The news & observer., 1897-08-26
DON'T BE TOO MERRY.
CIV shington Post.)

\ prominent Republican organ re-
marks. with every appearance of deep
satisfaction, that silver will soon be
only nominally one of the precious met
ais" Other Republican papers gleefully
predict that the tables of the poor will
soon shine with complete equipments Of
silverware. One Republican journal
foresees the time when silver will he as
cheap as pig iron. Every successive de-
cline in the price of silver is hailed with
joy, as if it were a blessing to the people
of the United States. During the last
few weeks nearly all the newspapers,that
oppose the free, unlimited. and indepcn-
dent coinage of silver at the ratio of 16
to have kept up a grand chorus of jubi-
lation over the falling price of that metal
The Post, like those jolly, shouters. is
opposed to the coinage plank Of the Chi
caSos platform; but, unlike them, it secs
no cause for rejoicing, no occasion for
jokes. no hint of any possible good to
the people or the government of the Uni
ted States in the decline of silver. We
have no special interest in or concern
for the owners of silver mines or gold
mines. If the losses Of the producers Of
lie we should not be surprised at the JOY
of our contemporaries. The greatest
good of the greatest number is the end
to he aimed at. and he whose success in
business is an injury to the masses does
not deserve to succeed.
But this government and this people
have tremendous stake in silver en-
tirely separate and distinct from the in
terests of the mine owners. ae ne
J. II it were decided-which it certainly
is not-that no more silver will he bought
for coinage in this country; If the people
had yoted-which they have not-in
favor of the unconditional acceptance
and maintenance of gold monometalism
even under these conditions we should
find no satisfaction in the falling price
of silver. We have about 100000, 600
in silver that we are CARRYING and are
bound to carry at parity with gold.
Ought we 10 he glad Of a process that
cheapens the coins Of the country? Ought
any organ of sound money to shout in
glee when value goes out of and fiat goes
into our currency? Every penny that
falls from the price Of silver means re-
duction of millions in the commercial
value OF our coins Is there anything
funny in that?
Suppose, for the sake Of argument, that
the decline should go on to the full ex-
tent predicted by the mistaken friends
Of sound money: suppose the silver in
/ our coins and the silver bullion in our
vaults should cease to have any other
than intrinsic value-should sell for
what it might be worth to use in the arts
as iron, lead. and zinc are sold; would
not that condition be dangerous to the
stability of our currency? Could we car
ry few thousand dollars worth of any
metal at face value Of $500000.O00i
And, if we could, would not that simple
fact disprove all established theories as
to sound currency? If fiat could make
a dollar out of cents worth of metal,
, the Populists would be then completely
| vindicated.
I We think the opponents of free coin
age are making a serious mistake in try
ting to depreciate silver. The stake of
| this country in that metal is too great
| to warrant any levity over its decline IN
price