Audubon Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Iowa) 1894-1925, 1896-09-03


them. 1t would deliver them to those who
deposited the silver and it's connection
with the transaction there end. Such are
the silver dollars which would be issued
under free coinage of silver Mt ratio of rs
to l. Who would then maintain the par
ity? What would keep them at par with
gold? There would be no obligation rest
ing upon the government to do it, and if
there were it would be powerlcss to do it.
! The simple truth is, we would be driven to
a silver basis to silver monometallism.
These dollars, therefore, would stand upon
their real value. II the free and unlimited
coinage of silver at a ratio Of 16 ounces of
silver to ounce of gold would, as some of
its advocates assert, make 53 cents In Gil.
yer worth 100 cents and the silver dollar
equal to the gold dollar, then we would
have no cheaper money than now, and II
would be no easier to get. But that such
would be the result is against reason and
Is contradicted by experience in all times
| and in all lands. 1t means the debase-
ment of our currency to the amount of the
difference between the commercial and coin
value of the silver dollar, which is ever
changing and the effect would be to re-
duce property values, entail untold flnan-
cial loss, destroy confidence impair the OBJ
| legations Of existing contracts, further i'm
| poverish the laborer and producer of the
! country, create panic of unparalleled Sc
| verify and inflict upon trade and commerce
deadly blow. Against any such policy
am unalterably opposed.
Question of BimetaIIism.
Bimetallism cannot be secured by indie
pendent action Oh our part 1t cannC lc
| obtained by opening our minis to the Il!
| limited coinage of to silver of the wCr'C
| ut ratio of 16 ounces If silver to Oun,'
| of gold when the c., or: i'll ratio Is nor,
| than 80 ounces of ST. or to ounce Of gUlG
| Mexico and China Ave tried the exEcrl
ment. Mexico h e coinage Of silver
and gold at n t.. slightly in excess %
| 1917 ouncrs of sikrr to ounce of gold.
and, while her ANTS are freely open to
| both metals at that ratio, not a single dol
| lar in gold bullion is coined and circulated
| as money Gold has been driven out of
| circulation in these countries, and they are
on a silver basis alone. Until information
| al agreement is had it is the plain duty Of
| the United States to maintain the gold
| standard 1t is the recognized and sole
| standard of the great commercial nations
| of the world with which We trade more
largely than any other. Eighty-four per
| cent of our foreign trade for the fiscal year
| 1895 was with gold standard countries,
| and our trade with other countries was
| settled on gold basis.
Chiefly by means of legislation during
| AID since 1;i6 ti.cre has Lccn put n circu-
| lltion more than $G24. 900, 900 Of silver or
| its representative. This has been done in
| the honest effort to give to silver, If pCssi-
| bic, the same bullion and coinage value
| ard encourage the concurrent use Of both
| gold and silver as money. Prior to that
| time there had been less than 5000, 900
| silver dollars coined in the entire history
of the United States, a period of 80 years
| This legislation secures the largest use of
| silver consistent with financial safety and
| the pledge 10 maintain It's parity with gold
| We have today more silver than gold
| This has been accomplished ut times with
| grave peril to the public credit The SO
| called Sherman law sought to use all the
silver product of the United States for
money at its market value. From 1890 to
| 1898 the government purchased 4, 500, 900
ounces Of silver month or 81, 000, 900
| ounces year. This was one-third Of the
product Of the world and practically all of
this country's product. 1t was believed
| by those who then and now favor free
coinage that such use of silver would ad-
vance its bullion value to its coinage val
ne, but this expectation was not realized
In few months, notwithstanding the IN
precedented market for the silver produced
| in the United States, the price of silver
went down very rapidly, reaching a lower
point than ever before. Then, upon the
recommendation of President Cleveland
both political parties united in the repeal
Of the purchasing clause of the Sherman
law. We cannot with safety engage In
further experiments in this direction.
On the 22d of August, 1891, in public
| address, said: eff we could have an in
ternational ratio which all the leading ma
lions of the world would adopt and the
true relation be fixed between the two
metals and all agree upon the quantity of
silver which should constitute a dollar,
then silver would be as free and unlimited
| in its privileges of coinage as gold Is today.
| But that we have not been able to secure,
and with the free and unlimited coinage Of
silver adopted in the United States at tho
present ratio we would be still further re-
moved from any international agreement.
! We may never be able to secure it If we
enter upon the isolated coinage of silver.
The double standard implies equality ut
rdtlo, ana UnaG equality can only DC eSCtlD-
lished by the concurrent law of nations. 1t
was the concurrent law of nations that
made the double standard. 1t will require
| the concurrent law of nations to reinstate
and sustain it.
! Not Opposed to Silver.
The Republican party has not been and
| is not now opposed to the use of silver
money, as its record abundantly shows. 1t
has done all that could be done for it's in
creased use with safety and honor by the
United States acting apart from other
governments. There are those who think
that 1t has already gone beyond the limit
of financial prudence. Surely we can go
no further, and we must not permit false
lights to lure us across the danger line.
We have much more silver in use than
any country in the world except India or
China - $500, 100000 more than Great
Britain, $3.50, 900, 600 more than France,
$500, 900, 600 more than Germany, $685.
900 less than India and S125, 600, 900 less
than China The Republican party has
declared in favor of an international agree
ment, and If elected president it will be my
duty to employ all proper means to pro-
mote 1t.
The free coinage of silver in this coun-