New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1897-10-31
THE WOLCOTT MISSION.
,cor. ATEp ACTION FAVORED By ENGLAND
IN INDIA-FRENCH BIMETALLISM AND
THE POUND sTERLING-THE BAT
TIE OF THE STANDARDS.
London, october ~.


r,baes,es and the Bimetallic Commission Is
.u withheld but 1t is certain to be uhlaVo1-
,,a although not unequivoca and final lhere
=, strong minority Of convinced bimetallists IN
che Cabinet and its opinion is respected Inc
orswer will he evasive, and monetary negotla-
,,ons will lie deferred TO a more convenient sea-
con Three months ago there was sood srouHo
,or the belief that Great Britain would agree 10
reonen the Indian mrts and to make other
-ongen,ents for a larger use of silver IN the
1,,ited Kingdom if the United states ana
france were bent upon adopting practical
measures in the interest Of bimetalllsm
Dur,nc the interval there was sharp
fall in silver. and the Indian experts shrahK
from the responsibility OF advising step
.-S,ob would have increased the volume of
the financial remittances to be made to Lon
don Their counsel has been decisive so far as
,ha cabinet is concerned Positive pledges from
the British Government were essential to the
,ocass Of a new monetary conference These
have been withheld because the Indian minis
cannot be reopened against the advice of the
official experts.
A singular fact is TO be noted in connection
with this unfavorable response to the none
,ary proposals of the allied Governments. IhlS
&c the concurrence OF nearly all the financial
exuerts in the confession hat the closing OF the
Indian minis in 1893 was blunder, ana mas
remained the weakest point in BRITISH none
tary policy. That measure was adopted hastly
as hazardous experiment, which might not
work So badly as the fnanc.ers feared. The
contraction OF the currency brought about by
the closing Of the minis and By the imposition
of a duty OF ) per cent on imported silver
tended TO impart 10 the rupee what may be
described as a scarcity value. and 10 protect
II artifcially. Its exchange value has been stiff
fened slightly. but it has remained in an inter-
mediate state of isolation between the gold cur
rencv Of England and the silver money Of China
and other Eastern countries. Monometallls's
themselves are not satisfied with the results Of
what can only be considered as tentative
transition policy Lord Farrer admits that the
closure Of the minis has not fulfilled the eX-
pectations Of those who advised this expedient;
and Sir Robert Gffen evidently considers that
the mints ought to have remained open. Tine
London Times" which has been leading the
assault Of the fnanciers Of the City upon the
Wolcott Commission, frankly says: THE sub
ject has been discussed at very great length
by many practsed controversialists. with the
general result that the closure has practically
no defenders on the ground Of abstract princi-
pie"
It is. however. upon the expediency OF main
tanning this closure Of the Indian minis that
the British Government bases its refusal TO CO.
operate with the United States and France in
securing international action respecting silver.
The closure is generally ADMITTED to have been
a mistake and TO be theoretically indefensble;
but all PROPOSITIONS for the reopening OF the
minis concurrently with the adoption OF meas
ures in the direction o: rational bimetallism by
international agreement are rejected as mop
II
Times" and all monometallist writer's are not
agreed upon an alternative policy, but they con-
tend with one accord that immediate action is
not requisite, and that whenever anything s
done In India 1t should be done independently
Of and without reference to the monetary policies
Of other nations. This is what many contro-
versialists are saying. England will find II
necessary. they admit, either TO Introduce
gold standard In India, where silver has always
been boarded, or else 10 reopen the minis and
reduce the face value Of the scarcity rupee" 10
its bullion value; but it must act at leisure.
when the effects Of famine and pestilence
not felt, and when the expenses Of a frontier
war are not to be provided for: and 1t must
not be embarrassed by international arrange
ments for bimetallism.
A year ago Organism in America was pro-
posing single handed action the part OF The
United States with reference TO silver; and
everybody in his sober senses condemned IL
an irrational policy. These English experts are
equally unreasonable in contendng that inter-
national action monetary questions is mex
pedient and dangerous. and that the problems
OF Indian finance must be solved without refer
ence to the policies Of France and the United
States. They taking UP the same position
which seemed TO them untenable when it
~ Rrva
that isolated action on the part of one nation is
safer and more useful in monetary policy than
the preconcerted and systematized action Of
many nations. Some OF tho writer's who are
applauding the refusal Of the Cabinet TO fulfil
its Parliamentary pledges and TO promote the
bimetalst proposals of France and the United
States are emphatic in declaring that the Ind
ian mints ought never TO have been closed.
and that they should be reopened at once. But
they insist like the Bryante leaders, upon hav-
ing England act independently and alone, and
without making any arrangements. in or OUT Of
conference. with other nations. 1t is folly
equalled only by the vagaries Of Organism.
THE DUAL MONETARY ALLIANCE
One other feature OF the controversy which
has been fercely waged in the English press,
needs to be noticed. That is the soant attention
which has been paid to the part taken by
France in these monetary negotiations. Sena-
tor Wolcott's mission has been represented
an American intrigue against the pound sterling
undertaken at the expense of the British credi-
tor; and now that the Cabinet has listened with
a feeling Of awe TO the memorials Of the iinan
cers Of the city and pulled itself together suf-
fcenty TO inform the representatives, Of the
two Governments that it can do nothing at
dad
patriotic refusal TO tamper with the credit OF
the country. The fact that the French Embassy
has joined heartily with the American Embassy
in supporting these negotiations is conveniently
forgotten American politicians have been re-
preached with trying to bring about the silver
millennium, which Mr. Bryan had promised TO
the crediilnus Arnnrican vnfer and Incidentally