Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1898-07-07
SILVER AND IT'S USES.
Could Replace Gold If Driven Out or
the Country by Free Coinage
Its Other Uses.

In speech before the house of rep
resentatives, Congressman Shafroth, of
Colorado, made a very forcible argu-
ment in favor of free silver coinage. He
pointed out that, under existing laws
and without any impairment of contract
or breach of faith on the part of the gov
eminent, free coinage would at once
create a demand for silver currency to
the amount of at least So, SOS, 000, 000-a
figure representing the existing credit
money" of the nation. The very fact of
the existence of such an immense vol
ume of credit securities, he argued,
proved conclusively the necessity for an
expanded currency in at least that
amount. In case free coinage should
send gold to premium and thus drive
it from the country, as asserted by the
single standard advocates, there would
be demand for $500, 600, 900 more of sill
yer TO take its place.
Here, then. would be an immediate
| demand for So, 261 ,00o, 900 in silver. In
case it should be deemed advisable to
retire the United States treasury notes,
quired as substitute, and by including
the national bank notes, place for
1921 100000 more silver would be
| created. Thus silver could be employed
to the enormous amount of $3,s3s, 0o0,-
600 without increasing the present
actual circulating medium of the coun-
try to the extent of single dollar.
With such an enormous demand upon
| the comparatively limited supply of I'M
coined silver in existence, there would
be little danger but that the parity be-
tween the two metals could be easily
established and maintained, even by un
limited coinage upon the part of the
United States alone.
In summarizing the uses to which
silver currency could legitimately be
put, he called attention to the fact that
| the debts of the people of the United
States amounted to $50, 200, 000, 900, one
half of which was payable in lawful
| money of the nation. This would create
a demand for SIC, OOo, 00o, 900 more silver
with which to discharge these debts. He
also showed that silver as legal tender
would discharge state, county and city
taxes to the extent of $500, 600, 900 year,
| that it would pay import duties and in
ternal revenue duties of the United
States to the extent of $500, 200, 900 a
year, that it would pay the premiums
on life insurance policies to the extent
of $500, O00, 900 a year, and upon fire in
surance policies of $15s.00o,O00 year;
that it would pay the deposits in savings
banks to the amount of $1,000, 000,0 900,
in national banks to the extent of ST.
| 100000, in state banks to the extent of
S723, 100000, and loan and trust COM
panies to the extent of $500, 00o, 900, and
in private banks to the extent of $780,
OO0, 900.
Taking these various sums together.
| it is found that the people of the United
| States alone could use SIS, SOC, 100000 of
silver without impa:ring single obi
CATION or depreciating the lawful and
| legitimate value of a single existing
debt or security. Under such circum-
stances, it is certainly absurd to sup
pose that a nation representing one
| fourth of the entire monetary power
Of the world, as does the United States,
| would be unable to maintain the parity
of silver under a bimetallic system Of
| finance, especially in view of the fact
| that it would have the moral support of
other silver-using countries represent
ing an equal monetary power.-Denver
Times-Sun.