, 1896-10-10

Of u little over ] per cent In The coinage law of
1852 expelled gold and established silver mono
mctailism, and if The overvaluation of gold to
the extent of less than / per cent in the acts of
1884 and 1885, expelled silver from circulation
aI.. .s.lblished gold muno1netallism, is not thu
conclusion irresistible that the free and un.
limited coinage OF legal tender silver at the
present time, at on generalization of nearly
100 per c. ut. w"-id Il at once place the country
upon IA monometallic silver basisf This ques-
ton does not seem to me to be open to serious
argument. and when it is proposed that the
United States shall, in defiance of our own ex-
perience during a period of 80 years and in de-
fance of the experience of other nations dur
ing many centuries, authorize the free coinage
OF legal tender silver at such a ratio, it is the
duty of the people and especially the duty of the
laboring people to pause before it is too late and
carefully consider whether they will deter
mine to overthrow their existing monetary
system and substitute in its place the depre-
ciated silver monomotallism OF Asia and Mex.
leo and the small states and republics of Cen.
trail and South America. with their low rates
Of wages and their high rates of exchange.
Under the coinage act of 1872 we had silver,
but no gold, and under the acts of 1884 and
1857, with free coinage of both metals, we had
gold, but no silver except the token subsidiary
coins after 1853, while now, with gold as the
standard and limited coinage of silver, we have
both gold and silver as full legal tender money
in larger amounts than ever before in our his.
tory, and the coins Of the two metals are kept
equal in purchasing power by the credit and
resources of the government. Notwithstanding
the difference in their intrinsic value.
Real Question hai We Have Silver
Monometallism?
We have now about $500, 900, 600 In gold and
&4l3. 900, 600 in full legal tender silver, besides
SIS, 2l6,6 81 in subsidiary silver coins, which
are legal tender in payments not exceeding
$40, and the real question for the people to de-
eide is whether they will continue to use the
coins of both metals or adopt u monetary sys-
TEN which always has and always will drive
one of them out of the country. l am not here,
therefore. this evening to advocate the exclu.
sivc use of gold coin as money, or to oppose u
conservative and safe use Of silver coin as
money along with gold and ut a parity with
gold, but l an here to insist that we shall not
abandon the present legal standard of value,
expel all the gold from the country and adopt
silver monomntallism, with free coinage OF u
nominal dollar worth intrinsically only 81 OF
o. cents. ! am here to insist that the Inints of
the United States, which were constructed
and are maintained and operated at the ex-
pense of all the people, shall not be used for
the exclusive benefit of the owners of silver
bullion under n law giving them the right to
have 81 or 81 cents worth of their silver coined
free of charge and stamped us Il dollar and
compelling you and all others to receive 1t
from them as u dollar.
All the mints of the United States, operated
W VII AIiNiN diia Jill LIZ otAAS IL d,
could not coin into standard silver dollars two.
thirds of tho annual production of silver III
our own country, but, Notwithstanding this, it
is seriously proposed to offer free coinage &c
all the silver in the world at Il legal valuation
almost double its commercial value in the
markets of the foreign countries where it is
produced. The annual production of silver in
the world is about s2ld, 10000 Mt our coinage
rate, and the annual capacity Of our mints to
coin standard silver dollars is only about SIC
GOV, 1000. Last year we coined 81, 1888, AS in gold
and $50 $50 in silver, SO that If our mints
were devoted exclusively to the free coinage
Of standard silver dollars the addition to our
stock of metallic money would be about $l5,-
UO, 900 less every ycnr than it is now, and it
would not be good money after it was coined.
More than 10 years would elapse before we
could at this rate coin enough deprecated sill
yer dollars to supply the place of the good
gold dollars expelled from the country, and in
the meantime II complete revolution would
have to be effected in our commercial rela-
lions with other nations and in nl our doines-
tic business affairs, including IA readjustment
Of the wages of labor, the price of commodities,
the rates of municipal, state and federal taxa.
ton, charges for transportation and every
other matter involving the use of money or
credit. We Should descend by n single step
from the highest standard of value to silver
monometallism, with u contracted and at the
same time deprecated currency, u financial
experiment which has no precedent in tho
monetary interest OF the world.
Fortunately when changes have heretofore
been made in the circulation by the substitu-
tion of the coins of one metal Tor the coins of
the other, the difference in their value has
been very small and the process of substitu-
ton has been gradual and created no great
financial disturbance. Under the act of l1G2
the difference in value between the coins and
the legal ratio was only n little over l per
cent. and yet, within less than one year after
the enactment of that statute, congress was
compelled to re-enforce our stock of money by
making certain foreign coins legal tender in
the payment of debts, and on the same day of
the passage of the act Of 1884, which put the
country on IA gold basis by undertaking sill
yer about l per cent, congress passed another
statute making the gold coins of Great Britain,
Portugal, Brazil, France, Mexico and Colom-
bia legal tender by weight in the payment of
debts, thus providing Us far as possible against
a contraction of the currency ON account OF
the expulsion of silver from the circulation.
During the war, when gold was leaving the
country, legal tender treasury notes were
rapidly issued, under authority of congress. to
take its place, and instead of "a contraction OF
tho currency we had an expansion. After the
war. when it was determined to change the
character Of our currency again by the re-
sumption OF specie payments, the law was en-
acted four years in advance Of the time when
it was to take effect i'll order that ample OPP.
portunity might be afforded to adjust the bust.
lNSS vi khV ltoIiN y hAS aAhSASN
Now, however, all the conservative and pru-
dental considerations that have usually CON
trolIed in the settlement of great financial
questions seem to be utterly disregarded, and
we are confronted by All organized and ag.
gressive movement to destroy by u single blow
the measures of value upon which all existing
contracts are based and thus subvert the very
foundations OF our monetary SYSTEM, without
allowing u single day to prepare for the change.
In the general confusion and disorder re-
sulting from such a radical measure what will
be the condition of the American laborel? Will
he be benefited or injured by reducing the
value of the money in which his wages are
paid and at the same time increasing the prices
Of the commodities for which his wages are
expended2
Eject ON tho W~ageworkers.
After struggling for more than u quarter of
a century, through labor organizations and
otherwise, to secure a rate of wages which
would mako the proceeds of a days work
equal to the cost Of q days subsistence for the
workingman and his family, you are asked by
the advocates of free coinage to join them in
destroying one. half Of the purchasing power
Of the money in which you are paid and In
pose upon yourselves the task of doubling the
nominal amount Of your wages hereafter-that
Is. to struggle for another quarter of n cen
fury, or perhaps longer, to raise your wages
III = deprecated currency to q point which
will enable you to purchase with them as
much of the necessaries of life AZ you can
purchase now--and II, after years Of conten-
ton, privation and industrial disorder, you
should at last succeed In 30 adjusting wnges
that They would procure vt the higher prices
Of commodities 1uss what they will procure
now &C the existing prices. what would you
have gained by the change from the old 70 tbs
new conditionsf
Eallasy Of 80 Cent Dollars.
Money received for wages. like money re.
ceived ON every other account, IL valuable only
10 the extent that 1t can be exchanged for the