The Louisiana populist., 1897-11-19
WHY WHEAT Is NOTS2
RELATION OF SILVER TO
CEREAL IN INDIA.
HOW tho Gold Standard Holds Down
tho Price Clearly Explained by Cen
eral Warner--A Clear Exposition Of
the Subject.

eral Warner--A Clear Exposition Of
the Subject.
BY A. ]. Warner, next Senator from
~ Ohio.
In 1891, at convention of the Amer
lcan Bimetallic League, held at Wash
lnston, Moreton Frewin, the distin-
gulshed English bimetallist, called at
tens!on to the close relations between
silver and wheat in India, and it's ef-
feet on the price Of American wheat.
he showed that for long time an
ounce of silver in India, converted into
rupees, had been the equivalent OF a
bushel of wheat, including transpor-
tation to European markets, and, es-f
pec!ally had this been the case since
the opening Of the Suez canal. He
showed also that, under conditions then
existing, as the gold price of bullion
silver went down in the American mar
ket, the gold price of wheat would go
down in India, and consequently in
the European markets, necessarily car
rying down with it the price of wheat
IN this country. This was then strictly
true and easily explained.
II an ounce of silver would pay for
q bushel Of wheat in India and lay it
down In Liverpool, it is plain that if
the ounce Of silver could be bought in
America for 60 cents in gold, then go
cents IN gold would pay for the bushel
OF wheat in India, including its trans
portation to Europe, which would mean
40 to so cent wheat in this country as
long as India had wheat to export.
Nothing could be palmer than that.
Bimetallists, therefore, called the at
tention Of the American farmer to this
fact and showed him the consequences
Of Indian competition under such con-
ditions.
But It must be remembered that two
things were necessary to produce this
result.
First, the purchaser of wheat in In
dia must be able to convert bullion sill
yer at will into rupees with which to
pay for wheat. This was the condition
then. and continued SO till June. 1898.
Second, India must have wheat to ex-
port. This India had for many years
in succession, and will doubtless have
again. But for two years past her crop
OF wheat, on account of drouth, has
been short.
Bimetallists, therefore, were on
strictly scientific ground In claiming
that as long as the mints Of silver
using countries were opened to the un-
restricted coinage of silver that the
products Of these countries, such as
wheat. cotton and other things coming
IN competition with the products OF
Western nations, would rise and fall
with she gold price of silver, and that
the premium on gold operated as
bounty to them in stimulating exports.
But when the nints OF India and other
silver-using countries were closed, this
tie between silver and their products
was broken. Reopen the mints Of In
dia. Japan and other heretofore silver
countries to the free coinage Of silver
and the same results will again follow.
In other words, restore the conditions
that prevailed prior to 1893 and the old
relation Of wheat to bullion silver will
be restored. s
Bimetallists have never claimed since
the tie Of open mints was broken that
wheat and silver were any longer nec-
essarily held together. This change
was the result Of legislation and moth
Ing else. That is all there is to that
side Of the question. sa 8
Now, what has caused the sudden rise
in wheat? A short crop for the world
and nothing else. It has been ascer-
tained that at this time the surplus
from last years crop still on haa,ls
scarcely exceeds sevepty-aye million
bushels. As the bread -eatiifg poptia-
.tion Of the world requires from Sooo;-
900 to 5000. 900 bushels a day, this is
barely q half months supply. The
world is then made to depend on the
crop OF this year already harvested, and