The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1897-08-13
GOLD AND SILVER,

The director of the mint said that
the bullion value of the silver dollar
ON Thursday was 43 6 cents. This
makes the commercial ratio between
silver and gold sc to |, instead of 10
tol. And in order to make the silver
dollar equal in value to the gold at
the present ratio it would have TO
contain over $50 fine grains of silver.
The present dollar contains 314f
grains. Continuing, Director Pres
ton said: "t'rom February, 1878, to
November, 1898, this government has
purchased under the several purchas-
ing acts over 459, 100000 fine ounces of
silver. 1t cost US over 1854, 900, 900.
At today's market price this silver
would be worth 100000, and, II
sold at present prices, the govern
ment would stand to lose something
like S2O4, 100000" Mr.. Preston said
he looks for silver to go still lower,
and believed that within six months
the price will be at 40 cents an ounce.
He further expressed it as his opinion
that the increased production of gold
is having IAN effect upon the silver
market. All the silver standard ma
tions of the world want to go, or are
going to the gold standard. Mexico
wants to go to it, and would If she
could, and the time will come when
Mexico will be on the gold standard.
He believes that the United States
would be better off today if it had
never gone into the silver business,
and thinks that if it would maintain
an absolute single standard on gold
basis, money would become cheap and
plenty. The fear Of silver legisla-
tion, he says, is the disturbing ele1
ment in our financial conditions.
Ex-senator Sanders, of Montana,
talking along the same lines, said
that he did not believe that the dis
covery Of any amount of gold IN
Alaska, would tend to bridge the gap
between gold and silver. "It does
not matter" he said, chow much gold
is taken out of the Klondyke mines,
silver will never regain it old-time po-
sition. AS standard it is doomed,
but it will always have its place as an
auxiliary currency" The ex-senator
does not believe that the discovery OF
all the rich gold mines, even though
they proveproductive as the most san
guine claim, will tend, of themselves,
to the betterment of the whole peo-
pie. prosperity, he says, sis not
the result of such episodes. Money is
abundant enough now; the trouble il
that it lies stacked up in vaults ano
will not come out of it's hiding places
1t is the general demand for money
and it's consequent activity that
makes prosperity, and this is prevent
ed now by distrust of the moneyec
classes. Once confidence is restored
we shall hear no more of hard times.
Mr.. Saunders seems to have abou
the right views of the matter. 1t il
not likely that, with the facilities by
which silver can be SO easily anc
cheaply mined, gold and silver viii
ever come at a commercial parit!
again. Not even the united effort O.
all the nations could so maintain 1t
for if they should agree upon free ant
unlimited coinage. it would so Stimu
late the production of silver that it,
price would keep below that of gold
But while, as the ex-senator says
that the great production Of gold
does not of itself tend to the better
ment of the condition of the grea
mass of the people it is doing ava.
with the assertion of the silverite
that there is not sufficient quantit.
of the yellow metal to supply the de
mand as standard of value. 1t i
constantly growing' more plenty, AM
the various nations of the world ar
having little difficulty in getting tn
supply they need.