Democratic messenger. [volume] (Snow Hill, Md.) 1869-1973, 1896-07-18

great nations, and further by the fact
that undor act of Parliament the
Bank of England is required to pur-
chase all the gold offered at f3 LIS Sd
per ounce of standard gold. With a
fixed price put upon il by law, and
unlimited market for every ounce that
is bought for mintage or sale, it is
impossible that gold can fall below the
price that is paid by law. Hit the
gold dollar with hammer and the
life is knocked out Of it, for the law
will not put the dollar back in il. The
Law insures gold value II refuses to
insure silver value. II should act. rs
the Democratic platform sale in 1892,
without discrimination against either
metal"
Our area is rs great as that of
Great Britain, Switzerland, Sweden.
Denmark, Holland. Belgium, France,
Spain, Portugal, Greece, Italy. Euro
pean Turkey, Palestine. Japan and
China proper We have more efiec.
tive power than Great Britain, France
ana Germany combined. We are
more Independent of the nations OF the
earth than any people that ever existed,
and the European nations are largely
dependent upon us for their breadstuf.
and raw materials We are great
debtor nation. with twenty billions of
public and private debt. We are
the greatest silverproducing nation in
the world, and the second in gold pro.
duction. We have the power and
resources To take the lead of the world,
and should do it by utilizing these
resources. instead Of entering upon
the other alternative of borrowing
more money from Europe and pros.
trating our own industries.
Ii is estimated that ii the prices of
1872 now prevailed our balance of
trade with foreign nations wonld be
over S600,000,000, instead of about
10 per cent thereof and while | do
not contend that the free coinage of
silver will restore those prices, it
would certainly have tendency To
greatly increase them.
The agricultural products OF this
country Melted billion and half
less in 1895 than they did in lS72-
then the farmer realized sl2 per acre,
now but So per cre-and the accursed
sinking OF prices still goes on, it being
estimated that they have fallen l6 per
cent. in the last four years.
We have now 81 less per capita OF
circulation than we had when the
Sherman law was repealed, and Just
as the currency is contracted prices
have fallen. II is an axiom, indeed,
Of political economy that the whole
volume of money is the standard of
value Of the whole mass Of property.
1t results that a small diminution OF
the currency is an enormous diminu-
ton in the value of property.
The talk about silver dollars being
50-cent cheap dollars is absurd, and it
is shown to be absurd by the fact that
those who call them such contend that
the free coinage Of silver would drive
away all our gold and thereby con-
tract our currency, is it not evident
that the silver dollars would be so
much in demand to pay taxes and
debts and to carry on business that
their value would be upheld by the
law of diminished supply and the
continued demand? And il our gold
should all go away to Europe would
it not swell the volume OF currency
there. increase prices there and thus
swell our balance of trade in exchange
for the enormous produce which we
send to Europe? The idea that the
increased production of silver is the
cause Of the depreciation of the bullion
is reiuted by the history Of the precious
metals The ratio OF value of the two
metals has never been controlled BIZ
the ratio OF their production, for two
reasons First. because the produce
ton OF any short period is but small
addition at most to the whole stock
accumulated through centuries, and
therefore, not like commodities OF pre-
carious and perishable nature which
vary in value with the supply of each
year The other reason is that the
law when il gave free coinage to both
metals at fixed ratio fixed their price
in an unlimited market, aud made
them legal tender for debts and taxes
at that price. For fifty years. from
1850 to 1900, the ratio Of production
of silver to gold was as 40 TO |, and
yet it maintained ratio of ID to in
value. From 1881 to 1910 nearly
two dollars of silver to one of gold was
produced, and from 1850 to 1880
nearly two dollars of gold to one OF
silver was produced and yet there was
no corresponding variation of value.
Silver was at premium in the United
States when demonetized in 1873.
although France and Germany had
already discarded it. We struck it
down and we can put it back. 1t
went up when the Bland-Allison act
passed in 1878. Prices went up also
And gold instead of being driven from
us flowed to us. 1t went up when the
Sherman act was passed. 1t went
down in the summer of 1898, when
India shut its minis, and went down
again when the Sherman law was re.
pealed. 1t shows an upward tendency
now under the prospect of monetiza
ton by the United States. If We adj.
nit it TO free coinage the two IN tails.
will speedily grow To parity gold
coming down rs prices 20 up AMI II,
silver measurably shares its functions.
and silver going up TO coinage value.
The idea that intrinsic value fixes the
value of money is absurd. Ii was dis
proved when we had the trade dollar.
which intrinscally contained more