The L'Anse sentinel. (L'Anse, L.S., Mich.) 18??-current, 1896-09-05
Foolishness of the Declaration in
Favor of Monetary In
dependence.
poPULIST IDEAS OF FINANCE.
Feeble Attempt to Invoke the Ma.
tons Fathers in Support Of
Free Coinage.

Among all the craZ! usSuhP'oh' VI
the Populistic platforms, perhaps the
most foolish is the one that we can Gre
ate and maintain a monetary system IN
dependent of that of other nations. 10
make this stroke of idiocy more prep9s-
ferrous. the spirit and the example or the
fathers of the republic are invoked TO
sustain it, The efforts of the fathers
were most earnestly and steadily directed
to bringing the young repubilc withih
the commercial brotherhood OF NATIONS,
and nothing was further from their
thoughts than the idea that the progress
of the country could be facilitated by
declaration of financial independence.
For sixty years after the passage OF the
mint act English. French. Spanish ana
Portuguese coins were freely circulated
in the United States and were n iegai
tender for the payment OF debts NJ GER
tain values fixed by act of Congress. IN
his celebrated Mint Report. Alexander
Hamilton endeavorcd to coordinate our
monetery system with that of other ma
tions-not TO make any violent departure
from European practice. The only strik-
ing departure that was made in the iegls-
lation framed on Hamiltons recon-
mendations was in fixing the coinage
ratio between gold and silver at II to l.
and the result of this quickly demon
strated what the Populistic Democrats
call our financial servitude. mat is
To say il showed that while the minis
of France were open to the free coinage
of gold AT the ratio of 49, to 1. we could
not keep our gold from going where II
would have most value. The difference
was only about 3 ID per cent. nut II
was sufficient to drive gold out of the
country. so that in the words of Senator
Benton its extinction was complete.
If the establishment of ratio of their
own was strike for financial independ-
ence of Europe on the part of the IA
Tiers. it was manifest failure. ana
established for the first generation OF
the republic n regime of silver mono
metallism. But this was not in the
least what they desired: in fact. so little
were they impressed by the necessity for
keeping silver as h part of the circnla-
ton that the coinage of silver dollars
was suspended by executive order IN
1906 and was for domestic purposes at
least. never resumed. That is TO say.
the fathers were so determined to get
back the gold that for thirty years they
had been shunting into European mints
that they fixed new ratio, which Of
fered 3 per cent. more to the possessor
of gold bullion than he could get III
France or Holland. That the bullion in
the silver dollar thus became more valua-
BILE than the bullion in the gold dollar did
not trouble them much. for they, appar-
| entity, did not want the silver dollar
halves quarters and dimes of this metal
| being sufficient for their wants-and all
| the subsequent coinage of that much
| talked-of but little known piece. 'the
dollar Of the fathers" was for export TO
| the East Here. again. If monetary in
! dependence was what they are aiming
| ut. the result was failure. for Europe
diverted into its own minis the silver
of the United States as peremptorily as
il had done the gold. for the simple rea-
son that no law could compel the own
or of bullion not TO take il where he
got most for il in returned coins.
But the Populists are determined to
have san economic and financial system
| which shall make us masters of our own
affairs Among the preliminarics of
| such condition Of things, they are at
least logical enough to recognize the ne
cessity of interfering with the freedom
| of private contract. That was cure
for financial lamcncss not thought of by
the fathers of the republic. and is one
generally deemed to be contrary to the
letter and spirit of the constitution which
they framed But the transformation OF
the Democrat into the Populist seems
among other changes. to work surpris
ing Indifference to the value of the safe
guards of the constitution. From old
habit. there is the customary profession
| of allegiance to "thoSe great essential
| principles of justice and liberty upoi
which our institutions are founded" onl!
to be followed by series of proposition:
destructive alike of the principles ant
| institutions. On whatever, other points
the makers of the constitution may hav,
differed. they were entirely At one rs t,
the obligation both of nations and of in
dividuals to make an honest provision
for paying their debts.-Rochcstcr Post