Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1896-11-26
A QUESTION ANSWERED.
when Silver Was Demonetizeei-TIse COM
mercial and Coinage Ratio.

first demonetized, and what was silver
worth when the Sherman law was
passed ?"
The first nation TO demonetize silver
was England in 1916. There was no
movement by any other nation to elm
mate silver from it's monetary system
until 1871, when the German empire be-
gan to Iegislate for the demonstration
of silver, which eliminated in adopting
the gold standard in 1873. While the
question was pending in Germany, Nor
way, Sweden and Denmark, known as
the Scandinavian union, changed to the
gold basis in 1872. In 1873 the United
States demonetized silver, and in 1874
the Latin union, comprising the coun-
tries of Greece, Switzerland, Belgium,
Italy and France, adopted the gold
standard. Since 1874 several other
countries have either adopted the gold
standard or suspended the coinage of
silver. England, under the influence of
her banking institutions, inaugurated
the war upon silver, and by diplomatic
and commercial intrigue, finally sue
ceeded in having nearly all the nations
adopt her policy Of making gold the
money of ultimate redemption, whether
in the settlement of trade balances or
in the liquidation of government loans.
1t is claimed by the gold advocates
that the production of silver had be-
come SO great that it had to be demon
etized, so as to prevent a volume of
money that w ould be far in excess of the
requirements of commerce, which
10 10 ha n
cheap and deprecated money, and they
point to the fall in the price of silver
since it was demonetized to prove that
its coin value was entirely fictitious.
The facts, however, do not bear them
out. From the best information that
can be obtained it is ascertained that
the ratio of production never exerted
any influence upon the commercial IA
ito. Going back to the discovery of
America, we find that the production of
silver outstripped the production OF
gold, and that between 1881 and 1000
there were produced nearly 81 ounces
of silver to every ounce of gold, but
the coinage or commercial ratio ranged
at q trif1e over 1872. During the period
of 1OS years preceding 1000 the ratio of
silver production was thirty of silver
ounces to one ounce of gold, and dur
ing the century beginning with 100
the ratio of production was forty to one.
From 100 to 1900 the average produc
ton was thirty of silver to one of gold,
and from 1900 to 1873 production was
about seventeen to one. But from the
discovery of America down to 1878 the
coinage rate of no country in the world
was above the coinage ratio of sixteen
to one, and that, too, in the face of the
fact that the average production of
silver was about thirty-two ounces to
one ounce of gold. The absurdity, there
fore. of saying that the coinage ratio of
the metals should be based upon the
production ratio is apparent.
When the United States demonetized
silver in 1873 the commercial ratio was
1892 of silver to 1 of gold, but since
then the ratio has ranged from sixteen
to one to thirty-three> to one. These
figures show that since 1893 certainly
the coinage ratio has not at all times
been based upon the commercial ratio.
Up to 1000 from 1881 the production
was, as we have said, nearly fifty-seven
mercial ratio was 11.48 to /, and what
was true in the period mentioned has
been substantially true in all the years
since. That is to say, the fats OF gov
ernments fixed the coinage ratio with
out any reference to the production ra
ito, and no country in the world ever
attempted to coin the metals other
wise until 1916, when England found
that the only way to make money
scarcer was not to increase the coinage
ratio, but to eliminate silver altogether
as redemption money. 1t was not be-
cause the ratio of gold and silver pro-
duction was widening because OF any
increased output of silver, but because
the output of both metals was increas-
ing and threatened to give the world
larger supply of metallic money
than England could control, and it was
British influence that caused the United
States and the countries on the con-
tinent to discontinue the use of silver as
redemption money.
The commercial ratio of silver when
the Sherman law was passed in 1890
was 1876 and 26.49 when the law was
lison law became operative in 1879, the
commercial ratio was about 1880. But
the production nor the commercial ra
tics have any direct bearing upon the
coinage ratio. They could not have, for
the commercial and production ratios
are constantly fiuctuating, while the
coinage ratio is necessarily fixed and
iinmovable, until changed by an edict
or the fiat of the government. These
figures show very conclusively that the
purchasing power of silver dollar I'M
der free coinage at the ratio of sixteen
to one would be the equivalent of 100
cents. and that, too, without any refer
ence to the production ratio. Fractional
silver coin is legal tender for given
amount, and so are copper cents and
nicke1s, and they are purposely coined
on the basis OF greater purchasing
value as coin than as a mere metal,
besides they are not redeemable in or
exchangeuble for any other form of
money They stand on their own merit.
Los Angeles Herald.
Need No Foreign Help.
We can Introduce bimetallism with
out foreign help, for we would have