The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1898-07-22
TYPICAL GOLDBUG LIAR.
False Statements Made by nm Igno-
rant Bungler-shOwed Up In
His True Light.

Ii does not seem possible that so
much asinine ignorance of the first
principles of monetary science. or
shameless mendacity, could be
crammcd into a brief newspaper arti-
Gle. as that in the News OF this city
entitled Dishonest Money" Either
the writer of this article is pitiably ig-
norant of the subject upon which he
essays to write, or else he is guilty OF a
cold blooded and mendacious misrep-
resentation of the facts in the case.
The article in question complains
that the new revenue law proposes to
coin an ounce of silver worth >l-25 in
to legal tender dollars. while the coins
SO printed are worth. intrinsically. but
Is cents each. An ounce of silver at
the present coinage ratio is worth
Si.20. and not Sl.2J, as stated by the
writer of this article; but suppose the
metal in "A silver dollar, as metal. is
worth but - cents. what on earth has
that to do with the exchange value Of
"A silver dollar? \ coined silver dol
lar being legal tender. primary. debt
paying dollar, has an exchange value
of 100 cents in gold. and that Is all
anyone wants any dollar for, not TO
sell the metal in the dollar, whether
of gold or silver, but TO exchange the
coined dollar for 100 cents worth of
debts or property or necessaries OF
life. and it is utterly immaterial to
them. and no one ever thinks about il
or cares about it. what the metal in
ell Toll - =
metal.
This shameless liar also has the
brazen assurance TO say that nobody
will take" these silver dollars when
coined under the new law, and that
mo one wants silver dollars now
Does this reckless falsifier of the plain
everyday facts and experiences and
observations of every sane person cx-
pect to be believed when he says that
nobody will take" these legal tender,
debt paying dollars? VIII he not take
them himself. and does he not take
them every day in the ordinary BUSH
ness transactions of his own news
paper office, or silver containing exact
! ly the same amount of silver and metal.
and having the same legal tender debt
paying power as gold dollars. as every
| silver dollar now in existence has, and
every silver dollar to be coined under
this new law win have? Does the
/ News make n business OF giving these
legal tender. debt-paying silver dollars
away TO those who want them with
out exacting for them 100 cents worth
of labor and debts and property and
necessaries of life? Not on your life.
/ This ignorant bungler. or worse, also
saws that we have 5OO.O0O.0O0 of these
silver dollars. and that we can only
keep II, COO. 900 of them in circulation,
thus conveying the impression that
100000 OF them are piled up in
the United States treasury, while
il is an official fact, and SO shown
by the books Of the treasury de-
partment. that not more than 5o.-
4 100000 of these legal tender, debt
paying dollars are actually in the
treasury, and that practically all of
them are kept there TO redeem silver
certificates under the Bland law of
ISIS. and the Sherman law of 1890, and
that practically every one of these
100000. 900 silver dollars are doing
business as legal tender. debt-paying
money, either in the form of silver
dollars or as silver certificates and
Sherman notes. an! besides. that
something like Ss0,0000c0 in frac.
tionai silver currency are also doing
business as legal tender debt-paying
money in this country. Does not this
writer know that fully seven-tenths oi
oil the money actually in circulation
among the people consist of silver dol
lars, silver certificates. sherman notes
and fractional silver currency? We did
not think that there was man IN
Springfield. and especially an editor OF
n newspaper. who would he guilty OF
making such mendacious statement
as this. If he believes it himself he
il fit subject for a lunatic asylum
and il he knows better. but still feeds
his readers with such stuff. he falls
far short of being an honest man
This writer also speaks of benchtine
the mine owners by coming ounces OF
silver into legal tender money. thus
increasing the purchasing price OF
their htAis NAat Va
was the decentralization of silver II
1873. and constantly discriminating
against it since then. that has reduce,
the bullion value of the metal in a sill
yer dollar from Si.03 in gold. as ii wa
In 1873. to As cents. and IL the govern
ment has thus legislated the value out
of the product of the silver miner. q
his absolute ruin. in most cases. woul,
there be anything unjust. or moral,
wrong. in the government reestabiish
ing the equilibrium between the s'l
yer producer and the debt owner an'
money manipulation by reestablishinI
the price OF silver bullion. and espe
cially so. when 1t can be done TO tn
great advantage of 90 out of every TO-
people In this country. including tn
mine owner. But we do not want Il
argue the money question here. w
simply started out 10 show up littl
OF the asininc ignorance or rockies
,nendacity of the article. In tn
Language Of the Spanish provcrb.
may be waste Of lather to shave a.
ass. but the good of the beast and IS