Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1896-08-03
DEuUSivE HOPES.
Free Coinage Will Cheaper the Currency
but Will Not Advance the Price Of Silver.


The chief reason Why a majority o.
the silver people want free silver is
that they believe there would he an un
precedented influx of the white meta
from all countries, such as would soon
produce not merely Il cheap, but ais
an inflated, currency supply The
writer has never seen this view com
bated, but believes it to be erroneous
and wholly untenable.
Why and how would free coinage at
tract silver?
The silNerites have two theories as tt
the results of the Legislation they pro
pose. one of these is that their schen,
would raise the value of silver to that
of gold on basis of Ii To |. II this were
the effect, the price would be the same
in other countries as in America. anu
under these circumstances there would
be nothing to draw il unduly this way.
The other, and the correct theory Is
that the currency would be cheapened.
that it would sink to the bullion value
of the silver dollar. This would ht
the actual result. but the value could
not be one thing here and another else
where. The price per ounce would be
as now allowing equalization in ex-
change and freghts-practic the
same the world over. In either cast
the usual course of the metal would be-
undisturbed. and it would seek the legi-
innate sources of demand. The assump-
ton that silver from all quarters Woud
gravitate TO this country in the event
of free coinage appears to be connected
in some strange way with the notion
that the metal could be brought her,
and coined into real one-hundred-cen
dollars, regardless Of their bullion valus
elsewhere. If that happy result coue
be attained or approached, We SHOULD
undoubtedly possess all the silver in the
world. even from the remotest corners
| of Asia. and We should all yen our
| selves lloarse for free ana unlmite
| coinage at IS to /. How suddenly rici
and great we should become. possesse,
| OF all the silver on earth raised to tn,
gold value, obtained at the expense ot
the whole outside world of dotards. VIII,
had not the sense or the perception t,
join US, or beat us. in the race to finau-
| cial cysium.
There are other things Which di@cred-
ii the assumption that We should &C
cumulate a greater supply of silver than
| WE I'N NAVE. 'fitt IL mat no country
on a silver basis has ever had a lare,
per capita of this kind of money; mono
in fact has anything like as large pcrcap-
ita of thatmctal as We now have, Mexico
has only SAIL. though that is country
which has supplied nearly one-half tn,
silver product of the world covering
period of 400 years. Its output has beer
more than $4,000, 600 900 an amount
about equal to the present silver money
of the world Vet it now has less than
$6o. GOO coo left in the country It now
annually exports an amount of silver
almost equal to its entire volume OF
money.
II FIRE" coinage is favorable to a large
circulation, it would seem that Mexico
ought to have a great abundance of
money. in view of the fact that it not
only need not draw its supply from!
OUTSIDE sources, hut because it produces
three times as much as any other
country, its population considered The
per capita of circulat ton in the Central
American states is SIS; in the pro-
SressiVe country of Japan. in 1894 only
about 81; in many other silver coun-
tries it is less: in none Of them is there
anything like as much per capita silver
coin as in the United States The fact
is self-evident that the supply in Amer
lea is even now four times greater than
is needed, and much more than would
remain under the natural law of supply
and demand. We have over $500. 00o 600
whereas not one-fourth of that amount
is kept in actual circulation. The re-
mainder is held by or gravitates to the
national treasury, and stays there II
is an artificial accumulation. 1t has
been bought and piled up for thu. sole
purpose of furnishing a market for the
product of the western mines. The
country had no use for it. which is
plain since it is not used and every
BODY knows that senators and repre-
sentatives from the West forced the
passage Of laws compelling its purchase
not because there was demand for it
or possibility of circulating it in the
channels of trade but because the mine
owners were clamoring to sell their pro-
Duct to the Government. If natural
laws had been left to regulate the sup
ply. IL would actually amount to little
more than 100000, 000-say about one
sixth the present disturbing and useless
accumulation. The coinage heretofore
has been compulsory, and if free COIN
age should be adopted, the present ar
tiiiclal support Of the metal would be
removed, and the chances are that the
volume of silver money would largely
decrease instead of increase as the sill
Vertes expect and as many other per-
+ sons grant. There would then be no
restraint on its natural movement: it