The new dominion. [volume] (Morgantown, W. Va.) 1876-1904, 1897-07-24
THE GOLD DOLLAR.
The Dishonest Creation Of Ignorance
and Ayarice.


William Jennings Bryan ia the July Arena.
We hear much about a ''stable
currency and an "honest dollar"
1t is significant fact that those
who advocate u single gold standard
have for the most part avoided a
discussion of the effect of an appre-
ciating standard. They take it for
granted that gold standard is not
only an honest standard, but the
only stable standard. | denounce
that child of ignorance and avarice,
the gold dollar under universal
gold standard, as the most dishonest
dollar which we could employ.
| stand upon the authority of ev-
cry intelligent writer upon political
economy when | assert that there is
not, and never has been, an honest
dollar An honest dollar is dollar
absolutely stable in relation to all
other things. Laughlin, in his work
on "Bimetallism,n says.
"Monometallists do not--as it is
often said-belicve that gold remains
absolutely stable in value. They
hold that there is no such thing as a
standard of value for future pay
ments in either gold or silver which
remains absolutely invariable.
He even suggests multiple
standard for longtime contracts. |
quote his words:
AS regards national debts. it is
distinctly ayerrcd that neither gold
nor silver forms just measure Of
deferred payments, and that if jus
tiee in long contracts is sought for,
we should not seek it by the doubt
full and untried cxpedicnt of inter
pational bimetallism, but by the
clear and certain method of multi
pie standard, unit based upon the
selling prices of a number of articles
of general consumption. A long time
contract would thereby be paid at
its maturity by the same purchas-
ing power as was given in the be-
ginning
Jeyons, one of the most generally
accepted of the writers in favor of a
gold standard, admits the instabili-
ty of single standard, and in lam
guage very similar to that above
quoted suggests the multiple stand
ard as the most equitable, if practi-
cable. Chevalier, who wrote book
in 1858 to show the injustice of al
lowing debtor to pay his debts in
"a cheap gold dollar, recognized the
same fact, and said:
IF the value of the metal de-
clined, the creditor would suffer a
loss upon the quantity he had re-
ceived, if. on the contrary, it rose,
the debtor would have to pay more
than he calculated upon"
| am on sound and scientific
ground, therefore, when say that a
dollar approaches,honest as its pur-
chasing power approaches stability.
If | borrow thousand dollars to-
day and mex. year pay the debt with
thousand dollars which will secure
exactly as much of all things desir-
able as the $1,000 / borrowed, / have
paid in honest dollars If the mon
ey has increased in purchasing pow
er have satisfied my debt with dis
honest dollars. While the Govern.
ment can say that given weight Of
gold Or silver shall constitute a dol
lar. and invest that dollar with legal
tender qualities, it cannot fix the
purchasing power of the dollar That
must depend upon the Law of supply
and demand, and it may be well tc
suggest that the Governme MT never
tried to fix the exchangcable value
of dollar until it began to limit
the number of dallars coined.