Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1896-08-12

Does This Help the Man Who Worl
for . LivingY
The following letter. which eloquent
shows the evils OF free silver, has been r,
ccived from Luther F. Mckinney, Unite
States Minister to Bogota:
BoGOTA, juno l7-As the money que,
ton seems to be the important question i
the present political contes: in the Unite
States. thought II might he OF interes
to know what effect silver legislation ha
had upon the people of Colombia.
| Twenty years ago, in 1876, gold and silve
were coined in the mints Of Colombia
both being n legal tender for all debts
and at that time, owing to the scarcity @
| the white metal, silver was at u premium
over gold Of about 3 per cent.
About 1880 gold was at premium, be
| cause the imports exceeded the exports
and as the balance had to be paid in gol,
II required small premium to get tn
gold for the purpose. Up to 1885 the gov
ernment continued to coin gold and silver
| and at that time gold was at n premium
| over silver Of about 90 per cent.
In 1SSj congress passed law that mad,
paper money n legal tender for all debts
the paper 10 be payable in gold or silvc
at the option of this government" thii
being an attempt to make silver at pal
with gold.
Gold 100 Per Cent. Premium.
This was an inpossibility, for ut ono,
the gold all went on: of the country and
the government was on n silver basis, in
spite of IT'S efforts by legislation to kecI
gold and silver at n parity. From that
time to this there has been no gold in cir
culation in Colombia.
The effect of this was to raise the pre-.
MUM on gold from 20 per cent. in 1885 to
100 per cent. in 1885.
At the present time. June Il, exchange
on New York is 40. the price of exchange
depending wholly upon the number of
drafts upon the marke: and the demand
for them. AS the coffee crop is being
shipped mt this time and the merchants
for certain reasons are not importing
largely. the price Of exchange Is low.
In the department of Panama paper
money Is not used, silver being the only
III thc
that silver in the other departments has
entirely zone out Of circulation. ard paper
Is the only money used.
II one goes to market in Bogota and Of
fers silver for his dinner ii is refused. As
exchange is lower i'm Panama than in other
parts of the country Spcculators buy all
the silver they can find 1t n premium OF
from 5 to 10 per cent. and send il to Pana-
,ns and make a profit Now. 20 show the
effect of this upon the I.coplc Of COLOMBIA
/ will give facts that are well authenti-
gated
Prices Scar Upward.
In 1885. when gold was at n premium OF
20 Der cent. wages Of workiEgansn on the
plains of Bosota were forty cents a day,
and in the hot country sixty cents u day.
At the present tir.c wngos are sixty and
ninety cents respectively, an advance Of
80 per cent. All provisions have increased
in cost about 200 per cent Meats at that
time were selling for from twelve tn fif-
teen cents per pound Al The present time
they sell for forty and fifty cents.
House rents have increased from 100 to
200 Der cent Small tencmcnts. such as
poor people occupy, could be had In 1883
for - IA month; now the same tencments
bring -. IN 1854 and 1885 the Protestant
minister of Bocota occupied a house for
which he paid $50 u month; at the present
time the same house brings 1900 n month.
Mean Quality of Goods.
In 1888 table beard could i;c had at the
best hotels FOR Il IA day; now it is - u day,
and the proprietors all suy there is Inuch
less money in the business than when they
received 81. Wearing apparel has not in
creased in price in proportion to pro
visions, bu! this i because the people ar,
too poor 10 buy the goods they were in the
habit OF wearing before, and the mcf'
chants have placed upon the market the
poorest quality of goods made in Europe
for the market. The reason that mer-
chants give for not buying more goods in
the United states is that the goods are toe
good and the people cannot afford to buy
them.
1t seems to ,ne that if the workingmeI
Of the United States will study this object
lesson they will readily see that what they
want il an honest dollar that will buy az
much in the markets abroad as the dOllaI
Of any other nation.
Two Dollars for One.
If silver Is coined in the United State.
at the rate Of Is to l, while the gold in 9
gold dollar is worth 100 cents In any coun
try In the world, and the silver In a silver
dollar is only worth 80 cents, Is it mo-
eI.& ha # f'n1,v " 10.
and In fact all South American countrie:
where 1t has been tried, will be the expert
cnce Of the United Statesf
The gold will all leave the country, an(
It will require two dollars of silver to buy
one dollars worth Of goods in the markets
of the world, where gold Is the standard.
The next question is, will the wages O
labor be increased In proportion to the in
crease of the cost Of livings The pric
Of labor will always be governed by tn
law of supply and demand, while the COS
of living will be governed by the value O
----------.-z----
A ST. LOUIS manufacturer has offere,
to pay his employees two Mexican dollar
for every dollar due them in American
| money. but the workmen wisely prefer
| dollar that is worth its face value. Ye
there is enough silver in nine Mexican
dollars to coin ten silver dollars in thi
| country, at a ratio Of 16 to 1 with gold
Let free coinage law be enacted, how
ever, and the wage Garner would not evel
| get the equivalent of one Mexican dolla
in exchange for full dollars worth O
labor.-Philadelphia Record.
| UNDER free coinage the silver min
owner will take 50 cents worth of silve
to the mint and have 1t coined int
a 1O0-cent dollar. That is a good schem
for the owner Of silver bullior