Santa Fe daily New Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1885-1897, 1896-03-12
PRESS COMMENT.
The silver Dollar in Mexico.

Washington Post: 1t will, perhaps, be
remem bered that the Post has on several
occasions in the past discussed certain
silly and extravagant statements by cuck-
90 orators and newspapers touching the
financial condition of Mexico and the |
general worthlessness of the Mexican sill
yer dollar. In reply to the assertion SO
frequently made by Sound money
speakers that the Mexican silver dollar
was thing beneath contempt, and that |
free coinage of silver had brought the
Mexican people to penury, the Post has
already replied that the silver dollar buys |
as much in Mexico as the gold dollar does
here, and that instead of tobogganlng |
down the steepest side of Avernus, Mexi-
co is prospecting on thoroughly healthy
and legitimate lines.
About month ago Mr.. Allen, of Utah,
delivered speech IN the house, relative
to finance, and as part thereof read a
letter from Mr.. A. V. Temple, manager OF
the Mexican bureau of information. Mr..
Temple has been resident in Mexico for
the past twenty six years, and throughout
that period has been engaged IN business
and connected with financial and COM
mercial enterprises. 1t is to be supposed,
therefore, that he speaks with authority
when he says: II would say that Mex
lean dollar buys to-day as much in this
city as it did when I came here, aud at
that time Mexican dollar was worth $l.10
in gold in San Francisco. The price of
corn, beans, -four, wearing apparel, etc,
is almost exactly the same as 10 former
years. OF course, there are fluctuations
due to good or bad crops, but the average
cost of all the various articles which go
to make up the expenses of family are
almost exactly the same as when gold was
at par"
OF course, everyone who has visited
Mexico and in that way acquired infor-
nation, knows this to be true. The ora
tors and newspapers referred to, how
ever, have been going calmly ahead reit-
Grating the stupid falacies in question
even simplifying and aggravating them by
adding that not only is the Mexican la
borer's silver dollar worth less than half
of the Yankee laborer's gold dollar, but
he doesn't get as many OF them for his
work. In a word, they hold up Mexico
as an awful example of the ruin and
misery that follow in the train of silver
coinage.
But Mr.. Temple tells very different
story, as will be seen:
"You will note by the printed matter
sent you the wonderful increase in the in
come of the government, and also OF the
Mexican Central railway, which think
will compare favorably with that of gov
ernments or railroads on a gold basis.
Also, the price of Mexican securities has
steadily been advancing in spite of the
increased premium on gold. The fact ia
that an abundant supply of good silver
dollars, which everybody can get and
everybody can spend, seems to make peo-
pie more cheerful, harder workers, and
induces the capitalist to 60 into new en-
terprises, Although there are bank notes
, in circulation in this country, they are
represented by an actual store OF silver
, dollars, so that at moments notice the
same can be converted into coin. They
are, in fact, like the gold certificates OF
the United States, except that ours are
issued by incorporated banks. Mercantile
| failures are rare, and manufacturing es-
tablishment, especially those engaged In
the manufacture of wool and cotton, are
: paying large dividends. Banks are also
pdyluR AZ w AZ POI Soho e o"A " -
their capital stock. While the perfect
peace and order which Mexico has enj Dyed
for the past twenty years have had great
effect on the development end prosperity
of this country. also believe that our
} silver basis has helped US prosper as
much as any other cause.
u \;
"The premium on gold also tends tc
; bring 1T to this country. European In
vestors, taking advantage of the premium
on gold, are more willing to come here
and make investments in mining, manu-
featuring, ETC., than if this disparity be
tween gold and silver did not exist While
doubling their capital on bringing it into
Mexico, they can go into production o
} articles for export which are sold for gold
as, for instance, coffee, rubber, hides
vanilla, and kindred products, so tina
practically they double their capital AMI
yet receive gold interest on their invest
ment.
"a silver basis seems to tend to the In
crease of a larger number of small in
comes rather than small number o
larger Ones"
It seems to us that the Sound money
advocates had better drop Mexico as al
OBJ ject lesson. There is enough to be sail
in favor of the gold basis without lynn
about silver in Mexico.