The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1896-10-02


the Constitution. or i'll which of the fif-
teen amendments. does the fundamental
law prescribe Il gold and silver coinage
or any other coinage? In which does it
mention any coinage further than to au-
thorize the general government to coin
money and regulate the value there
Oh Acting under that authority Con-
gress at first authorized coinage ut IL to
l. Was that the gold and silver coin
age OF the Constitution If so. how
mas 10 to l come to be the coinage of
the Constitution? Under the first ratio
silver was undervalued and refused to
circulate except in the form of worn and
ao ; foreign coins. Our own silver
CONS. even the subsidiary pieces. were
melted down for bullion because they
were worth about ; per cent. more than
golu dollars. In all the period I'D to the
tlme OF the great silver discoveries Con
gress sought to make the coinage ratio
the same as the commercial ratio. 1t
u W,er authorized coinage at any other.
W az tnat the coinage of the COnStitu-
tioh Ii SO. will it be Il return to it for
us now to establish free coinage at the
ratio of 16 to l when the commercial
ratio is about 81 to 4:
r. VIII not free coinage at 16 to | re-
duce the value of the dollar unit by about
One-hnlf? ~ "'0"'
.. Will it not he in fact a reDudiotion
and private? p"''''
u. Is there not danger that it will
tauSe the return to us of all the Ameri-
can securities held acknowledgements
railroad and industrial stocks and bonds
thus preclpltating Il panic of giant pro-
follow: = "
I. Will not your election upon the Chi
cago platform cause the calling in. be-
tween November and March. of all col
irctable debts. all loans. all mortgages
that have expired? And will not this
produce such Il distress as this country
mas never Known particularly in the
west and South. where capital and
credit are most needed and deDend uDOn
confidence as their basis?
.. VII not free and unlimited coinage
drive all the five or six hundred millions
OF gold and gold certificates ont of use
as money or as bank reserves? Will it
not cause currency contraction of the
most disastrous proportions. inasmuch
as the utmost capacity of the mints to
com silver cannot make good this with
uraWal Tor several years to come?
-. VIII not free coinage place us at
once on financial level with Mexico.
India and China. and can we afford to
go upon that level?
~ Is there any country in the world
today which gives free and unlimited
coinage to silver? Mexico does not.
INDIA does not. None of the Central or
South American States does We know
or no country that does, of no example
that can be studied
ii. Is there any country in the world
now on the silver basis which is as pros
porous as the United States. even in this
time OF depression? Is there any in
winch wages are so high as they are
here. or in which the dollar received in
wages will buy much? Is there any
slver-basis country that has large
commerce. prosperous manufactures. or
well-to-do agricultural class? Is it
not Il fact that i'm every silver-ba sis conn
try in the world abject and hopeless pow
erty on the part of the masses is the
rule?
II. Will you explain to us for our en-
lightenment and guidance how our coun-
try is to escape like conditions if we
go to silver basis. or how we are to
avoid the lapse to that basis if we adopt
free and unlimited coinage at IS to 1
when the commercial ratio between the
metals is about twice that?
-I.}. And II YOU tell us, as many free
coinage advocates do, that free coinage
will raise the commercial value of silver
to the coinage rate, will you explain TO
us how in that case free coinage is to
make money cheaper or easier to get.
how it is to relieve ''the debtor Glass;
how it is to increase the price of wheat
or any other commodity?
IA. You may be aware that there was
last year on deposit in the savings banks
of this state alone $643. S73.574 This
enormous sum belonged to 1.615.17S de-
pOstors. giving an average to each of
S::'!}S.63. 1t represents mainly the small
savings of the thrifty poor Nearly all
of it has been deposited since the pres
pnt standard of value was adopted by
the government. Do you think it fair
10 I,
| even l per cent. the value of the money
| in which these deposits were earned and
| III which today they would be paid?
ID. There are in this state SS.119 pen
siOners. They drew from the govern
| mcnt last year nearly S14.OO0.OOO Con-
sidering the nature of this debt of honor
| when justly due-can you look with ia
vor upon any policy that might result in
| paving them i'll a deprecated currency?
Is. There are i'll the country 1898
| building and loan association of which
| 41S are in New York. These assoca-
tons have 1.745125 shareholders-all of
| the working and saving classes. Their
| scented chiefly by mortgage loans to
| hOmeseekers, of whom $4,000 are men,
| bers of the associations. These assOca-
| lions have nearly all been organized with
| in the last fifteen years under the exist
| ing money standard. Can you think it.
1 IdlT OF Do1lcucldl TO Tile working people
| to reduce by AZ per cent. or any lesser
| sum. the value of these investments of
! the thrifty poor?
| II. Is it not a fact worth consideration
| in proposing "a descent to the silver STAN
| dard that the thirty-nine old-style life in
surance companies alone doing business
| in this state last year had in force here
| nearly 100000 policies, insuring over
| $1,000. 900. 600. The assessment compa-
| MES and various benevolent orders have a
| vast amount more. Would it not be an
| injury and a wrong to the benefciaries
of these polices-the widows and
| orphans, whom provident love had
sought to prOtect-to compel them to re-
ceive in payment deprecated money?
Is. The rise in prices" which you
| predict as a result of free silver coinage
| would. of course, mean an increase in the
| cost of living to all the people-to wage
| earners. salaried men, and the whole
! body of consumers. Do you know of any
| case in which a rise in wages or sala-
| ries has been parallel with the rise in
| prices? Is there any way to render it
certain. or even probable. that the wage
| earners will be compensated for the in
| creased cost of living?
| 10. You attribute the decline in silver
| to the demOnetizatiO of the silver dol
| lar in 1873. though that dollar was not
| then coined in any considerable numbers.
| and was not in circulation at all. owing
III, e. 4lo@ 81