Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1897-08-26
THE NATIONS Loss ON SILVER


eral Impression tDaI present lhmpO-
rary excsss Of government expenditures
over receipts will do little harm. since
tho available cash balance" in the
Treasury is so ample, and particularly
that part of it known a5 the gold re-
serve 30 sufficient. On the face of the
Treasury statement, cash balances of
1922, 900, 600 would appear to answer
vary we'll, although the expenditures in
the first Is days OF August were nearly
sly, 900, QUO 10 excess OF The receipts.
Even at that rate, which obviously will
moi last long, this cash balance is
enough for long time to come.
OF this cash balance, the gold reserve
continues TO furnish a gratifyingly
large percentage, ii being now Sl4l,
900, 600 out of tho s222, O00, 600, or nearly
Ga per cont. The conditions of our for
eign trade, particularly in the large ex.
port Of high priced wheat, make 1t seem
likely thlt this favorable showing of
the gold reserve will be maintained. In
tine last administration, euch was the
condition of foreign balances that the
gold reserve regularly contributed O
much smaller percentage of tho availa-
BILE cash balance, and it was necessary
| to sell enough bOnuH to raise the gon'
eral cash tn az enormous figure in order
TO secure gold sufficient for the tradi
tioual reserve. No longer ago than
January %, 1896, the gold reserve con
| stituted barely ono third Of tho availa-
BILE cash balance, instead OF Ga per cent,
aa at present. Tho new tariff, there.
fore, finds the Treasury in a peculiarly
favorable condition, with very largo
cash balance. and handsome percent.
age of 1T in gold.
But thero is another phnHe at tho
leash balance which is not 50 favor
able. While that balance, according TO
the official statement of tho Treasury,
is 1929. 600, 700, il must be remembered
that in reaching this estimate tao
coined silver dollars arc computed as
dollars. and the silver bullion in the
Treasury ia rackoned at the SUN which
it has cost. On account OF the trelnen-
dous drop in tho price Of silver, II the
Treasury should begin to estimate Its
holdings at their market value to-day,
there would be. insteud Of cash hal
ance of 1929, 600 000. an actual deficit
of $50, 900, 000. This conclusion lie easily
reached. The Treasury reckons it's sill
yer, comet and uncoined, as worth
sos, 600. 600. Of this sum sS39l, 600, O0(
is in standard silver dollars, in which
the Treasury counts a silver dollar ms 0
real dollar in aHDets. The remaining
STA 900, 900 is in bullion, purchased
undor the act Of 1890, in which the ell
yer ia reclSoned at its cost price. The
margin OF inaccuracy IN these two
items obviously varies much. The
standard silver dollars are actually
worth about 40 per cent OF what the
Treasury rates them at, and while the
price nf bullion silver has fallen materi
ally, it stands to-day for much more
than 40 per cent OF its cost. But while
the Treasury allows for these two asseti
S505. 600, 000 the markets OF the worl:
are paying only S252, 600, 600 for the
same thing-the government stamI
being excepted.
Tine real assets of the Treasury arc
its gold at Sl4l, 600, 600; its silver Al
1852 600, 900, and its miscellaneouI
items, netting as rer official statement
s52, 600. 600. or total OF SAG, 600, 600
Against this total the government hal
MS liabilities 1868. 900, 700, in outstand
ing silver certificates loss the silver GER
ticfiates in the Treasury, and Sll3,
600, 600 in the Treasury notes OF 1880,
which arc based upon tho silver pur
chasss under that act. Here arc liabili
ties of $476, 600. 600 against assets O
STAG, 600, 600, or an actual deficit U
$50, 600. 600
The way the government makes Oui
of this condition an apparent cash bal
anGe of S222, 600, 600 is by regarding it,
experienue as worth commercially al
that it cost. No allowance is made fol
the drop in tho value Of silver in hui
lion or for the fact that the GUineI sill
YER dollars are worth SO small part O
their face value. No business house il
such circumstances would suppose for ;
moment that it had surplus,
Tho situation is much as if street
railway company had bought horses II
years ago at the high prices then pro
vaiink, and bad issued notes Sc
against the horses but payable il
dollars and guaranteed by the company
itself. If that company should nov
Issue q statement of its financial condi
ton, and by reckoning the horses al
worth the market figure for those ami
mails 10 years ago be able to show I
surplus, it might be regarded as rathe
peculiar. But that is exactly the wa.
the government is dealing with its sill
yer holdings and IL Secretary Gag
should come out to morrow morning
with an official statement of the Treas
ury based upon the commercial facts, !
might create a panic, which it s obvi
ously well to avoid. The only troubl
in this avoidance of actualities is tina
the hulowness of the assumed assets O.
the Treasury must some day be recls
oned with. Upon some administration
the loss from pricking this bubble viii
have TO fall.
In this light the controversy over tn
bill to coin tine seigniorage, which
President Cleveland vetoed in the earl.
part of his administration, may he in
tefestingly recalled. a seigniorago i
strictly proiit. Mr.. Bland and hi
followers wanted an additional outpu
, of silver dollars from tho Treasury I,
correspond with thu ''proiit'' which
tho government had made by huyint
silver at one price per ounce and coin
ing IL into dollars which represented
much higher figure per ounce of silver
Mr. Cleveland vetoed the bill hecaus
he thought there was no profit there
and hence no seigniurago to be coined
| 1t certainly appears to'dny as ii th
{ number of dollars issued against TIL
silver bullion in tho Treasury is sutli
GENTLY ample. The project which Mr.
| Cleveland then resisted, it presenter
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