The daily morning Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Oregon) 1883-1899, 1896-06-13
FREE COINAGE. AND TERRIBLE
CONTRACTION.

If president and congress pledged
to enact a free coinage law were to be
elected in November next there would
be no gold in the treasury and none in
circulation before the month was at
an end. The ssO0, 200, 900 Of gold now
in the country would disappear from
circulation-would be practically "de-
monetized." by the coming cheap silve.
dollar.
Before November, 1896 had closed the
purchasing power Of the rest Of the
currency in the United States would
have shrunk One-half The 42e millions
Of silver dollars which have been coin
ed and which circulate chiefly in the
form Of silver certificates would BE-
worth only half their face. So with
the 22l millions OF national bank notes.
which would be redeemed only in 80
cent silver dollars. So with the 1856
millions Of sherman" treasury notes.
The money value Of the 20 millions Of
subsidiary small change silver in circu-
lation would be cut in two in the mid
die. The 34s millions Of greenback le-
gal tenders, no longer redeemable In
gold dollars. would shrink one-half in
their purchasing power. or ability to
transact business in buying and selling
property and labor
In less than thirty days 600 millions
Of gold would disappear from the coun-
try. and the 1.20O millions Of silver
and paper money would shrivel up to
500 millions Of gold value Thus there
would be currency contraction Of 70
per cent, coupled with an almost meal
eulable destruction of values. The de-
posits in the savings banks Of the wage
classes are 1900 millions. In national
banks there are LOO millions Of de-
posits. In state and private banks and
loan and trust companies there are
1900 millions Of deposits; and in build
ing and loan associations 450 millions.
The total Of these deposits amounts TO
1000 millions in value. They are owned
by millions of people, and half Of these
deposits belong to the working. toiling
classes.
This tremendous contraction in the
value Of the currency and deposits of
the nation has not been discussed by
the free silver. cheap money silverite
papers. who are afraid to talk about
1t. They dodge 1t and ignore it. They
cannot explain it away. They blow
and gas about everything else.
Secretary Carlisle had much to say
on the subject in his Chicago speech;
but neither Altgeld nor any free silver
advocate, orator, or newspaper has met
this one fatal objection to their crazy
scheme to change the money standard
Of the nation from 1OO-cent dollars to
5O-cent dollars by an act Of congress.
They all say that the country is suf-
fering because it has not money enough
now. They all admit that free coinage
cannot help but drive out the gold.
Then they go on to claim that silver
enough will flow in to take it's place.
They say there will be billions Of silver
in circulation in the course of time"
But they have nothing to say as to
what win be taking place during the |
contraction period; when the currency
will amount to 600 millions in gold
value and purchasing power instead
If 1,2OO millions. If. congress should
lroeeed to issue billion greenbacks to
'e redeemed some time in silver when
he government would have 1t to spare,
hen they would decline to a value Of
5 cents on the dollar, and the silver