Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1897-10-21
SILVER SPRAY.

SILVER SPRAY.
Lining Up for Gold" was the caption
to an article seen In contemporary
and we thought how badly the gold
standard system needed the lining.
Perhaps, If they could only sec It that
way, q silver lining might be the most
efficacious.
The London bankers, in meeting r@
Gently, adopted, unanimously, reso
luton to the effect that they entirely
disapproved CT the Bank of England
agreeing to exercise the option, permiA
ted by the act of 1884, Of holding one
fifth or any other proportion whateves
of silver as a reserve against the circH
lation of the Bank of England notes
OF course they protest. They have been
doing that, and pretty successfully, too
for some years. The bankers of London
have been consistently opposed to al
the interests of the whole people, un.
less it might be some interest of which
they themselves had n way of securing
the major portion of the profits. The
trades unions of England are without
exception pledged to the reconciliation
OF silver. The people want it. Many Of
the peoples representatives in parlia
ment are advocating 1t. Isn't it about
time the English people had something
without having to get the consent OF
the London bankers to be allowed u
secure it2
But, however that may be, one-ffth
of the reserve of the Bank of England
is not very much of contribution on
England's part toward international bi.
metaIlism. If the monetary commits.
sion IL to be satisfied with such sops
as this they had better in the begin.
ming have stayed at home. One-hfth
of the reserve held by the Bank of Eng.
land in silver while the other four-ffths
is held in gold is not bimetallism, noa
does it approach it; nor, so far as we
can sec, does 1t even hint at POSSIBLE
ity that the British government or the
Bank of England will ever do anything
further toward the placing of silver In
the markets of the world as money
metal. If it is thought that sop Of this
kind will lessen the intensity Of the
campaign in the United States for gen.
urine bimetallism, silver on an equal
footing with gold, and independently
If other nations won't join us, we may
conclude that the caliber of the Ameri.
can people has been woefully mistaken
by our brethren across the water.
What we contend for Is the prosperity
of the people, but the prosperity wants
some assurance of permanency. Some.
thing of prosperity has come to US OF
late from the failure Of crops abroad
and the success of our home crops. For
the present gold is tending toward this
side of the Atlantic. Prosperity has NOT
struck us yet very hard, but the i'm.
provement on what has been for some
years is material. But consider the
slender foundation on which it rests.
Suppose that next year that it was our
crops that failed, and that everything
was in smiling way on the Russian
plains and the Argentine fields, where
would the gold balance be? Silverites
are not apt to lose sight of the real ques-
ton, but our friends of the gold stripe
may be likely to be deluded into feel
ing of security. For we remember that
goldites as well as silverites were a little
while ago clamoring for a change in
our currency system. This very fact
shows the inconsistency observed in
certain quarters Of crediting to the gold
standard forces credit for the slight
betterment we have seen. All hands
year ago wanted change. Gold-stand-
ard advocates wanted their leaky sys-
tenn mended, bank notes substituted
for greenbacls. In fact, when the sad
condition was seen on every side they
must advocate some sort of change.
Now, with the lull In the storm, they
have taken assurance. False pilotsl
they little know the waters in which
they sail Bimeta1lists stood for n
radical change that would affect the
root of the matter. Bimetallists stood
on the welI-known facts Of history, and
prophesied that no permanent Inn
provement could come under any gold
standard regime. That is their position
to-day. Horace Boies and others that
are carried with every current, weather
cocks blown by every wind, can re-
pudiatc this stand, but no other position
is logical or tenable.