Natchitoches populist., 1898-10-28
INDIA WON'T HAVE TT.
PEOPLE THERE SEE INIQUITY
OF GOLD STANDARD.
Under 1t They Would Have to Give
Away Twice as Much of Their Prod
ucts Tor Dollar as Under the 81.
metallic System.


From the space which our London
contemporaries devote to the subject
1t is to be concluded that the PROPOSE
ton to put British India on a gold-cur-
rency basis is regarded as a burning
question, 1t has already been pointed
out that the view taken by the leading
economic and financial writer's of Great
Britain Is decidedly hostile to the
scheme. This opposition, it is fair to
say, is not grounded upon the theory
that the discarding of silver by India
would be detrimental to British inter-
ests, although there is an idea present
in the discussion that such a move
would increase the difficulties which
the London market and the Bank OF
England have to contend with growing
out Of the demand for gold from Rus
STA and Japan, not to mention the
heavy drafts which the United States
mas made during the past year on the
English supplies Of gold and those
which are liable to result from main
tenance of this country's favorable
trade balances.
The principal contention of British
critics in discussing the gold currency
proposals of the Indian government is
that the effect would be disastrous to
India itself. That country and all its
business interests, 1t is maintained,
have already suffered severely from the
contraction of the currency caused by
the closing Of the Indian minis to the
free coinage of the silver rupee. Finan-
clal stringency Is an annual occurrence
throughout the presidencies. Money
goes to prohibitory rates, and accord
ing to one authority, the leading Indian
banks were recently unwilling to make
loans even on the security Of bar gold
The restriction and disturbance OF bus
mess from such state of affairs Is OBJ
vlous. And 1t Is further pointed out
that for poor country like India, al
ready burdened with debt in Europe,
on which the interest Is payable In
gold, to enter upon policy that neces-
sarily involves additional heavy gold
loans in Europe in order to accumulate
and maintain a large gold reserve
would be little short of suicidal.
Another feature of the Indian finan-
cial situation which is also dwelt on
with emphasis in the course of the dis
eussion is the relation of midas i'm
memorial popular habits of boarding
silver to the proposed gold standard
1t Is pointed out that even since the
Indian minis were closed that country
went on importing silver to the extent
OF about S20,000,O00 year, although it
was a period of low prices for wheat,
cotton and other products and was
marked by plague, frontier war, famine
and exceptional dearth of money. Since
1853 it is calculated that about $780,
100000 of silver had been absorbed by
India for boarding and personal orna-
ments, and the usually careful London
Statist goes so far as to assume that
the total amount of silver held in that
way, not coined in India, is fully
$500, 100000.
While the rupee in exchange Is
worth about Is. 4d., the value of the
silver in the rupee Is worth about
lOhd. Silver, therefore, is about one
third below the artificial existing value
OF the rupee. Consequently the boards
and ornaments of the people of India
are worth about 0ne-thirdl less than
they would be II the minis had not
been closed. In old times, before the
minis were closed, rupees and silver in
the form Of ornaments were inter-
changeable. Now If a native is forced
to sell the latter he finds he is offered
about two-thirds their weight in ru-
PEGS. "It follows" says the journal
quoted from above, chat there is a de-
probation of approximately 100000,
600 In the value of the silver boards
and ornaments held In India. The uro-
posal of the Indian government is that
this depreciation should be perpetu
ated. The sum lis equal to one-half the
indemnity exacted by Germany from
France at the end of the war" The
economic and political complications
which might follow the further devel-
oDment OF such line of policy, there
fore, ill the leading London authori-
ties on the finance with apprehensions
which they are at no pains to conceal
The drift OF their argument is that the
fall in the value of the rupee has not
really injured India, which has been
vastly benefited by good government
and the development of its sources
through the inflow Of British capital
The remedy proposed Is, therefore, d
gradual fall OF the rupee so managed
by the government as not to disar-
range trade. Bradstreet's.