The Mt. Sterling advocate. (Mt. Sterling, Ky.) 1890-current, 1896-09-08
AN AUTHORITY
Indorses Bryan's Claims Regard
ing Free Coinage.

tnoilIY Oh the suDJect:
"To the Editor Of the Financial
News--Sir: | think your editorial
remarks this morning OH Mr.. Bryan's
speech will make many of your read
ers rub their eyes with wonder. Mr..
Bryan believes that free coinage in
the United States will establish the
par of l to 16 all the world over, with
which opinion lam happy to associate
myself. You add: GAS Mr.. Bryan
is presumably wholly not uneducated,
he must know that his statement
which even the most rabid bimetallist
canuot swallow, is absolutely opposed
to the truth; but whether he is only
grossly ignorant or an INSCRIPTIONS
rascal, he has shown how untitled he
is to become the head of the Govern
ment.' In letter to your colu INNS
which you were good enough to pub
lish on May 20, L gave reasons for my
belief that America single handed,
can hold silver at $l.29 per ounce.
Permit me very shortly to recapitulate.
La June, 1898, India abandoned free
coinage; with the mint of India open
the gold price of silver was 274 per
cent higher than five days later, when
that mint had been closed (3S8i-301dI.
Ii open minis in India make a differ
ence of 279 pei cent in the gold value
of silver, why is the man grossly il
norant or rascal who thinks that
probably open minis in the United
SJatas and India would raise silver
from its present price to 59d. the par
of l to 16? Therefore, swallow
Mr.. Bryan's statement, and so also
will many others who are not even
'rabid bimetallists.' No one would
accuse the Times Of any such rabidity,
and yet this is the judgment of the
Times, announced in leading article
January 20, 1891: tBimetallists will
probably regard events in America
with painfully mixed feelings. Amer
lean legislation tends to bring silver
back to its old value in relation to
gold, and for those to whom that re-
lation is fetish this must be a salts
factory result. But it knocks the bot
tom out of the bimetallic propaganda,
and out of some of the leading bimet-
allists' arguments in this country.
Free coinage in America would at
once fix this ratio all over the world,
and even the existing American legis-
lation will by degrees approximate so
closely to the same result as to destroy
all the picturesqueness of the bimet-
allist case
"Mr. III r. Grenfell. Governor of
the Bank of England, in his examina-
ton before the Royal Currency Com
mission in 1887, had this to say of
single-handed bimetallism:
q, 404)-Q. If England adopted
the bimetallic law, and no other did,
would that be sufficient to steady the
relative prices?
GA. l have not the the slightest
doubt if the British Empire did it
would be quite sufficient without ask
ing the other nations to join.
(W,406)--Q. Still you have a very
definite opinion that the bimetallic
law would have the practical effect of
steadying the relative prices of silver
and gold on the continent and in the
United States if the British Empire
adopted it?
A. 1 have not the slightest doubt
about it.
"Were it worth while 1 might quote
endless experts here, in America, and
on the continent as holding the same
view. and as l believe within
twelve-month we shall see the attempt
made by the United States, and made
successfully, I shall be obliged if you
will put me on record as one who is
in complete agreement with Mr.. Bry-
an on the currency issue. Mr.. Bryan
may be wrong, free coinage may in
volve gold premium in New York,
in which case the great stimulus to all
that America exports, after first ena-
bling her to buy back her securities
from Europe, and to buy them at
knock out prices, because of the pres
ent seGseless camor in the London
prose, will next enable her to bring
back gold from this side on every
ship. Yours faithfully,
EMnnn