Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1896-08-13
WHAT ZIG TO L MEANS.

Those who favor free coinage of
silver at the rate of IL to l mean that
they want Congress to pass laws that
shall make 16 grains of silver worth as
much as one grain of gold, and l6
ounces of silver worth as much as one
ounce of gold.
Why should this not be dones
Simply because 16 grains OF silver are
pot worth one grain OF gold and their
values cannot be made equal by law.
One grain of gold is worth 3l1a
grains Of silver; one ounce of gold is
worth Big ounces OF silver.
The proof Of this is that you can
take one grain of gold and buy 3l1a
grains Of silver with it, or you can
take one ounce of gold and buy 81 |
ounces Of silver with it, and you can |
DO this either at San Francisco or at |
New Orleans, or at Denver. or at
Washington, or at New York, or at any
oity in this country, or at any city in
Europe.
You can do this with every grain or
ounce of gold that you have got or,
that you can get hold OF.
You can get for any quantity OF gold,
much or little, not merely 16 times as
much silver as you have gold, but 3l112
times as much.
There is not a man in the country
who would give up one ounce of gold
for 16 ounces of silver. because he
would be getting only half the value
Of his gold, only half what he can get
for it in any market where gold and
silver are dealt in.
Yet that is what those who favor
"l6 to l" are trying to make the
government do; they are trying to get
laws passed that shall declare 16 ounces
Of silver equal to one ounce of gold.
Suppose this is done, what then?
Well, then we shall have silver dollars
that contain only 50 cents worth Of
silver, and if that takes place it is
quite certain that those who have gold
dollars wont pass them away in ex-
change for SILVER dollars worth half the
money.
Those who have gold will hoard it,
keep it out of sight, and put it away,
because Of its greater value.
People who have things to sell-the
butcher, the grocer and others-Sill
insist on getting just as much money
as before for their goods. They will
put their prices up and will sell their
goods SO that it will take two of the
new 5o-cent dollars to buy as much as
one of the old 100 cent dollars would
buy.
The price Of labor will not be
changed.
Nobody claims that the man wht
now gets $50 a month will get $50 !;
month, when we have free silver.
The man who gets 81 day now viii
get 81 day under the new order o
things. The only difference will b.
that his dollar won't go as far, won
buy as much as his present dolla
does, and 80 it will be the man VIII
works for wages on whom the loss mus
fall If "16 to l" wins, and il man j
elected Presiden. of the United State
who stands pledged to make th
government take piece of silver tina
is worth 81 cents in the market an
stamp it as being worth a dollar, an
pass it Oft on the people as being wort
dollar.
1t is easy TO see who will lose by thi
ehange-it will be the working people
Now, who will gain by this chang
if il is nader Why, the men who ha,
got silver to sell-the owners of Il
silver mines.
They will gain vast sums at the g.
pense of the rest of the country. Tit
will be the only gamers, and eve
their profits will only go on as long
the people generally are willing to tai
the government stamp as proof that
cents worth of silver is worth i
cents in money.
OF course, you don't suppose th
the expression free silver" mea
that silver is to be given away to
eomers, go that it may be had for t
asking.
OF course, it means nothing of t
kind.
Fres silver at the rate of l6 tc
means that every man who has silly
is to be free to take it to the COVER
ment and get it coined into dollars,
that he will get silver dollar
every SO cents worth of silver that
~ hands in TO be coined. This mea
making the government take all
silver that is offered to it at pr
u nearly twice as large as it can
bought for in any city in the Unit
States or in Europe.
Now, if you are farmer or p
ducer of anything, do you know
any way to compel the government
take 50 cents worth of your wheat
corn or hogs or potatoes off your hal
and give YOU a dollar in exchan
And If you could find any way of do
this, don't you think you would b
pretty soft thing of it, and would
you get rich pretty fast?
This is what the rich men who c
silver mines, and who have silver
sell to the government. are trying
do; you, as an honest man, would
dream of asking for such thing. L
long could the government stand
and why should the owners of sil
mines be given any such privilege?
Suppose you knew that you "
going 10 be paid for your goods in
lars that were worth only half as m
as those you had been in the habi
getting, and you knew that this
the law and that there was no csc
from it, what would you do?
Why, you would double your pri
of course, at once; that is the
firing you could do to save your
from loss.
NOW, can Congress pass lay
make so cents into doliarH Yes, {
gresH can pass law saying tina
cents shall be dollar, or saying
black is white, or saying that g
pint shall be quart: but if Gong
did this, that kind of quart w
only be worth half as much as a
quart
= If you sold man pint of anytl
and called it quart, he would
pay half as much for it as he VI
pay for real quart, and SO if you
q man so-called dollars worth on
1888, ba ,pr,,lj opIy fyiua ypI hal