitum p
Yes, that's what the free silver men
want"
that we viii cease to take your coined sill
yer at par"
"But wny?"
Because your guarantee wouldn't he
good. The American gold guarantee Is
stretched to its utmost limits now. The
world knows that the United states
couldn't do this thing. You could not
coin the billions of dollars worth of COM
mercial silver in the world and pay a
double price for it 1t would block your
mints. II would come in train loads from
China, Mexico and India. The day you
do this foolish thing l will load a ship
with 5O-cent Mexican dollars at Hong
Kong and put on full sail for San Fran
cisco. The silver manufacturers like Tir-
fanny would ship their millions dollars
worth of old silver to your mint, where
the government would pay a double price
for it in shining dollars guaranteed az
good as gold England, which has never
coined but $12O, 100000 in silver, couldn't
do this; and the moment you stopped
doing it, all your coined dollars, even the
So25,UWQOO now coined and guaranteed
as good as gold, would drop, like Next
can and Indian silver, TO its commercial
value. And who wants to DO this?
Why" l said, about five silver states
with a population under 100000. These
two million people, interested in MINES
in order to double their wealth would ieop-
ardize 65,OOQO00 in the other states. They
would bankrupt the nation and make
her the laughing stock Of Europe. The
silver interests of Idaho is worth 81, 00O, 0D
CALIFORNIA; interest is in gold and wool
Montana silver interest is about nil
lion and a half"
The farmer and the labOrer is now being
paid in silver or paper as good as gold.
can we hope to have anything better? The
miner is making cats-paw Of the farmer
Eli Perkins
-.Hana. what Is the rmI.ns -lassior1 ~