The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1896-03-18
THAT FIFTY CENT DOLLAR.

er, and in both branches of congress comes
the eternal Wall street reiteration that
free silver would drive gold out of cir
culation and out of the country, leaving
the people of the United States with a
fifty-cent dollar When asked why should
or could such a thing happen, they look
| wise and cite the Gresham law" A
successor to Gresham, two years ago, in
the Forum, declared that Gresham, who
holds that the cheaper money always
! drove away the dearer, was not good
authority. The ''fifty-cent dollar declar-
alton is simple rot. Gold is not in general
circulation and therefore could not be
driven out. Neither gold or silver are
ever in extensive circulation. They are
values upon which the circulation is
! based. Silver as subsidiary coin is more
| in evidence, but rather as a maker of
| change than of exchange. For eight years
free silver circulated on an equality with
! gold in this country without driving gold
| either out of circulation or out of the
country. Had not the holders of gold
| forced characterization they would have
| been circulating side by side today and
| every man, woman and child of America
| would have been better off, and the prop
erty of the country in the aggregate been
worth II billions Of dollars more than it
is today according TO expert statisticians,
| as that is the amount of the estimated
| shrinkage
! 1t is estimated by the treasury officials
that there are about 500, 900 in gold in
| circulation in this country, with equal
| amounts of silver and paper. The silver
and paper are in evidence, but who sees
the gold. The gold-monometallists be-
leve or affect TO believe that the opening
of our minis to the free coinage of silver
would see all this gold disappear and that
our currency would be thus curtailed fully
one-third, which would be followed by
financial distress and an unparalleled
crash and ruin. They thus contradict
themselves by saying that scarcity of
money would make cheap money. The
purchasing power of the paper dollar and
the despised silver dollar would be in
creased so per cent by the free coinage of
silver in the event that it drove one-third
of tn currency from the country and the
cheap dollar would in fact be worth $50.
None of these Wall street echoes have
ever condescended to tell US how gold
would leave America, or what for. 1t
couldn't go for nothing, even If panic
should ensue and foreign investors should
dump all their American securities back
upon US. The'low prices of such panic
If It came would stop all imports and
stimulate exports. Foreigners would not
consign goods to America on falling mar
ket, and they having all our gold would
find their own prices advancing not only.
but they would be compelled TO send back
cur gold in payment OF our stimulated
exports.
One OF the soundest silver publications
Of the country is the Philadelphia Ameri-
can. In the current issue are a series of
articles bearing upon this Cheap dollar
scare. Every declaration to the effect
that gold would be driven from the coun-
try has been logically met and refuted by
that journal in the months last past.
Speaking of the fifty-cent dollar, its editor
says that gold could not be driven out |
faster than silver was coined to take its |
place The nations Of Europe could not |
take our gold and keep il. unless they /
could send US silver in exchange. And /
they have but little silver that they could |
send us. What silver they have as bull
lion they might send TO our minis for /
ornaments, as plate and on which much /
labor has been expended. they could not /
afford to send US. Nor would they send /
their silver money coined at a higher val
uauon compared TO gold than that given /
by our ratio, for they could only co so
at a loss.
Moreover. what gold they took from US
and added to their stock Of money would
cause prices 70 rise abroad. and we would 1
get higher prices for the products which
We exported in payment OF our debts.
Thus the export OF sold would make the
payment OF interest charges on our i'm
mense foreign debt less burdensone. But
as matter % fact they have little silver
bullion which they could send Us De-
spite the great imporiations Of silver into
England during the past two decades there
has been no accumulation Of silver. Silver
bullion imported has been re-exported 10
india and the East IN payment for wheat
and cotton and other produce. and the
amour, % bullion On the London market
is sTnall.-estiuaced at between 10000
and l5.o5o.ca ounces.
Tbs bullion sent 20 our minis. the pro-
duets OF oar mines beng coined and ex-
ports Of silver 10 England stopped. what
must be the RESULT Evidently Englznd
must cease % buy in India either wheat
Or cotton in excess OF what she can nav
Tor With manufactured goods Or interest
OF Indian loans owned il England. unless
she bought from Us silver which We would
be unwilling 20 sell =; less than mint
price And this price she ultimately