The L'Anse sentinel. (L'Anse, L.S., Mich.) 18??-current, 1899-12-23
A STANDARD FOR ALL.
4 Question That Has Deen Solved
Beyond the Possibility
of Doubt.

1t can hardly be considered in the ma
ture of news that the German govern
ment is determined to stick TO the gold
standard. This is one of the thngs
which ''go without saying" But thers
is a bimetaliic faction in the reichstag.
and the other day it availed itself of az
opportunity afforded by government
bill to reopen the financial question,
The bill provides for an increase in the
silver coins in circulation till the total
amount reaches the proportion of ii
marks per head of the population.
Germany is not as rich country as the
United States, and its credit facilities
are not as highly developed. 1t needs
silver coin for retail trade, and when
gold is the standard and parity is main
tanned, there is no objection to the in
crease contemplated.
But the champions of free coinage
paint in dark colors the worlds pros
poets under gold standard. Referring
to the stoppage of the South African
supply of the yellow metal, they de-
manded to know what would happen if
the war lasted longer than year. The
dispatches do not indicate what the an
swer was, but it must have been this
that no great hardship would result.
The loss of $100,O00000 even, to take
the highest estimate of the loss, is nc.
doubt great absolutely, but relatively
to the stocks of gold in circulation and
otherwise available it is insignificant.
According to the latest figures given
by Secretary Gage in his report just
published, the gold stock in the United
States was $0G2, sos, sos at the end of the
last fiscal year, while in the world at
large it amounted at the beginning Of
the year to $4,631, 100000. The coming
and commercial value of the gold put
into circulation by the world in the ca
endar year 1898 was 1896, 477,005. The
temporary loss of the South African
supply cannot produce any grave con-
sequences. 1t Will scarcely be felt.
Recurring to the reichstag discussion,
the members heard a great deal of
wholesome truth. The director of the
tReichsbank tod them that all the civil
lied powers. had adopted the gold
standard and ceased to speculate about
any other, and this, he justly thought,
settled the question Of bimetallism.
The director of the German bank also
declared that the standard question had
been solved, and that there was abso-
lutely no prospect of silver dempniti-
cation in the sense given the term by
the opponents OF the single gold stand
ard. The truth Of this must be manifest
to all, excepting those willfully blind
and deaf. Even in Russia, which is I'M
dergoing monetary crisis, the govern
ment has officially declared that there
was no scarcity Of gold, and that nc
backward step was to be thought of as
a remedy.
In fine, gold is now everywhere the
standard, made such not by legislation
| but by necessity and industrial prog
ress. Yet there are men who insist that
the United States, the richest and most
enterprising country of all, ought to
descend to the silver level! But this
ogitation is vain. Mrs. Partington's as
saults upon the Atlantic were triumph
of practical sense when compared with
the sixteen to one propaganda. We
have the gold standard, and it should
be reaffirmed and safeguarded against
all attacks. It will be, for we have made
tremendous advance since 1896, when
politicians committed to gold were
afraid to use the term except in a whis-
per and with Dated breath.-Chicago
Evening Post.