The herald., 1896-08-27

anu other people would be required to
receive it as full dollar in the payment
of debts.
The government would get nothing
from the transaction. 1t would bear the
expense Of coming the silver. and the
community would suffer loss by it's use.
THE DOLLARS COMPARED.
We have coined since 1878 more than
40o,0O0,000 Of silver dollars. which are
maintained by the government at parity
with gold, and are a full legal tender
for the payment Of all debts, public and
private. How are the silver dollars now
in use different from those which would
be in use under free coinage? They are
to be of the same weight and fineness;
they are to bear the same stamp of the
government. Why would they not be
of the same value? 1 answer: The sill
yer dollars now in use were coined on
account Of the government, and not for
private account or gain, and the govern
ment has solemnly agreed to keep them
as good as the best dollars we have. The
government bought the silver bullion a.
its market price and coined it, Having
the exclusive control of the mint, it only
coins what 1t can hold at parity with
gold.
The profit representing the difference
between the commercial value of the
silver bullion and the face value of the
silver dollar goes to the government for
the benefit CT the people. The govern
ment bought the silver bullion contain
ed in the silver dollar at very much less
than its coinage value. 1t paid it out
to its creditors and put in circulation
among the people at its face value of 100
cents, or full dollar. 1t required the
people to accept it at legal tender and
is thus morally bound to maintain it
at a parity with gold, which was then as
now the recognized standard with us
and the most enlightened nations of
the world. The government, having
issued and circulated the silver dollar, it
must in honor protect the holder from
loss. This obligation it has so far sa-
credly kept. Not only is there a moral
obligation but there Is legal obliga-
tion expressed in public statute to MAIN
tain the parity.
COULD NOT BE KEPT AT PAR.
These dollars in the particulars I
have named are not the same as the
dollars which would be issued under
free coinage. They would be the same
in form, but different in value. The gov
ernment would have no part in the
transaction, except to coin the silver
bullion into dollars. 1t would share no
part of the profit. 1t would take upon
itself no obligations. 1t would not put
the dollars into circulation It could
only get them as any citizen would get
thnv, vHxrr rr;x,
1t would deliver them to those who de-
posted the silver and its connection
with the transaction there end. Such
are the silver dollars which would be
issued under free coinage of silver at
the ratio of 16 to l. Who would then
maintain the parity. What would keep
them at par with gold? There would
be no obligation resting upon the gov
ernment to do it, and If there were it
would be powerless to do it. The sim
pie truth Is, we would be driven to a
silver basis-to silver monometallism.
These dollars. therefore. would stand
upon their real value. If the free and
unlimited coinage of silver at ratio
OF 16 ounces of silver to ounce of gold
would, as some of it's ADVOCATES assert,
make SO cents in silver worth one hun
dred cents, and the silver dollar equal
to the gold dollar, then we would have
no cheaper money than now and it
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
debasement 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 decrease
property values, entail untold
financial loss, destroy confidence,
impair the obligations of exist
ing contracts, further impoverish the la
borers and producers of the country,
create panic of unparalleled severity,
and infiict upon trade and commence a
deadly blow. To any such policy I am
unalterably opposed.
BIMETALLISM.
Bimetallism cannot be secured by in
dependent action on our part. 1t cannot
be obtained by opening our mints to the
unlimited coinage of the silver of the
world at ratio of sixteen ounces of sill
yer to one ounce of gold, when the COM
mercial ratio is more than thirty ounces
of silver to one ounce of gold. Mexico
and China have tried the experiment
Mexico has free coinage of silver and
gold at ratio slightly in excess of 161s
ounces of silver to one ounce of gold
when her mints are freely open to both
metals at that ratio, not single dollor
in gold bullion is coined and circulated as
money. Gold has been driven out of cir
culation in these countries and they are
on silver basis alone. Until interna-
tional 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 CONNER
cial 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 a gold
basis
MORE SILVER THAN GOLD
Chiefly by means of legislation during
and since 1878 there has been put in cir
culation more than $624,O00,O0O of silver
or it's representative. This has been done
in the honest effort TO give to silver, if
possible, the same bullion and coinage
value, and encourage the concurrent use