Daily capital journal. (Salem, Or.) 1896-1899, 1897-07-22
CHASE
Writes An Open Letter
To the Sheetiron Thunderer of
Oregon Journalism.
Editor Of the Oregonian:


Will you kindly allow your august
attention TO be called to one of the
numerous examples Of sophistry which
are continually cropping out in your
daily articles on the financial ques-
tion? 1t seems to be your pet line
of argument, but it is peculiarly inapt
in addressing people who find any
pleasure in the exercise OF their reas-
oning faculties, from the fact that any
attempt to follow it oNt to its logical
conclusion speedily discloses the truth
that it has no logical conclusion.
You contend that practical bimetal-
lism is impossible, either by lndepend-
ent action or by an international
agreement, and your basic argument
is that any nation which should adopt
free coinage at any ratio less than the
worlds existing commercial ratio
would inevitably lose all of its gold
to the gold-standard countries, and at
tract flood of silver from those
countries, to take its place, without
appreciably raising the worlds price
of SILVER. Now it is possible to con-
ceive of intelligent men agreeing
with you as to a temporary loss of
gold by the United States in case of
the passage of free coinage act, but
to swallow your proposition as a
whole would really be unworthy the
gastronomic instincts of an ostrich.
However, let us, for moment, play
that your are right. Then let us
suppose that the United States should
adopt free coinage at the ratio of I6
to !. She would lose all of her gold
to other countries and get silver into
its place. Then suppose that France
should adopt free coinage at the same
ratio. She would lose all of her gold
to other countries and get silver in re-
turn. Then suppose that Germany
adopts free coinage. (Now do not
stop to argue that Germany wouldn't
do it, for natural law must not de-
pend for it's operation on probilities.
So Germany would lose all of her
gold and be drowned in silver. Then
suppose that our example were fol-
lowed at intervals by Spain. Italy,
and Scandinavian countries, Peru,
Venezuela, Turkey, Egypt and all of
those happy and prosperous and alto
gether delectable gold standard
countries whose example you wish US
to ape, leaving out England. They
would all lose their gold to the one
remaining gold standard country,
England, and get silver in return.
We will be obliged to suppose that
England is able to absorb the worlds
stock of gold and to furnish about
twice the worlds existing stock Of
silver to take its place. OF course
that is an absurdity, but a little
thing like that need not trouble an
advocate of the gold standard. But
now we suppose that England her
self should adopt free coinage at the
ratio of 16 to !. Will you kindly
satisfy an uneasy curiosity as to what
would then become of all that gold T?
Prehaps an international agreement
would then be possible, and it could
be shipped by rail to Mars, but from
whence would come the flood of silver
with which a proper respect for the
opinions of your sort of mankind
would require the British Isles to be
inundated?
But, honestly now, could even a
POpulist argument be more ridiculous
than the supposition that this pro-
gram could be carried out indefinitely:
Yet. as it is in direct line with your
argument, where does the-ah, Gin
sanity" come in? Is it not in your as
sumption that no legislation car
effect the value of silver? Would moi
the indicated process very quickly
cause the price of silver to advances
until the commercial ratio and th'
coinage ratio would be identical? d.
you, with all your profound economic
wisdom, not know that the exchange
able value of gold and of silver is reg