Iron County register., 1898-12-29
MEXICAN DEVELOPMENT.
The Silver Standard Has Meant Trade
Increase for Our Neighbor-
ing Republic.

| increase Is the WOrQ marked owe
every statistic of trade given out b,
Mexico" says the Philadelphia In
| quirer. The exports have increased
over the imports, and both are larger
than at any time during the life of that
| republic. Agriculture, manufacturing
and mining all show large gains. The
railroads are earning more and steam
ships are crowding her ports in man
ner hitherto almost unknown.
This, in brief, tells the situation il
the country where Diaz is the bene.
fcent but none the less absolute die.
tator. The Mexican himself is to q
| large extent responsible for this con.
| dition of affairs. He is reaching out
and exploiting the resources of his
country at every opportunity. He is
| organizing syndicates and he is taking
contracts-he is exhibiting his prod
ucts at state fairs and at national ex-
| positions-in a word, he IS pushing
Chill hard for the honor of being
called the Yankee of the South
Nor have Americans been slow to
| see the advantages that are offered for
trade in Mexico. Capital is flowing
| into that country to buy farms, sink
shafts and build factories. A large
| company proposes to erect an enor
| nous candy and cracker factory.
American buyers have gone into Mex
leo to buy $4,000 head of cattle to shin
to Cuba and Porto Rico. In the last
few years many cotton factories have
been built by Americans, who import
half the raw cotton they use from the
states. Mexican papers are full of conn
ments on the excellence of American
machinery, which has been imported in
large quantities recently. The demand
for American bicycles is 20 per cent.
greater than it was four years ago, and
is steadily growing.
american machinery and American
methods go hand in hand. The mer-
chants of Mexico no longer demand
nine and twelve months time on their
bills, but are learning to pay in 80
days or take discount at ten days.
Statesmen and agents representing our
merchants scour the country from end
to end placing orders or buying.
And the government is encourag
ing this rapid increase in the CONNER
cial prosperity of the country by every
means it has at hand. Even the gen
darmerie, or police force, of the City of
Mexico is now taught to speak English,
and prizes are given to those most pro-
ticient.
I'VE in this country are too prone to
assume that the countries south of US
are asleep. Such is not the fact. Mex
10 of 1x-I., SC
going on through the whole of South
America. 1t is the magic touch of en-
ergy and enterprise that the United
States gives to those peoples who come
under its influence"
While the Philadelphia Inquirer was
thus discoursing on the marvellous
progress of Mexico, Sound money"
orators and newspapers engaged in
campaign work all over the country
were painting sad and sorrowful pic
lures of the degradation and distress
of Mexico, all on account of her 80
cent dollars" "Just think of it,"
shrieks the campaign spell-binder, zone
American dollar is more than equal to
two Mexican dollars. Do you want
such money as that? How can any
country be prosperous and progressive
upon cheap silver standard?"
It ought to be plain that if a Mex
ican dollar is only worth half as much
as an American dollar, it will only
take half as much labor or produce TO
get the Mexican dollar. If a Mexican u
peon is working for $3.50 day in tne
silver money of his country, the adop-
tion of the gold standard there would
reduce his pay to IS cents. Would that
Improve his condition any? If so.
how? So far from being benefit 10
jury. It is true that other things
might fall in price also. and thus en-
able him to keep even, but If he
just keeps even" how does the gold
standard improve his condition? The
goldite cannot defend his pet system
by simply showing that a man can
'keep even" under it, for the claim Is
that the gold standard is the best, and
he is bound to prove it. Nor can he
do so by showing that American WORK
ingmen are, as a rule, better off than |
the Mexican, because the former has |
many advantages over the latter en-
tirely separate and apart from any |
difference in the monetary system. He |
must show how the adoption of the |
gold standard by Mexico would i'm |
prove the condition of labor there. He |
cannot do it. The most he can do Is
to show that the Mexican can lose
nothing. because so cents in gold would |
go as far as one dollar in silver. Bui
even here the gold man would fail. for
so cents in gold would not pay as much
one dollar in silver. unless they be
scaled pro rata. This is contrary 70
a golditeis religion. No matter how
much the dollar is increased in ex-
change value, the creditor and the
tax gatherer and the tax eater must
receive just the same number of
dollars, and to deny it is "-epudia-
ton"
But this does not state the entire
case. The gold standard has carried
n long train of evils into every country
adopting it and has benefited none.
so far as the masses of the people arc
concerned. There has been unceasing
in every gold standard coun
try from 1873 right down to the pres
mt day. No sooner did India take d
step in that direction, in 1898, than
The clouds began to gather upon her
Industrial horizon, and the whole
aspect of her business affairs was
changed. The same is true of Japan.
ind the same will be true of Mexico If
she ever tries the experiment. The