Iron County register., 1899-09-07
IF GOLD WOULD DEPART.
A SuppositiOn Based ON Goldite Logic
and the Only Conclusions
to BE Drawn.

A SuppositiOn Based on Goldfte Logic
and the Only Conclusions
to BE Drawn.
Suppose that free coinage law were
enacted, gold was to retire from circu-
| lation, and our silver and paper money
were to drop to so cents on the dollar
| Such result would be impossible, but
we will suppose it. What would that
mean? Simply this, that it would take
two silver or paper dollars to equal one
gold dollar. In other words, gold would
stand at premium of 100 pSr cent
over other forms of money. Bu. if
silver dollar is only worth half as much
as gold dollar, then manifestly it is
only half as hard 10 get it. If bushel
of wheat is worth SO cents in gold, il
will be worth one dollar in silver. Now,
if a farmer owes a gold debt of 500, he
must sell 1000 bushels of wheat in or.
der to get it. If we are on a silver
basis and silver dollars were worth
only so cents in gold, his 1000 bushels
of wheat would bring him 1000 silver
dollars. With these he could pay his
debt as before. His 1000 silver dollars
would be the precise equivalent of 500
gold dollars, and he would neither
gain nor lose. The gold standard as
sumes that the silver dollar is going
to drop one-half of its present value,
and still it will require the same
amount of labor and the products o:
labor to procure it. Then it is further
assumed that it will require two of
these silver dollars to procure a gold
one. If these assumptions were true,
it would follow that the free coinage
and increased use of silver, and the
disuse of gold in this country, had in
no way affected the value of silver, but
had doubled the value of gold.
This assumption shows an ignorance
of the meaning of the word value" as
well as the principle of supply and de-
mand. The reverse would be the case.
With the American mint open, silver
would be worth more than it is now and
gold less. This would be true even
though parity were not restored and
gold went to a premium. Suppose that
under free coinage silver went to one
dollar an ounce in gold. This would
make the silver dollar worth n cents
in gold. The gold dollar would stand at
a premium lover silver) of 30 cents.
But it would not take as much wheat
or cotton or any other product to buy
a gold dollar as it does now. Why not?
Because most of the gold forced ort
of circulation here would go to Europe.
The annual produce of the mines would
be the same. AS a result gold would
became more plentiful on that conti-
he would ri
Our wheat and cotton and breadstuffs
of all kinds would go up in the Euro
pean market, aud that would carry
them up here. Thus we would be con-
fronted by the paradox of gold at a
premium, and at the same time cheap
er. A man with gold mortgage on
his farm could pay it more easily than
he can now. A farmer does not man.
ufacture money for himself-he buys
it with his products, and the higher
their price the more money he can get
whether it be gold or silver or paper.
The creditor classes, by forcing the
gold standard upon the people have
driven the debtor class to extremities.
making it almost impossible for them
to pay their debts. Having created
these conditions, leaving the debtor
almost hopeless, they now unblushing-
~ declare that if they (the debtors) at
tempt to relieve themselves, other and
worse conditions will arise whereby
they will not be able to pay at all, and
consequently viii be ruined. In short.
they now have the unfortunate debtor
in a ditch from which he is strug
Cling desperately to extricate himself,
and then tell him that if he does not
stop his struggles he will be pushed
in still deeper. If such argument as
that were to prevail no evil could ever
be remedied.--Illinois State Register.