The herald., 1898-03-21
GREAT BRITAIN'S DILEMMA

Bimetallists in the British house of
commons have fixed upon March 2Sth
for interrogating the government touch
ing it's attitude on the silver question.
The occasion for this proposed revival
of agitation is not volunteered, nor is
It apparent, except upon the hypothesis
that the friends of the double standard
in England, as here, refuse to consider
It settled until 1t is settled right.
The bimetallists' stronghold there is in
the populous manufacturing district of
Lancashire, where the sentiment is
ablest and most virile daily Jour-
nal in England outside of Lon
don, the Manchester Guardian. That
paper manifests continuing disposition
to live up to It's name, so far as the
guardianship of the silver cause is con-
eidered But outside of that district
there has not been observed much pub
lie interest in the question since the
ministry, in October last, sent the VOL
colt commission home with heavy hearts
and empty game bags. That action was
supposed to have closed the incident, so
far as it related to India and an agree
ment with France and America to re-
open it's mints.
Austria-H Hungary and Russia have
since made some progress toward the
contemplated change in each to the
single gold standard, and with this con-
~ 80, IL,
so far as Europe is concerned, is by
some expected to come to an end.
But it seems this is not to be ac-
cepted as final by the bimetallist con-
tingent in the British house, and
the debate that will be precipitated
there may be expected to develop some
important information relative to the
success of the government in establish
ing the gold standard in India.
Having, by it's rejection of the over
lures of the Franco American commits
sioners, accepted that alternative, the
ministry is to be interrogated as to how
1t is progressing in that herculean un-
dertaking. On this point we may antic
pate a little. A very interesting and
carefully prepared letter from London
appeared in a late issue of the New York
Semi weekly Tribune, treating of this
question, and from it we are able to eX-
tract several suggestive hints. The in
ferences to be drawn from this commu
nication, of interest to Americans, may
be thus epitomized:
~, 1Nft II,
agree that the closure of the mints was
blunder, and has remained the weak
est point in recent Indian monetary pol
icy, and that it cannot be defended on
the ground of abstract principle but
the financiers in power in India have
decided that they have gone too far to
turn back, and that the only course
open to them is to persevere with their
scarcity rupee, and to adapt it as quick
ly as possible to the requirements of a
gold standard.
Second-There has been no reaction
against the refusal of Lord Elgin and his
colleagues to cooperate with the United
States and France in scheme of sys-
tematized international action in favor
of bimetallism. Their neglect to take
advantage of a great opportunity for re-
storing the value Of silver by interna-
tional agreement involves an obligation
to proceed resolutely, if not obstinately
with their own alternative policy of d
gold standard. Last October they were
at the parting of the ways, and they
set their faces sternly against interna-
repented
Third-The real monetary battlefield
has been India, where the mints were