Worcester morning daily spy., 1898-01-19
TIE LAST HOPE DEAD.

THE LAST HOPE DEAD
Senator Edward o. Wolcott's speech
summarizing the history of the bimetal-
lie commissions negotiations in Europe
consisted mostly of twaddle. 1t prof
fered no fresh information beyond the
announcement that the senator himself
would withdraw from the commission
and leave further negotiations to some
body more fitted for such negotiations
and better able to give them his con-
slant time" The usages Of diplomacy,
no doubt, are partially responsible for
the lack of information conveyed by his
speech, but the lack is none the less dis
appointing. There are only two points
in his address that need be considered.
First in Importance is his attempt to
harness President Mckinley irrevocably
to the utterly discredited cause of inter
national bimetallisn. In this respect he
goes farther than Senator Chandler, for
he virtually seeks to commit the presi-
dent to uncompromising opposition to
any scheme of currency reform. We are
sentation of the presidents actual posi-
ton, but there is no denying the natu-
ralness Of the inference that is being
drawn from Wolcott's speech and Chan
dler's statements and interviews. Both
senators threaten him if he accepts the
gold standard as established. If the
cause of international bimetallism were
not dead the situation might be differ
emit But that it is dead is conclusively
proved by Senator Wolcott's own words,
despite his illogical professions Of hope.
That is the second point of interest in
his speech. He says in effect that it is
useless to expect any cooperation what
ever from England till the experiment
of closing the Indian mints to silver
proves a failure, Now, unfortunately
for his hopes, that experiment, SO far at
least as the Indian government Is con-
cerned, promises complete success, That
is to say, the desired establishment Of
the gold standard in the country is inn
minent, and when that is established it
is fair to presume that the imperial
government itself win be as 10th to dis
turb the gold standard in India as it is
unwilling to compromise It in England.
Here, then, the one acknowledged hope
Of the bimetallists vanishes with the APP
preaching adoption of the gold standard
in India. But even if it should become
necessary to reopen the Indian minis to
sc A
authority for saying that this conces-
sion would not be considered sufficient
to warrant the United States in entering
into bargain with England as to BIZ
metallism. Some plan would have to be
devised whereby England herself should
consent to assume some part OF the risk
and responsibility of the bimetallic ex-
pertinent. She has never manifested the
slightest disposition to do this, and
there is no reason to expect that she
would change her intentions in this re-
spect.
In the face of these facts, what sense
is there in persisting in living. in the BIZ
metallic dream? Is it not the obviously
sensible course, for all who call them
selves republicans, to confess the fact
that International bimetallism is impos-
sible; to consider that the PARTY pledge
Of the st. Louis platform has been hon
uncompromisingly by that other pledge
of the PLATFORM, namely, to maintain the
gold standard? AS party we have re-
solved that the gold standard is vastly
to be preferred to the silver standard,
yet there is now absolutely no choice be-
tween them, and all haggling over the
point and all striving for international
agreements only serve to carry aid and
comfort to the free silver forces. The
last subterfuge has been swept away,
man of either party, but in favor Of the
gold standard, or the free and unlimited
coinage of silver
Senator Wolcott makes one curious
admission. 1t is this: The next time an
attempt is made to negotiate with other
nations, it may be necessary to substi-
tute the ratio of 20 to 1 for that of 16 to
/. This is an unconscious weakening of
his case, an abandonment of ground; it
confesses natural depreciation of sill
yer, such as the silver men (and for the
most part the bimetallists) have never
admitted, save with the explanation
that the depreciation has been caused
by the Vaccinations of the wicked gold
bugs and the characterization of silver
in 1873 Yet here comes Wolcotts con-
fession, in the face of the largest gold
production in the history of the world
and the promise of even much greater
yearly yield. This Is surrender of one
of the foundation arguments of free sill
yer coinage and Of bimetallism as well.
A GREAT IRON PLANT.