The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1896-10-22


year 1886. or two hundred years ago. Wa
coined silver and gold at that time upon
that ratio because that was the CONNER
eial equivalent Of those two metals at thai
ton of the silver money of the world has
been destroyed or demonetized; certainly
none of the silver that was In Europe in
1873 has been demonetized-every dollar of
Ii. or thaler of 1t. or mark OF II, or franc
Of It, is in circulation yet, and We
had none in circulation in our
country practically. Therefore there was
no characterization of the existing stock OF
silver in 1873 by the act of the United States
or even by the action of Europe. although
their European, minis were closed to the
tree tree e coma eo Of silver. Now, If hat "a be
that one-half of the money of the world
was DESTROYED in 49,. But that is only half
the truth. We have been digging OFT silver
and gold from the mines every year since
1873, and. with the exception of a few years,
every year in increasing quantities.
since 1873 we have taken out from the
mines nearly three thousand millions OF sill
yer at the ratio of 16 to 1. Where has it
gone 70? Is it waiting the election of Mr..
Bryan to the presidency in order that it's
value may be doubled? Why, 1t is a
notorious fact that every ounce Of silver
that is being taken out of the mines at
this moment, or that has been taken out
OF the mines during the last year. has
only our own product is being sold but the
product of Mexico and the product of Aus
Broken Hill mine OF Australia that was
discovered in 1888 by some Englishman- He
erected machinery for the working OF that
mine and began working it in 1855. Last
year they took out twelve million ounces OF
silver out of that mine; and, according to
their reports, they have made 800 per cent.
every year since they began the working
or that mine upon the capital invested in
1T. And yet all their silver bullion has
gone into the markets of the world at this
immense profit. We produce but fifty mil
lion ounces of silver out of III. 900. 900 pro-
duced. Mr.. Bryan tells you that all this sill
YER will be advanced in price from 65 or 66
cents an ounce to $1.29 an ounce, or, in
other words i25,oOO, 200 ounces OF silver that
Is produced daily by ENGLAND is to be adj
vanced by the voters of the United States
through his election so that that value will
be doubled. And yet he talks about our be-
ing under English influence. (Applause.)
SINCE 1874.
What is back of this silver? Can any OF
you tell me? Every ounce of it. PRACTICAL
ly, or nearly every ounce of it has gone
into the coinage of the world and is per-
forming use as money, as the old silver has
performed use as money except what has
been used in the arts. So instead of there
having been a diminished quantity of silver
as money there has been a largely increased
quantity of silver IS money since
1873. What have we done in
the United States to demonetize silver?
1 have shown you that we opened our mints
to the coinage of 42o-grain dollars at the
that We coined thirty-six million. in
round numbers, Of dollars. In 1875
of fractional dollars. We Coined later twen-
ty-five millions more, and in 1878 We began
the coinage again of the old 4l213-grain dol
lars; and under that and the later law Of
1880 we have coined 431 900, 600 of these dol
lars, every one of which is a full legal ten
der in the yme of all debt.. public and
either in the form Of silver dol
lars or in the form of silvec certificates.
We have still in store in our treasury under
the Sherman law. with which you are fa-
miliar, 12O,0oo GOO ounces of this silver, from
up to the LIST of October $14, 00O, 600 Of
full legal-tender silver.
policy OF our government, which l don't
say at this moment is wise or otherwise,
there being no silver in circulation in 1873.
have now absorbed between. that time
and the present moment $625, 900, 600 OF sill
yer (applause)-ffty times as many dollars
as we coined before 1873, and five times as
much In quantity of fractional silver as
coined prior to 1873. And yet the peo-
Pile of Indiana and elsewhere are asked to
vote for Mr.. Bryan because we have de-
silver when we have absorbed
and more OF all the silver that
And we have now In the United States one
seventh of all the silver that is in the world
100000 of people. (Applause.) What
else nave we, done since 1873? We have
s saed m frGm the af mi mines 81, t y. hum
into circulation as money practically ex-
cept that which has been used in the arts.
So that we have added at least one-haIf Of
the gold money that was in existence in
lsIs, and we have added more than one-haIf
II all the silver money that was in circula-
ton in 1878. thus increasing the metallic cir
,ulation Of the world much more rapidly
+h "a w naS oeS Mb increased i E the population Of
iemonetized one.half Of the money of the
World and thereby increased the value OF
1isputable facts that that is not true. (An-
plauseo And when that is shown this
has not a single leg upon which il
can stand" (Cheers.)