The Clarksburg telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1874-1926, 1898-03-04
FREE coinage
DISCUSSED BY HON. STEPHEN 3. ElllNs
N THE UNITED STATES SENATE.
The Senate Having Under Consideration
tie Teller Resolution 10 Authsrlls Tie
Paynsntsf Bonds 10 Silver.
CONCLUDED from last ,oeea:. j

SCA ttSlh 4AbaAlt h4SSAhUSsA VIC AA0ASS
equality of gold and silver when
there is a wide difference in their
commercial value, because of the
pledged faith of the nation !; but
if the United States should get
into financial difficulties it could
not maintain thiseauality. Sup
pose silver should decline to 90
or even to 10 cents on the dollar,
would the Democratic party con
tinue to insist upon the free
coinage of silver at the ratio of
16 to /, and the payment of To-
cent dollars in discharge Of the
interest and principal Of the pub
lie debt : Would not this be re-
pudiation, confiscation, and a
violation of good faith !?
There is limit to which legis,
lation can goin creating or main
tanning artificial against actual
values. If there were no limit,
a government could create wealth
by legislation. / do not deny
that comforting the money use
on a metal or commodity gives it
value. and great value, but the
extent of this value depends
largely upon the strength. good
faith, and power of the govern
ments and can not go beyond q
certain limit. Values depend
mainly upon supply and demand
buyer and seller, a law superior
to the acts of Congress.
Congress cannot create values;
nor can it make things equal
which are unequal. II the pro.
duction of silver increases or re-
mains as it is, and the demand
for it as money ceases, as it is
doing in nearly all parts of the
world, the United States can not
OF itself maintain silver equal
with gold. 1t could do it with
the concurrent action of the lead
| ing commercial countries of the
world, otherwise it would be I'M
possible. The Republican party
is the best friend silver ever had.
1t has coined and put in use near
ly 500, 600, 900 silver dollars, and
it has given its pledge that these
dollars shall be kept equal to
gold.
Could anything more in behalf
OF silver be done with safety !?
/ L wish as earnestly. as any Sena-
tor on this floor that silver and
gold were equal in value ] feel
lii would be better under existing
circumstances for our commercial
interests but my wishes in the
premises and my efforts, and of
all the Senators and of Congress,
can not fix the value of these
two metals. / earnestly hope,
with the cooperation of other
Governments, that a conclusion
may yet be reached by which
silver may be used as money
equal to gold the world over; but
/ confess that my hopes in this
direction are not encouraged.
Surely they are not as sanguine
and rosy as those of the junior
Senator from Colorado. The
cold gloomy facts that he pro-
duced IN his great speech y few
DAYS since, to my mind, did not
authorize his sanguine and Opt
mistic conclusions. The whole
world seems to be turning its
back on the use of silver as
money.
Mr.. President, in 1896, the Re-
publican party won great victo-
! nv, after q most exhaustive de-
bate on this and other questions
raised by the Chicago platform.
The Republican platform declar-
ed explicitly that it was the pur-
pose of the Republican party to
maintain the existing gold stand
ard. Behind the Republican
party to-day, stands 1000. 600
voters who have decided against
the opening of the mints and the
further coinage of silver at the
ratio of 18 to i. What has been
1.-The result following this vietoryl