The weekly intelligencer. [volume] (Lexington, Mo.) 1891-1901, 1896-05-09

he had pretty clear conception of
how articles of commerce may be
made worth more or less by law He
knew what the banker does not know,
or pretends not to know, that by virtue
of such law beef would GO up and
bacon would go down.
Nor is there manufacturer in the
land, from Carnegie to Niedringhaus,
clamoring for a protective tariff law
who does not sufficiently understand
how goods may be made worth more
by law to contribute freely of fat to the
Mckinley boom, that they may grow
fatter by law.
Now, will assume that this 1O-year-
old son of my banker friend has been
to school long enough to learn that
demand and supply regulate the ex-
change value of every article of
commerce, whether money of CON-
modify. 1t IS all important that he
keep this fundamental truth in mind,
not so long only as it suits his precon-
ceived ideas, but all the time.
The people of the United States use
two kinds of grain for food in about
equal quantities-corn and wheat.
Suppose every state in the union were
to impose such a heavy tax on wheat
as virtually to forbid Its use as food,
does not this 10-year-old boy see how,
by thus destroying the larger portion
of the demand for wheat, its price
would go down and the price of corn
go up? And that the decrease in the
worth of one and that the increase in
that of the other would both be the
result of laws affecting demand and
supply?
The confederate states during the
late civil war imposed a Iax of $20 per
bale on cotton to discourage its culture
and to encourage the culture of corn.
This destruction of supply, and by law,
sent the price of cotton up to so cents
per pound IN gold.
Prior to 1873 the commercial world
had for untold ages used two metals
for STANDARD money as well as for
redemption, in about equal quantities
Gn coin yalue)-One was silver and
one was gold. In 1873 and 1874 all
the greatest nations destroyed, and by
law, silver as redemption money,
thus destroying the demand for it for
this purpose and throwing all the
demand on gold. Is it, can it be
necessary to tell this 1O-year-o boy
that these laws sent the price oil
exchange value of silver down and that
of gold upP
Is it not almost beyond the compre-
hension of men of ordinary intellect
that such men as my banker friend
cannot see why so much more silver is
produced than is required when his
friends Cleveland, Carlisle and Others
insist upon destroying the requirement:
for silver?
|
banker friend that if he will do little
independent thinking for himself he
will understand that the reason, anC
the only reason, why this GLOSS by de
probation of 40 per cent on silver I:
the law Of 1873, which destroyed The
demand for silver for redemption oil
real money, and that if gold had beer
demonetized instead of silver its s'los:
by Depreciation would have been still
greater, because it has not the intrinsic
value to fall back upon that silver has
But Mr.. Carlisle has told my FRIEND
Q must call hiG, my friend notwith
standing the rudeness of his letter.
that it is the increased production o.
silver which has lesseaed its price, anC
he takes it in with absolute confidence
notwithstanding Mr.. Carlisle's officia
department, through his director Of
the mint, and in his official report o.
October II, 1898, page 50, tells him
that during the 100 years from 1892 to
1892 there has been nearly $556, ,000,.
900 more of gold produced than o.
silver in the world, and in his report
of June 80, 1894, page SO, he tells him
that during the twenty years from 1875
to 1898 there were upwards of 1926,
600, 900 more of gold produced in the
world than of silver, and on page So o.
the same report that during the year:
1891, 1892 and 1898 there were
S95 900, 900 more of gold coined in the
world than of silver. But as all the
demand for redemption money ha,
been thrown upon gold there is moi
enough, can never be enough, to NEE
the requirements of the increasing
business of mankind, until silver hal
been restored to its cOrruptly los
monetary functions.
And Mr.. Carlisle has told him, too
that the remonetizatiOn of silver would
lessen the value by nearly one-half o
every bond and mortgage and othe
credit in the civilized world, and in tn,
very same breath told him also tha
the decentralization of silver has no
increased the value of these things a
all, and he accepts this inconsisten
nonsense as gospel truth. And 1 hav
no doubt that If 1t were to his interes
to believe it, he would accept witt
equal confidence the equally sensible
statement if Mr.. Carlisle were to tel
him that it is 1000 miles from st
Louis to Washington, but only 80,
miles from Washington to st. Louis.
| cannot consent to close this lette
without assuring my banker frien'
that if he will do a little independen
, investigation for himself he will fin,
that history, as far back as we hav,
any reliable statistics, shows that n'
matter what the relative increase o.
decrease in the supply of either metal
while both were in demand, fo