The Louisiana Democrat. [volume] (Alexandria, La.) 1845-1918, 1896-07-08
FREE SILVER FOLLY.
Postmaster General Wilson Explains What
Free Coinage Means to Farmers and
Others.

Others.
In recent letter to DR.. M. W. Gam
BILE of Moorefeld, w. Va, Postmaster
General William L. Wilson makes the
following clear statement Of the real
meaning and effects Of free coinage:
Gree coinage of silver at IS to I
means that any private owner of silver
bullion may bring it to the minis and
have it coined without charge into dol
lars Of the present weight and fineness,
which, Of course, would thereafter be
worth as much as and no more than the
bullion Of which they were coined,
which is now about 80 cents to the dol
lar. No gold would then be coined, be-
cause with the bullion necessary to coin
gold dollar could be purchased enough
silver bullion to coin two silver dollars.
No one would use gold dollars to pay
debts which he could pay with less val
liable silver dollars. The first effect of
free silver would be to drive out of cir
culation the 1925, 100000 Of gold and
to sink all silver and paper money to
the standard Of the silver dollar
There is no country in the world
that could make this sudden change in
its money standard without plunging
headlong into all indefinite period Of
panic, bankruptcy and distress, with
disastrous check to its development and
long idleness tot industr es. The hope
held out to debtors that taey would he
able to pay in cheaper dollars would
never be realized, because they would be
at once pressed for their debts, and in
such disorganization of trade and of
all business they could not get the cheap
er dollars, and the idea that free silver
would give US larger currency would
not be realized, if ever, in the lifetime
OF the present generation.
'The farmer is urged to support free
silver on the ground that his products
have gone down with the gold standard
and would rise with the silver standard.
They would not rise as fast or as much
as tic things he has to buy, and he ought
to see that, while wheat and some other
things have gene down Of recent years,
it is because of the immensely increased
production and the speed and cheapness
with which all parts of the world can
carry their wheat by steam car and
steamship to the markets which fix its
price.
But farm produces, on the average,
have not fallen near so much as the
things which the farmer has to buy, and
labor has steadily increased in wages in
all the years Of the gold standard, thus
giving the laboring man, with fewer
hours Of work, larger control over the
necessarics and comforts Of life.
'Out Of all the catastrophes Of such a
change no men would emerge unframed
except those who own gold or who own
silver bullion Or mines, and when we
had once gotten to a silver basis and be-
gun to build up again the credit system
upon it-that marvellous system which
has made possible our modern develop
ment and which represents many times
in currency circulation and power the
money basis on which it rests-we
should have cumbersome, heavy. in
ferior metal money, like the few unpro-
gressive countries Of the world, and sur.
render to our great commercial rivals
the best metal and the best mechanism
for trade and commerce
IF congress tomorrow had the power
and should enact law compelling all
the railroads Of the country Immediately
to change from broad gauge to narrow
gauge, it would not more disorganize
the transportation business Of the coun-
try and more cripple its efficiency there
after, as compared with other nations
than for us to pass at once from gold
to silver standard. -