The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1898-01-20

ion, England could materially contribute
to u solution of the question and at the
same time retain for her own people the
gold standard.
rThe newspapers of London, like the
newspapers of many capitals OF the
world" said he, ARE dominated by, and
allied with the banking element and re-
fleet their views and often their expires
siOns. The business of money lOaning is
an engrossing pursuit. not always tend
ing to the cultivation of the amenities
of life. and it is not to be wondered at
that the London newspapers yOicing that
industry, should, in their hostility to Il
policy of which they disapproved, forget
for the moment that courtesy which is
due to the stranger within their gates,
especially when he comes upon invita-
ton, and they should not be led to char
actcrze proposals MS impertincnt which
were made only upon the request of their
own government.
1T was perfectly rcalizable from the
beginning" he said, that bimetallism for
England was out of the question.
India was the vital point of all the
negotiations with England, and all other
proposals were insignificant, in COMPARE
son with that respecting the reOpcning
of the minis of India to the unlimited
coinage Of silver, and the repeal of the
decree permitting gold to be paid for
government dues and to be exchanged
| for government rupees.
| "Many English nonomctallists. of
| wide influence believe the policy to be
. mistaken one" he said "and would be
glad to see the India mints reopcned if
| it could be done without stimulating the
| cause of brnetallism and as 4 separate
and distinct action. There was gen
cral opinion not limited to England that
the Indian government would be quick
| itself to make an opportunity to reopen
| its mintS and would welcome any inter
national attempt towards bimetallism
| that would raise the value of silver and
would be glad to cooperate in such an
| attempt. This belief found expression
| in the speech of the chancellor of the
| eXchequOr of March IL, and | am sure
that ! violate no confidence when | say
| that the answer of the Indian govern
| ment protesting against the reOPening of
| India mints was as much n surprise to
| the English ministry as it was disap-
| pointment to us. While the protest was
not final, and while the English govern
| mcnt in London could have Overruled
| the objections from India, yet such ac-
| ton would have been contrary to all
precedent. As matter of fact, the
home government it is said, unanimous
ly upheld the report.
"'ro u.s." Mr.. WOlcOtt continued "the
India situation is incXplicable. Millions
| of people, most of them extremely poor,
| have for years invested all their savings
| in silver. These aCcnmulations few
| years ago were worth a thousand million
dollars and more. Today they are worth
less thar half that sum. BY the closing
| Of the India mints and the artificial
gold value given To silver India is at
n great disadvantages with the neighbor-
| ing countries, the exports of which are
stimulated by the higher premium on
gold, and they are robbing India of much
| of her manufacture and export.
"1hc world has heard much of the
| famine in India and of the great funds
| subscribed for its victims. 1t has not
| been. however, so generally known that
| the famine was one of money rather
than food: that the contributions were
| chiefly forwarded to India III the form
| of money aid not grain, and that during
| the whole period of the famine rice was
| abundant where men were starving. and
its price was but a triflc over n cent II
| pound, less than the price of wheat in
| England. For all these evils the loss in
! the value of the savings of the people,
the disadvantage of different purchas-
ing value for silver in India from that
which prevailed in China. the evils of
| an insufficient volume of money and the
! enormous injury which commerce suf-
fers through violent fluctuations in the
rate of exchange, we offered what we
believed to be Il remedy. Our offer was
refused and the refusal must be consd-
cred as final until the failure of the
! experiment upon which the India gov
eminent has entered shall be demon
strated."
! MIR. W0lcOtt next enumerated the OBJ
stacles which the commission had to
contend with. in which he included the
remarkable drop in the price of silver,
the coincdcnt tariff legislation in the
United States and the statements of New
York bankers IN England, who. he
said, sought access to English officials
and assured them that any sentiment
which had formerly existed in the United
States in favor of bimctallism was dead
Their statements WERE" Mr.. VOL
colt said "of course. untrue, but in sup
port of them these people assumed to
present interviews and statements of the
director of the mint hOldOvcr from
the last administration, the late comp
trOllcr of the currency. and pretended
statements in letters and interviews,
from the secretary of the treasury TO
the effect that there was no chance Tor
international or any other bimctallism.
and favOring the permanent adoption of
the gold standard. Nobody in Europe
cared rap what the two minor
prophets thought or said. as nobody in
this country cares, but the alleged state
mcnt of the secretary of the treasury
was Il different matter. We insisted
that the letters must be forgerics and
the interviews fictitious, and | trust they
were. for it was inconceivablc that a
member of the cabinet would seek to
undermine the efforts of mission APP
! pointed by the president and whose eff
I forts he was cordially and zcaiously