The Roanoke times. (Roanoke, Va.) 1897-1977, 1897-08-21
DON'T BE TOO MERRY.

promlpen6 republican organ re-
marks with every appearance of deep sat-
isfaction, that "silver will soon be only
nominally one of the precious metals"
Other Republican papers gleefuIly predict
that the tables of the poor will soon
shine with complete equipments of silver
ware. One Republican journal foresees
the time when silver will be as cheap as
pig iron. Every successive decline in the
price of silver is hailed with joy, as if it
were blessing to the people of the Uni
ted States. During the past few weeks
nearly al the newspapers that oppose the
free, unlimited, and independent coinage
of silver at the ratio of 16 to have kept
up n grand chorus Of ..jubilation over the
falling price Of that metal.
The Post, like those jolly shcuters, is
opposed to the coinage plank of the Chi
cago platform; but, unlike them, it sees
no cause for rejoicing, no occasion for
jokes, no hint of any possible good to the
people or the government of the United
States in the decline of silver. We have
no special interest in or concern for the
owners Of silver mines or gold mines. If
the losses of TIT, producers CT silver were
beneficial to the general public we should
not be surprised At the joy of our con-
temporaries. The greatest good of the
greatest number is the end to be aimed
at, and he whose success in business is an
injury to the masses does not deserve to
succeed.
Eut this government and this people
have tremendous stake in silver entirely
separate and distinct from the interests
of the mine owner.
If 1t were decided-which it certainly
is not-that no more silver will he
bought for coinage in this country; if the
pee pie had voted-which they have not
in favor of the unconditional acceptance
and maintainance of gold monometalism
even under these conditions we should
find no satisfaction in the falling price OF
silver We have about $500, 100000 in
silver that we are carrying and are bound
to carry at parity with gold. Ought
we to be glad of a process that cheapens
the coins of the country? Ought any or
gan of Sound money to shout in glee
when value goes out of and fiat goes into
our currency? Every penny that falls
from the price of silver means reduc-
ton of millions in the commercial value
of our ccins. Is there anything funny in
thati
Suppose, for the sake of argument. that
the decline should 90 on to the full en-
tent predicted by the mistaken friends of
sound currency; suppose the silver In our
coins and the silver bullion in our vaults
should 'ease to have any other than in
trinsic value should sell for what it
might be worth to use in the arts, as iron,
lead and ziuc are sold would not that
condition he dangerous to the stability of
our currency? Could we carry few
Thousand dollars worth of any metal at
face value of $500, 900, 0009 And, if we
could, would not that simple fact dis.
prove all established theories as to sound
currency? If fiat could make dollar out
of n cents worth of metal. the Populists
would be then completely vindicated.
We think the opponents of free coinage
are making serious mistake in trying
to depreciate silver. The stake of this
country in that metal is too great to war
rant any lcvity over it's decline in price.
Washington Fost.